Out of Home
Your client hanging along the avenue
By Kathy Prentice
Apr 21, 2008 - 1:05:03 AM

Advertisers can catch the eye of both pedestrians and vehicle passengers by blanketing a market with their brand displayed on full-color banners. The two-sided banners are placed on light poles lining city streets.

To find out how to get your client’s message flying high in high-traffic areas, read on.

This is one in a Media Life series on buying the new out-of-home venues. They appear weekly.

Fast Facts

What
Ads placed on banners flown from light poles in top metro markets.

Who
Titan Worldwide, headquartered in New York.

How it works
Branding messages are placed on banners that are displayed from light poles in high-traffic areas.

There are two banner programs. Theme Banners focus on branding. Examples include “New York City – The Fashion Capital of the World.”

Special Event Banners promote high-profile happenings like the parade honoring the New York Giants after their Super Bowl victory. Other examples include the Grammy Awards, U.S. Open and San Francisco Jazz Festival.

Banner programs can also be placed near conventions, conference centers and museums.

Advertisers also use banners to publicize their sponsorship of civic events or programs. For example, a credit card company might sponsor an art exhibit, and both would be included in banner art, says worldwide marketing director Dave Etherington.

Creative includes graphics as well as text and is usually developed specifically for banners.

Local as well as national advertisers appear on banners. They can be placed at a specific location to advertise a nearby event or product, or are they can be deployed across a market for both branding and promotions.

Banners can stand alone or can be part of a media mix.

An advertiser can buy one banner or 10,000, Etherington says.

Multiple advertisers can be placed on the same street. Trickle-down coverage occurs when banners are filmed in the background of movies.

Markets
The program is available in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Detroit, Daytona, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C.

Numbers
There are 250,000 light poles in the New York network. Typically between 4,000 and 8,000 are used for banners at any one time.

The number of banners available in other markets varies by locale and campaign.

How it is measured
Impressions are estimated by using footfall and traffic counts provided by municipalities.

Both vehicular and pedestrian traffic are targeted.

According to data provided by the city, 8,577,820 New Yorkers walk one mile or more each day in the city.

What product categories do well
Automobiles, financial services and tourism are top categories.

Sporting and cultural events also do well.

Demographics
According to data provided by Titan from the U.S. Census Bureau, Arbitron, Scarborough and NYC Metropolitan Transportation Authority:
- 45 percent of New York walkers earn $75,000 and up annually
- 55.8 percent of walkers have graduated high school or attended college

Specific groups can be targeted. For example, ethnic targeting can be by language. In New York, banners can be printed in Spanish, Chinese or Italian for placement in neighborhoods. Financial districts, universities and cultural centers are also used for targeting different socio-economic groups.

Making the buy
Lead time is four weeks.

Factors that affect cost include number of banners, length of contract, location and other elements of an ad package.

A typical flight is four weeks.

Who’s already on banners
The New York Giants, Cosmopolitan, Jeep, Pfizer and Nintendo have used branded banner campaigns.

What they’re saying
“The banners became a wonderful backdrop to the city. Two million people showed up for the ticker tape parade and the street pole banners were up the entire time. It puts you outdoors 24/7 as a prominent part of the cityscape.” – Michael Stevens, senior vice president and chief marketing officer for the New York Giants

Web site info
Titan Outdoor at http://www.titanoutdoor.com