All posts in Billboards

2009 OBIE Award Winners Announced

by DOmedia on April 21, 2009 in Advertising, Agencies, Alternative advertising, Billboards, News, Technology, Uncategorized with No comments

Congratulations to all of the recently-named OBIE Award winners, merit winners, and finalists! This year’s participants all showed a great deal of creativity in the out-of-home space, but a few of them in particular caught my eye.

McDonald’s had a strong advertising campaign, winning two separate awards for both their “Always Fresh Coffee” and “Fresh Daily Eggs” billboards. The first of the two shown high above Time’s Square, a spout continuously pouring fresh coffee into a cup several stories below (I wonder where all the coffee goes after making its big NYC debut . . . ). The second involved a large egg that cracked open at 6:00 a.m.–when they begin serving breakfast–to reveal an over-easy egg, but closed again at 11:00 a.m. when breakfast ends. Between the two billboards, Leo Burnett Chicago took home two “Individual Execution- Traditional Billboard” awards as well as recognition for their Special F/X.

Another interesting use of out-of-home came from BBDO New York & Proximity Canada for Gillette Fusion Power, which took home the OBIE Award for “Individual Execution- Street Furniture / Transit / Alternative.” As seen in the pic below, the agencies made creative use of a zamboni by attaching a larger-than-life Gillette razor to the back of it as it swept across the ice.

One of the more interactive campaigns came from Leo Burnett Toronto for James Ready Beer who vows to try to keep their prices at $1 a beer. To do so, they needed to lower billboard costs and decided to look to their consumers for help. By offering up their billboards, consumers became “celebrities for the day” by sending in pictures to be posted on the giant signs. Underneath the images read, “Thanks ____ for keeping J.R. a Buck.” Consumers and judges alike loved the campaign, awarding them “Best of Show” and “International.” Click here to see the YouTube video.

All of this year’s award winners show that creativity and innovation in the out-of-home advertising industry are still on the rise. To find more information on the rest of this year’s OBIE Award winners, go to the OAAA website at http://www.oaaa.org/awards/obieawards.aspx.

Most Recent Mobile Billboard Comes in a Much Smaller, Furrier Package

by DOmedia on February 19, 2009 in Advertising, Alternative advertising, Billboards, Branding campaigns, Events, Trends with No comments

For many, last weekend marked the most romantic day of the year’€”Valentine’s Day. For others, however, the weekend of Friday the 13th held a day surrounded by superstition and fear’€”F.E.A.R. 2 to be exact.

‘€œF.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin,’€ the newest computer game from Warner Bros. with a horror theme, launched its new London promotion on Friday the 13th using the very symbol for bad luck’€”black cats. While most people avoid black cats crossing their paths, it was nearly impossible in the streets of London on the day known for its superstition. The little feline billboards were dressed in miniature clothing adorned with advertising for the game and then set loose to wreak havoc through the city. And according to Charlene Allen, a Warner Bros. spokesperson, Brits actually seek out signs of bad luck on Friday the 13th, making the promotion that much more effective.

The ‘€œF.E.A.R.’€ kitty clothes were being sold through Warner Bros. for fashionable cats across the country, but have unfortunately sold out.

Creative Outdoor Ad Contest Announced Using Creative Outdoor Ads

by DOmedia on February 13, 2009 in Advertising, Alternative advertising, Billboards, News with No comments

Australia’s Outdoor Media Association has launched a creative outdoor campaign–for a contest rewarding creative outdoor campaigns. The newly created contest, called The Outdoor Awards, will judge the year’s best outdoor advertisements across 11 categories.

Every year, the best creative work will win a prize valued at $10,000. This year, however, the association is striving to show the effectiveness of outdoor advertising by producing the prize in the form of a billboard’€”covered in 10,000 $1 scratch-off lottery tickets! The billboard, which is heavily guarded 24 hours a day (so don’t even think about it!), is located on the side of a Sydney road where 100,000 cars pass every day.

The launch of The Outdoor Awards campaign actually began in October when OMA utilized yet another OOH medium. For 40 days, a mobile billboard truck was driven over 10,000 km in Australia. The message displayed on the truck was simple and to the point: ‘€œTHE OUTDOOR AWARDS ARE COMING’€.

