BKC Solutions Corner

Billboards are everywhere on US highways. Though some feel the number of billboards on our US highways is an eyesore, the billboards often provide valuable information for travelers.

Billboards are an effective way to advertise but their design means they have at least two drawbacks. First, the ad awaits drivers to pass by. If no one comes, no matter how important the information it contains, its silent vigil is useless. Second, normal billboards can’t do anything to attract attention. They are like statues and, with the presence of so many others, might well just be ignored.

To retain the advantages of size and color found in a stationary billboard, yet overcome these two obstacles mentioned above, some inventor came up with the concept of a portable billboard. It is a billboard that actually moves to where the people are. A portable billboard is  a billboard message displayed on the side of a truck (commonly called truckside advertising) or trailer and then driven into the target area.

The simplest and least expensive way to do this is to rent the sides and back of a truck that will post your printed ad there. You can even share the truck with another company, posting a different ad on each side and on the back for a given period of time. Everywhere the truck goes, the ad is seen. If the ad is attractive, people waiting in traffic or noticing a parking area will read the ad.

For more money, you can rent a moving ad. One version if this is designed on the same principle as the vertical three sided changing billboards. The truck or trailer is equipped with small versions of the vertical turning billboards. Each side of the prism shaped vertical sticks contains a part of the billboard. When the first surface of all of them is displayed, the entire message is seen. Then they rotate to display a second and third message, almost instantly. Traveling through traffic, the message on the sides and back keep changing every ten or fifteen seconds and this demands attention.

Another method of changing the message on the truck or trailer is through rolled up banners displayed a little at a time. A timer activates a motor and, almost instantly, the roller at the top or bottom pulls a different message into view, similar to messages at the stats tables of a basketball game. One firm sells such 10′ by 10′ trailers and claims ten messages can be stored and displayed on each of the three sides. Tempered glass protects the message and mechanism. These are also lighted internally, a fact that makes them visible even at night.

The most expensive method of portable billboard message changing is through electronics. The side of the truck or trailer is fitted with a myriad of lights that can be programmed to display multi-colored messages. No printed message is ever made; the design and display are done by the computer.

As was stated earlier, each of these techniques has the great advantage of moving the billboard message to the people. It is a great way to inform a larger audience and to advertise goods or services not related to highway travelers.

For leading mobile billboard advertising services, check out AirSign Aerial Advertising. They have proven since 1996 that customer satisfaction and maximizing client’s advertising budgets are their top priority.