HOW TO RENT BILLBOARDS THROUGH DIRECT MAIL

By, Frank Rolfe 

Although it is well recognized as an effective marketing tool for most products and services, few outdoor advertising companies recognize the potential of direct mail as a tool to rent billboard space. In fact, direct mail is an extremely effective way to market vacant billboard space.

Why?

There are many advertisers who have no idea what the cost of advertising space is on a billboard. Billboards are the least expensive per exposure of any media. Many advertisers who currently have ad placement in newspapers, radio or television are often shocked at how low cost outdoor advertising is. And many have never bothered to call to get a price list, since they are mistakenly convinced that it is out of their budget. Additionally, there are many new businesses that are equally unaware of the cost of billboard advertising, and are amazed at its affordability. Simply getting the message out to potential advertisers of what billboards really cost is very effective in finding new clients.

In addition, many advertisers have never even thought of a billboard as a marketing tool. Since most companies are familiar with print and other media, they often overlook the basic concept of investing their ad dollars in outdoor advertising. Receiving a direct mail piece often shocks them into giving it some consideration.

What does it cost?

The regular cost for a mailer is about what the cost of a standard stamp is. Many modern direct mail companies are able to ship in bulk, with reduced postage rates. So by the time you add in the cost of printing the envelopes and the flyers, the total package cost is about 50 cents or so per unit. If you were to make a 500 piece mailer, it would cost about $250, plus some additional set up and printing charges based on the provider. This is a bargain if you think of the cost of cold-calling these same prospects. Imagine how much time it would take to sit down and call and reach 500 decision makers. At 50 calls per day, which would be an unbelievable quantity, it would take ten business days, or roughly two weeks. And I believe that the direct mail piece does a better job, as it gives all the information in a few brief seconds, without putting the prospect on the spot.

What are the results?

A standard direct mail piece should yield a 1% response rate. So if you send out 500 mailers, you should get about 5 calls in. Of course, of these, some are just getting more information. But if everything is working according to plan, you should be able to close on at least one of these five clients – and one sale is absolutely all you are trying to accomplish. With most billboard leases being one year in length, you won’t have to do another mailer for a year on that same sign.

Who do you send it to?

You should target all of the businesses in the zip code of the billboard, or surrounding zip codes depending on the size of the sampling. Do not put too much effort into excluding certain business types – many of your best prospects are folks who have never used outdoor before. If there are 1,000 prospect businesses, then send an initial 500 out and, if that fails, send a second wave of 500. Often, you will get the job done with the first round of mailers.

What should the flyer say?

It should contain the following points:

The traffic count (e.g. “100,000 cars per day”).

The price (e.g. “$800 per month)

A photo of the sign, with the current advertiser on it so they recognize it (or better yet a photo of the sign with their competitor on it).

The location, in both verbage and on a map.

The size of the sign.

What direction it faces.

Whether or not it is lighted.

Your contact name and phone number

It should be compact and easy to read – no need for any fancy design work here.

Conclusion

One of the best salesman for an outdoor advertising company is a guy that never comes into the office, and can call on 500 or more customers per day. He is one of the best in the company, yet nobody pays him much attention. That guy, of course, is the direct mail piece. If you have a billboard for rent, try this concept out and see if it isn’t the best source of customers you’ve ever had.
 

About the Author:

Frank Rolfe started his billboard empire from his coffee table, as a fresh graduate from Stanford University.  It began as a resume builder for graduate school applications, and ended with a sale to a public company 14 years later.
 
Using unique strategies he developed from desperate competition with much larger adversaries, Rolfe eventually owned more billboard units than any private individual in Dallas/Ft. Worth.  Along the way, he fine-tuned the techniques to find billboard locations, rent advertising space, and sell signs and leases.

Rolfe is the author of the Billboard Home Study Course and has also put together the only bootcamp for those looking for a crash course on the billboard industry.  The Billboard Bootcamp is held twice a year in St. Louis, MO.