With their lone billboard, OMA is raising national awareness of the contest, showing the effectiveness of a creative outdoor ad, and presenting the actual prize to a large-scale audience. Talk about killing two birds with one stone . . .

Oh, and good luck to the winner. May your incredible, award-winning creativity aid you in scratching off 10,000 individual lottery tickets before reaching insanity. I hope you have a lot of pennies . . .

Out-of-Home Joins Inauguration Festivities with Messages of Optimism & Change

by DOmedia on January 20, 2009 in Advertising, Alternative advertising, Billboards, Branding campaigns, DOmedia, Events with No comments

January 20 marks the historical inauguration of our 44th president, making it the perfect environment for companies to reach millions of Americans with their own messages of change. GM has made this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity into a road trip, beginning in Detroit and ending in Washington, D.C. just in time for the inauguration. A caravan of Saturn Vue 2-Mode Hybrids, carrying the theme ‘€œThe Road to Change Starts in Your Driveway,’€ will stop at Ohio State University, Penn State University, and Howard University.

Mirroring Obama’s own message of hope and optimism, Pepsi plans to have a large presence at the inauguration with messages such as ‘€œYes You Can’€ and ‘€œAll for One’€ residing on the city’s billboards, buses, etc. In another out-of-home tactic, street teams will hand out commemorative buttons, hats, and scarves that flaunt those same messages of hope. To see what else Pepsi has planned, go to www.RefreshEverything.com.

American companies aren’t the only ones welcoming in the new President at our nation’s capital. As part of its ‘€œEmbrace Change 09’€ out-of-home campaign, Swedish-born Ikea has recreated the Oval Office (using their own Ikea furniture) in Washington, D.C.’s Union Station, one of the nation’s busiest train stations. According to a company release, ‘€œPresident-elect Obama’s notion of change and his commitment to fiscal responsibility match the Ikea philosophy of practical and affordable home furnishings for all.’€ For this reason, Ikea has offered to furnish any room in the White House the First Family wishes to redesign’€”for free! Go to www.embracechange09.com to learn more.

NYC is a spectacle on NYE thanks to out-of-home advertising

by DOmedia on December 31, 2008 in Advertising, Alternative advertising, Billboards, Branding campaigns, DOmedia, Events, Sponsorships, Technology, Trends, Uncategorized with No comments

Much like years past, New York City’s Times Square is bringing together some of the biggest brand names for the all-time New Year’s Eve celebration. And once again, out-of-home advertising is the star of the show. This year, however, sponsors are getting a bit more creative and optimistic (not to mention frisky) in an economy that has seen mostly pessimism and stagnation in the past year. From confetti wishes and kissing stages to wind-powered digital billboards, it will truly be a site to see.

New this year at midnight, Times Square will rain hopes and dreams’€”literally. The Mars brand’s newest candy bar, 3 Musketeers Mint, is sponsoring a Wishing Wall for people to submit their resolutions, goals, and hopes for 2009. The messages will then be printed on tiny pieces of paper and dropped over Times Square at midnight, showering New York City with over a ton of wish-covered confetti. Wishes can be submitted online at http://www.timessquarenyc.org/nye/nye_interactive.html or in person at the Times Square Information Center.

Echoing Mars’ upbeat tempo is Pepsi’s new ad campaign focused on youthful optimism that will blanket the billboards of NYC. The campaign, titled Wordplay, creates uplifting words out of the brand’s redesigned logo. As part of the NYE festivities, the company will unleash one thousand balloons (complete with new Pepsi logo, of course) on Times Square minutes before midnight. Stuck at home for New Year’s? You can still be a part of the action by texting “Change”, along with your own message of optimism, to 66333 where it could appear on MTV’s Times Square screen or in their coverage of the celebration.

Not to be outdone, JVC’s iconic (and newly designed) digital billboard will also allow partygoers to take pics from their cell phones and upload them to nyc@jvcnewyear.com. Once approved, they will display for three seconds on JVC’s 19- by 34-foot high-def screen.

With luck, the hope and happiness theme will carry through the coming year, lifting our spirits (and possibly the economy) along the way. Happy 2009!