Execute OOH Like a Boss

The more things change, the more they stay the same—sometimes—but when comes to the effectiveness of Out of Home advertising (OOH), it definitely rings true.

Whether your ads appear on a digital billboard or are printed on vinyl they are still highly effective at reaching new home buyers now—and far into the future.

We understand homebuilders rely on local market advertising and much of that local market advertising is a combination of radio, print, digital and OOH. For this article, we’re going to focus specifically on how to best utilize OOH to sell homes.

Let’s explore why.

Catch the Weekend Home-Buying Crowd

Sure, we have become a digitally connected society. If you want to reach people, you need to advertise where they are. That often means going mobile.

Even so, OOH is still extremely important because active home buyers are mobile themselves. Especially on weekends.

If your community falls within their regular driving patterns, for example, chances are your neighborhood is of interest. If they don’t know it’s there, however, they won’t take the exit, won’t make that turn and—worse yet—might see a sign pointing them in the opposite direction to the model homes of a competitor.

So, begin by making sure your message is visible along their path, where it can’t be missed. And that means buying space on billboards.

Target Home Buyers Spot-On

Having your message posted on a giant sign hoisted high in the sky is great. Having the ability to choose the 20 best places for them to appear rather than blanketing an entire region is not only cost-saving, it’s strategic.

We understand that selling new homes when you have multiple locations requires spot marketing. Billboards are a great way to pinpoint where your messages should appear. Instead of simply blanketing an entire area with ads in television or daily newspapers, make sure your traditional media campaign will reach people when they are actually out hunting for a house.

Converting local street traffic to foot traffic in your models in real-time means reaching passers-by while they are in one of your target areas. Once again, that should include leveraging the power of billboards.

Tell Your New Community's Story

Simply deploying an OOH campaign using the winning combo of billboards and other traditional media isn’t enough. Your efforts will fall flat if your creative fails to tell your story within just a few seconds.

This means taking the time to find ways to visually tell your story quickly, simply and consistently. Here’s a checklist of options to help you rate your current OOH campaign story or to develop something new:

1. Be relevant to your location

Let people know where your homes are located.

2. Reflect your price point

Use words and images appropriate for how much your homes cost.

3. Build (or leverage) branding

A specific builder might not be as important as price and location to home buyers until you’ve built brand awareness.

4. Use a play on words

Create something informational and memorable with a fun double entendre.

5. Be bold; be bright; stand out

Use a heavy font for text in a color which will offer high contrast against the background.

6. Be succinct

Your ad needs to be seen and understood in 5 to 10 seconds. Keep text to six or seven words—or less.

7. Use strong images

Pictures are great at telling stories. Choose wisely and let them do the heavy lifting (see our related article on image libraries).

8. Stick to your story

You don’t have time for multiple chapters or surprise endings. Get to the point and focus only on price, location or lifestyle.

9. Lead with the upper left corner

If people are whizzing by they might not get past whatever you put there. Consider using your logo.

10. Buy several in key locations

Billboards are a bit like potato chips. It takes more than one to get the job done.

Need help?

Not sure where to start? You’re not alone. LAVIDGE can help. We have long-established relationships with various media  who can help get your messages placed exactly where they need to be seen—and heard.

To learn more, give us a call at 480.998.2600 or send email to [email protected].