Outdoor Advertising: Billboards, Posters & More Transit Advertising to to Billboards
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The Main Types of Outdoor Advertising
Extensive research highlights the power of Outdoor Advertising as a highly effective medium, consistently delivering impressive returns on investment. Success depends on strategically selecting the perfect location and pairing it with eye-catching, well-crafted creative to resonate with your target audience. By leveraging the right strategies, Outdoor Advertising can amplify brand awareness and drive measurable results.
To help you better understand this impactful medium, we’ve outlined the nine major types of Outdoor Advertising commonly used in the United States. From billboards to transit ads, these formats offer endless possibilities for connecting with consumers in high-traffic areas.
Wild Posting®
Wild Posting® is papering loads of posters on walls, barricades or buildings in high-traffic areas to draw attention through sheer volume and repetition. Wild Posting® can be the most effective form of street-level advertising when done right.
What is Wild Posting® is Best For?It is most popular among cannabis, entertainment, cosmetics, music and fashion brands to build hype and spark anticipation.
Common Sizes for Wild Posting®Wild Posting® takes many formats, so there’s no standard size. Some brands also prefer using stickers, which can be pretty small.
Average Cost of Wild Posting®The average cost of a Wild Posting® campaign in big cities like Los Angeles and New York City is $3,000 all the way up to $10,000 or more.
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Billboards
Billboards are the classic form of outdoor advertising, often seen along highways, expressways, and other high-traffic areas. They are the iconic image most people picture when they hear the term “outdoor advertising.”
What are Billboards Best for?Any brand that wants exposure to commuters, including cannabis, fashion, music, entertainment, legal, fast food, direct to consumer, sports and more.
What are Standard Billboard Dimensions?Standard Billboards are usually 14 feet high by 48 feet wide.
What are Billboards Average Costs?The average cost of a billboard depends on the geographic area and location within the city. It can range from $500 for four weeks in a rural area to up to $20,000 per month in New York City or Los Angeles.
More Information 8-Sheets
Another form of billboard posted on regular streets, not highways. We like to think of these as mini-billboards.
What are 8-sheets Best For?Basically any brand that uses out-of-home ads, from cannabis and music to entertainment and sports.
WHAT are 8-sheets dimensions?8-Sheets are usually 6 feet high by 12 feet wide.
AVERAGE COST for 8-sheetsThe average cost of an 8 sheet varies by location, likely anywhere from $500 to $15,000 or more inside a busy city. It costs about $5 for every 1,000 people you reach (this is called the CPM).
More Information Bus Benches
Bus Benches are ads on benches you sit on while waiting at the bus stop or in bus shelters.
Bus Benches are best for?Almost any brand, including legal, cannabis, direct to consumer, food, music, entertainment, restaurants and more.
COMMON DIMENSIONSBus Benches are 24 inches high by 84 inches wide.
AVERAGE COSTThe average cost of bus bench advertising is between $250 to $900-plus per four weeks, depending on the quantity and market.
More Information Wall Projections
Wall Projections Ads are a form of Guerilla Advertising done exclusively at night time using a light projector. The ads can be moving or stationary, and are projected onto buildings. Sometimes Wall Projection advertising is accompanied with sounds.
Wall Projections are Best for?Wall projections work well for clients looking to market to specific demo or specific location.
AVERAGE COST FOR WALL PROJECTIONSThe average cost of Wall Projections advertising is between $2,000 to $3,000 per night depending on location. A city like New York city will cost more than a smaller city like San Diego.
More Information On Wall Projections 
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Mobile Billboards are on the sides of trucks or otherwise on wheels that travel all over town.
Mobile Billboards are Best forEntertainment and music brands and those targeting local audiences that want a more interactive element or maybe can’t afford prominent in-city billboards, like small business owners.
Common Dimensions for Mobile BillboardsMeasurements may depending on the size of trucks you use, but 10 feet by 20 feet is a standard.
