Advertising in the sky
Billboards are called “out of home advertisements” (OOH). This means that they are outside of the audience’s home. Billboards can be found on the side of highways and main roads. They are also found on the sides, or on top of tall office
buildings. Buildings on the corners of busy downtown intersections have print ads as well. Yonge and Dundas in downtown Toronto and Times Square New York are examples of busy downtown intersections. Print ads can also be mounted on a tall
frame standing on the ground.
Billboards use features such as images, sounds, colour, text, frames, and size to convey their message. Placement is also an important part of designing a billboard.
Task 1
Student Success
Think-Pair-Share
Explore the description below for a billboard design. If possible, discuss (and share) your thinking with a partner or record your thoughts.
Questions:
- How does the font size, font contrast, and background help to communicate the message?
- Where do you think this billboard should be placed to be the most effective?
- How would you create an audio version of this ad to bring about the same effect?
- Who is the target audience for this billboard? Why do you think that?
Note to teachers: See your teacher guide for collaboration tools, ideas and suggestions.
Task 2
Compare the two versions of descriptions for billboard designs.
Version 1
Description
This is a billboard showing two people canoeing across a still lake, with mountains in the background. There is a short message that is direct and to the point. The message reads “Be Keen. Think Green” and it is written in large font size, so people can read it clearly. The word "Green" is bolded.
Version 2
Description
This is a billboard showing a beach littered with pieces of plastic, a broken chair, empty bottles and garbage. A seagull stands next to the messy area. At the bottom of the billboard there is a short message that is direct and to the point. The message reads "Be Keen, Think Green." The words are bolded and written in a large font size so that people can read it clearly.
Student Success
Think-Pair-Share
If possible, work with a partner to discuss the following questions:
- Who is the target audience for each description? What evidence did you use to draw this conclusion?
- Do you think the different backgrounds change the target audience?
- How does changing the billboard elements affect the message?
- How do you think the two versions of descriptions would make the target audience feel?
Note to teachers: See your teacher guide for collaboration tools, ideas and suggestions.
Task 3
Interactive billboards
So far, we have explored some typical descriptions of billboards. To create more interest, some billboards are interactive. For example, a popular iced-tea brand created an interactive billboard in the summer. The billboard encouraged people to press a button. Once pressed, the billboard would spray the person with a cool, refreshing mist.
An advertisement team is creating an advertisement for the Big Top Academy Fan Day. Explore the following information about the event.
What kind of features are used in the Big Top Academy billboard? Record your ideas orally, digitally, in print, or in a method of your choice.
How could you help the Advertisement team make this an interactive billboard? Record your ideas orally, digitally, in print, or in a method of your choice.