• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Shop
  • Jobs Board
Campaigns & Elections logo

Campaigns & Elections

  • Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Articles
    • Industry News
    • CampaignTech
    • Creative
  • Videos
  • Buyer’s Guide
  • Reports
  • Expert Database
  • Events
  • Awards
    • Reed Awards
    • CampaignTech Awards
    • Rising Stars
  • Consultant Directory
  • Become a Member
  • Shop
  • Job Board
  • Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn

The Billboard Creative Battle Is Coming to a Precinct Near You

Billboard advertisements on the street in New York City

This cycle will see a boom in out-of-home (OOH) advertising creative for a couple reasons. For starters, the medium, which includes everything from billboards to electronic bus shelter posters and top-of-taxi placements, is great for raising name ID, which any office holder finding themselves in a new district (because of redistricting) is going to need. The second is issues, of which this cycle has many ranging from high gas prices to inflation to abortion access.

The challenge, according to Lamar’s John Miller, a sales & marketing EVP, is creative copy writing. His advice: “Keep it short, keep it relevant and be flexible.”

“It’s not easy coming up with a simple message,” he told C&E. “There are times when we say, ‘we’d be stealing if we put this up.’”

That’s not to say all political OOH advertising needs to be dominated by copy. “I’ve seen some great ones with just copy. I’ve seen some great ones with just visual,” said Miller, whose company is the largest OOH U.S. provider in terms of panels and revenue.

Subscribe for Industry News Plus the Latest in Campaign Strategy & Tactics

Hidden
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Money is certainly moving toward the channel. Last cycle, political ad spending on OOH grew 65 percent from the previous presidential year. But if you’re still not convinced by the strategic imperatives of name ID and salient issue advertising, the Out of Home Advertising Association of America has some new data it wants to share.

The trade group recently commissioned a survey from The Harris Poll to measure the effectiveness of the medium and found that, at the very least, people report seeing these ads. In fact, 33 percent of respondents who said they planned to vote in the midterms reported seeing OOH political spots within the last week.

Another key finding of the survey was that young people reported being influenced by what they saw: 73 percent of Millennial respondents said they were influenced by OOH political ads, compared with 71 percent of Gen Zers and 49 percent of Gen X respondents. Now, Gen Zers (41%) were more likely to report that the OOH political spots increased awareness of an issue while Millennials (34%) said the ads generated interest to do more research.

One thing to consider with OOH creative is approvals. Miller said his company has sped up its approvals process, partly because digital placements now make up 2.5 percent of the company’s total inventory.

“We have a process: on any issue related copy, it’s goes through the local manager, and our local managers have a pretty good sense of what would be generally accepted in that community. Then it goes up the chain,” he said. “If it is at all sensitive, we have a process that it goes through so when it hits the street it’s gone through a pretty rigorous process [to determine whether] it will be accepted in this local market.”

Share:
FacebookTweetLinkedIn
Filed Under:
Out of Home

Primary Sidebar

By
Sean J. Miller
07/18/2022 08:36 AM EDT
FacebookTweetLinkedIn

C&E Creative Summit 2023 Countdown:

Get Tickets

Most Read

  • Digital Organizing

    How Digital Can Help Thread the Needle in Virginia

  • Sponsored

    Combine Digital Advertising With Direct Mail, The SMART Way

  • Sponsored

    Political Comms Is The Premium Peer-To-Peer Texting Platform

Subscribe for Industry News Plus the Latest in Campaign Strategy & Tactics

Hidden
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Related Articles

See More Out of Home Articles
Sponsored

3 Big Reasons Out-Of-Home Advertising Should Be a Part of Your ’22 Media Plan 

Billboards in Times Square in New York City
Digital Advertising

The Ad Tech Takeover Has Reached the Most Analog of Mediums

Outdoor digital billboards on New York City street
Out of Home

Careful Creative Choices Can Land Prime Placements With OOH

Become a member and get access to exclusive content.

Join Today

Footer

Upcoming Events

  • June 21

    Strategy Session: Launching and Expanding a Political Consulting Business

  • June 28

    The Future of Politics: Three Cutting-Edge Tools to Win in 2024

  • September 21

    Campaigns & Elections Creative Summit

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

For the latest in campaign strategy & tactics plus industry news and analysis, subscribe for free today.

"*" indicates required fields

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Follow us

Follow Campaign and Elections for more daily content.

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • About
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact

Copyright © 2023 Political World Communications, LLC

Advertisement

Subscribe for Industry News Plus the Latest in Campaign Strategy & Tactics

Hidden
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.