Mobile Billboards Average Cost?A mobile billboard in NYC or LA starts between $1,800 and $2,000 per day.
More Information In-Theater
Commercials on the screen in a cinema as well as signage outside the cinema.
What is Cinema Advertising Best for?Almost any brand, including movie studios, music, mobile, local businesses and more.
COMMON DIMENSIONSThe size of the movie screen.
Average Cost for Cinema Advertising?The average cost of in-theater advertising is about $5,000 for four weeks.
More Information Guerilla Advertising
Guerilla Advertising is made to amaze and astonish — think outrageous stuff you want to tell people about after you see it.
Guerilla Advertising BEST FORBrands that want to make a bold splash, like cannabis, automotive, mobile, alcohol, entertainment, music and more.
COMMON DIMENSIONSThere’s no standard type or size of guerilla advertising, but some examples include chalk stencils, projections, experiential advertising campaigns and more.
AVERAGE COST of Guerilla advertisingThe average cost of guerilla advertising is roughly $5,000 to $10,000 per activation.
More Info on Guerilla Advertising Digital Billboards
Digital signage, which includes billboards and other types of ads.
BEST FORAny brand that wants a wide reach and has the money, including music, entertainment, cannabis, legal and more.
COMMON DIMENSIONSDigital billboards vary, but the standard billboard is the same size as a traditional one — 14 feet high by 48 feet wide.
AVERAGE COSTThe average cost of digital billboards is about $2,000 to $5,000 more than traditional billboards.
More Information Experiential Marketing
Experiential marketing by definition creates experiences for pedestrians and passersby, making them part of the advertisement. It engages the senses and gives people a firsthand feel for what it’s like to use a product.
BEST FORIt is most popular with fashion, music and hair and makeup brands or any brand that wants to gain social media traction from a splashy campaign.
COMMON DIMENSIONSThere are few commonalities (and no dimensions) for experiential campaigns. Experiential marketing examples include anything from a vending machine popping out limited-edition cassettes to an ice cream truck giving away treats to a bold three-dimensional display on a city corner.
AVERAGE COST for experiential marketingThe average cost of an experiential marketing campaign can vary wildly depending on the city, approach and aims of the campaign. They can reach up to $20,000 or more, but you can also keep them very small and pull something off for a few thousand.
More Information Outdoor Advertising FAQs
Q. WHAT IS OUTDOOR ADVERTISING?
Out-of-home advertising, also referred to as OOH, includes all types of advertising available in public spaces outside the home. It encompasses everything from wallscapes to transit ads at subway stations and bus stops to digital boards atop taxis to roadside billboards on high-traffic highways.
Vendors sell the ad inventory, and agencies like us help everyone from big record labels to movie studios to small local businesses buy that space. You might use out of home for marketing campaigns focused on sales, new products or special events — anything, really.
Q. WHAT ARE THE PROS AND CONS OF OUTDOOR ADVERTISING?
The pros of outdoor advertising include:
- Exceptionally good value, with low-cost pricing well below most other forms of media.
- Huge growth industry, with spending on the rise year over year for more than a decade until the pandemic and bouncing back quickly after that small blip.
- Fantastic way to reach a narrow target audience that’s guaranteed to see your creative.
- Few limiting regulations to deal with when you use an agency that understands the industry.
- Proven results, with research showing that outdoor media engages potential customers and leads to conversions.
There are very few cons of outdoor advertising, but they may include:
- Some continued controversy over digital billboards and other DOOH.
- Several types of outdoor advertising lack apples-to-apples measurement methods.
Q. WHAT ARE THE BEST TYPES OF OUTDOOR ADS?
What generates success depends on your industry and your goals. You can never go wrong with a billboard. Digital billboards draw lots of attention, and mobile billboards can get to places that may be otherwise off-limits to advertising. Transit advertising hits commuters on the go. In-theater reaches a captive audience. There’s really no bad type of outdoor ad.
