Hello BM Briefers!

We hope you’re doing well and are ready for some billboard campaign insights.

Spooky season is upon us, and we’re surrounded by ghostly costumes, cobwebs, and pumpkins. Although Halloween is over in a day, it’s the beginning of an array of festivities to finish off the year; from Guy Fawkes Night to Ramadan, Christmas and Hanukkah, there are many opportunities for timely and relevant billboard advertising campaigns to BOOst your business (pun intended).

You may be wondering, how can I tie in a campaign with the festive season?

Not every business specialises in Halloween or Christmas décor, but it’s good practice to take advantage of the festivities and weave them into a campaign. For some businesses, the link may be simple, for example, food and beverage companies, whilst for others some outside-the-box thinking is required.

We want to make the outside-the-box thinking easier.

We held a brief interview with our graphic designer, Charlotte, who shed some light on how to make the most of the festivities:

1) How do you approach designing a vinyl billboard for the festive season? What elements do you prioritise?

My first approach would always be figuring out what the billboard is trying to achieve. As we get further into the year, it helps when clients focus on a specific USP to use on their billboard, be it upcoming sales for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Christmas and New Year etc or advertising new opening times as we get into the busier season.?

Alongside this, thinking outside the box for your brand messaging during the festive season can create a memorable connection with your audience. Unique storytelling, unexpected visuals, or interactive campaigns can capture attention and spark joy, setting your brand apart in a sea of traditional ads.

Another element I tend to prioritise is the use of colours. This can be anything from including a festive colour like red and green for Christmas or purple and orange for Halloween. But I also focus on how I can make the advert stand out even as the days get shorter and darker, making the most of the client’s advertising time on the board.

2) What are some common mistakes businesses make when designing festive billboards, and how can they avoid them?

The biggest mistake businesses can make during the festive period is putting too much information on the billboard, either as too many USPs or too many contact details and extra information.

Generally, people have an average of 3 seconds to read and understand the contents of the billboard, so advertising one USP with a great tagline and image will be enough to drive home your brand identity and business.

Additionally, launching festive campaigns too early or too late can miss the mark. Launching too early can lead to fatigue, where audiences become desensitised to holiday messaging before the season truly begins. Conversely, waiting too long might mean missing the opportunity to engage shoppers when they are actively seeking festive experiences or gifts.

3) What are some of the most successful festive billboard campaigns you’ve seen, and what made them stand out?

I really loved these Halloween designs for McDonalds which perfectly balance the use of Halloween imagery with their immediately recognisable branding. Humour is a great way of capturing potential customers’ attention and tends to stick in people’s minds. A funny tagline or visual can make your billboard stand out in a crowded advertising landscape, making it more likely that viewers will remember your brand long after they’ve seen it.

During the festival season there are plenty of instantly recognisable visuals like Christmas trees or Father Christmas etc that can be utilised with your product or brand in an unexpected way that helps create brand awareness.

4) How can small businesses with limited budgets create impactful festive billboard campaigns?

Ensure that any images you include are high-quality and showcase your specific products. While using stock images may seem like an easy shortcut, remember that these images are available to anyone and can dilute your brand's uniqueness. Most smartphones today can capture high-quality photos that are perfect for billboards, so I always recommend that clients use their own product images instead of stock photos, which often fail to represent your unique offerings effectively.

Additionally, don’t hesitate to take creative risks. A billboard featuring a funny, intriguing, or impactful message along with a contact number can often be more effective than simply listing all your products and services. Embrace creativity to capture attention and make a lasting impression!

Here at Billboard Media, we have a great design team that can help guide you through the process of creating your billboard artwork.

5) What’s your favourite festive song?

The Monster Mash!

?

Now that you have the lines unblurred for creating a festive billboard campaign, and a song recommendation to add to your playlist, all that’s left is to book a billboard.

We regularly update our LinkedIn with our newly available sites however, we’d like to give our Billboard Media Briefers a little extra something.

Get in there first with a billboard booking for the following locations which are becoming available in the next couple of months:

• Kings Lynn
• Harrow
• Friern Barnet?

Fill in our quick form to get started. Alternatively, if you're interested in other locations, send us an email at [email protected] .

We’d like to know what you think about how we can progress with our LinkedIn newsletter.

If there is anything you prefer to read about or you have any ideas, please get in touch by emailing [email protected] .

Thank you for reading!