Billboard and Outdoor Advertising

(Via Adverblog)

I can’t decide if this billboard from MINI USA is frightening or just really cool. In several major cities, MINI (creator of the famous MINI Cooper) has placed billboards that can actually recognize passing MINI vehicles and greet the driver by name. Apparently the boards contain built in sensors that can immediately identify individual cars and retrieve basic information about the owner. Rest assured, MINI owners give their consent to tag their cars with information so no one’s privacy is being unwillingly violated. There are still other concerns associated with this type of advertising including the potential for drivers to become distracted and cause accidents.

While the campaign certainly earns my respect for innovation and creativity, the “Orwellian” quality of the ads might turn some people off the brand. A less subversive way to demonstrate customer appreciation might be sending mini-owners personalized holiday gifts.

(Photo via Cherry Flava)

A light bulb illuminates whenever someone walks beneath this billboard for The Economist, a popular political and international affairs publication. I like the eye-catching nature of this board: a passerby may glance over the ad then notice it light up and turn back to look again. The image of the light bulb also reflects The Economist’s aims “to take part in a severe contest between intelligence, which presses forward, and an unworthy, timid ignorance obstructing our progress.” (From The Economist website.)

Though the board contains no other text other than simply “The Economist” its message is extremely clear, making it an excellent blend of guerrilla marketing and traditional billboard advertising.

Gone are the days of slapping your brand name on a billboard and tossing it up on the side of the street.  The best ads these days incorporate extreme creativity, eye-catching aesthetics, and, in some cases, professional engineering.  Just ask people at the ad agency Leo Burnett, which designed this McDonald’s sundial billboard in Chicago.

The metallic arch is perfectly placed above the ad to cast a big “M” shadow over each item at the appropriate time of day.  As if America’s fast food woes weren’t bad enough, this billboard suggests six different Mickey D’s items you can eat, one per hour, until the noon hour signals Big Mac time.  Hey, even those who argue that advertising is evil can’t say this isn’t ingenius.  I guess the only knock against it is that the hours on this clock run counter-clockwise.

Billboards give companies the ability to communicate their marketing message in a larger-than-life manner to really drive their point home. This capability is demonstrated by this unique Prestige Omega Cookware billboard. After doing some market research and determining that consumers were disappointed with how weak the handles were in their existing pots and pans, Prestige Omega set out to create a line of cookware with extra-durable handles. To promote the new products they created this billboard, which jokes that the strength of the new handle is capable of supporting the entire sign by itself! This is a funny and creative way to place the focus on the new durability of Prestige Omega products. I’m sure it left a lasting impression and increased interest in the new pans.

(via Adsoftheworld)

A classic from the Billboard Liberation Front.

Generally speaking, lingerie stores have it easy when it comes to creating advertising that gets attention. In this case, they were pretty creative, too! (via Billboardom)

Ron English has done about a bajillion funny, quirky, thought-provoking, and generally entertaining billboards, including this one.

Here’s a pretty crazy billboard that is a) really, really long and b) has cars on it. Pretty awesome, and I guess it’s really at testament to Russia’s financial success over the past few years as oil and natural gas prices have skyrocketed. (via Billboardom)

Carlsberg Beer promoted their new bottle design with a billboard designed from bottles. That’s quite a mouthful. It’s also an awesome billboard!