political-billboards

For years, the onset of election season has meant one certain thing for voters: an onslaught of television ads from both parties. Television has long been the primary medium for political candidates and propositions, but it seems that after years of politicians and third party interest groups clamoring for ad space, a major shift may be occurring away from television ads and toward billboard advertisements.

Steady Growth In Outdoor Ad Sales Reported

Between the 2009-2010 election cycle and the 2011-2012 election cycle, the Outdoor Advertising Association of America reports that sales of outdoor ad space for political use increased by a whopping 13%. This upswing in sales is quite a peak, given the short amount of time it occurred in, and most professionals in the outdoor advertising community agree that sales of billboard space to political candidates and political advocacy groups will likely continue to climb in the years to come.

Shift From Local Markets to Statewide Elected Offices

Billboards have long been a favored mode of advertising for local candidates and city wide measures, but the recent increase in political billboard spending has included a major increase in those running for statewide offices seeking advertising space. It has become quite common for those running for senate and congress to use billboards as a means of advertising.

Changing Trends in Advertising Leading to Shifts Within the Industry

The number of political candidates seeking advertising space has shifted to such a degree that many of the companies who own and operate outdoor media spaces have created job positions specifically intended to address the needs of political clients. Many businesses have recently created department specifically geared toward political advertising.

Billboards Proving to Be an Effective Means of Utilizing New Technology

When people think about tech based advertising methods, they may not immediately consider billboards, but the reality is that billboards are utilizing and taking advantage of advances in technology. New high tech billboards are proving to be a wonderful resource for political candidates because of the fact that they can now be used to integrate things like current news stories.

A Source of Consistent Attention

Billboards in general are seen by many advertising strategists as a lucrative advertising option for a number of reasons. Firstly, they offer one significant advantage over television and radio ads because of the fact that they are seen by commuters on at least a daily basis. This may mean that the message on the boards has a greater chance of being retained by potential voters, and that they have a better chance of absorbing the copy on the board because, unlike a television channel, they cannot simply change the channel.

Billboards also offer the secondary benefit of possibly offering secondary exposure when they generate attention from newspapers and new stations, who may create “free advertising” situations when they report on things like the content of a board or individual’s reaction to them. The next few years seem to be shaping up to be quite a time of growth and profit for those in the outdoor advertising industry.

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