How Much Does A Billboard Cost?

Billboard prices are not often understood by many business owners and even seasoned marketers. Since outdoor advertising is so flexible and personalized to your demands and goals, prices depend on the following factors:

Location

Location, location, location. A billboard in the middle of nowhere is not going to cost the same as a billboard on a busy highway, getting thousands of impressions each hour. The basic point here is that busy locations tend to be more expensive, while less busy locations are more affordable. However, it’s important to take a look at our markets and see where your brand might fit best.

Format

We have eight different formats to fit your advertising needs. Of course, they’re all different sizes, shapes, and have different strengths. HotSpots, for instance, are relatively small in comparison to billboards on the side of the highway. They can be implemented at a lower rate. Digitals, on the other hand, are the pinnacle of outdoor advertising technology, and therefore come with a higher price tag.

Audiences

The people that you are targeting are also a huge factor for billboard cost. Advertisers and brands like to reach audiences with a higher buying power because these audiences often have more disposable income they can use to purchase the products being advertised. Billboard cost might depend on the demographics of a region (and sometimes even of an intersection).

Quantity

This is pretty straight forward: the more billboards you set up, the higher the cost. However, be aware of all your options in this regard. Instead of setting up one Billboard, you might be better off renting a few Street Furniture Panels. On the other hand, your brand might benefit from one big impression. It all depends on your goals and the results you seek.

Time

Billboards are usually rented for a period of time, often for 2 weeks to a month. Again, the math is simple: the longer you keep your ad copy up, the higher the cost. This can be flexible too—if you want to take a 2-week break and set up your outdoor ad again, that could be a consideration in order to lower your costs.

Start Date

The date when you are intending to begin your outdoor marketing campaign is important for two reasons. First, if the date is soon, rushing your campaign will take extra work and will likely cost more. Second, any major holidays will likely affect cost—Christmas and New Years is a more expensive time than the middle of September, for instance.

The ranges are broad and the price within that range will largely depend on the particulars of your campaign. We are here to make the campaign fit your advertising goals and your budgetary needs.

Location is as important to outdoor advertising as it is to real estate. Depending on the location of your billboard, your cost might go up or down. Here are some location factors to keep in mind.

Surroundings

Depending on the surroundings of the billboard panel, your cost might change. For instance, if your billboard is surrounded by other ads, your cost would go down. Another reason surroundings might affect your cost is due to neighborhoods and population density. If there are a lot of people nearby who shop or work, you’re likely to pay more for that location.

Traffic Speed

The speed at which people pass by your billboard is important. People are much more likely to engage with your ad if they are at a standstill than if they are speeding through an area. The longer your audience is looking at the billboard as they drive or walk past, the more that billboard is worth because it commands more attention.

Visibility

A billboard needs to be seen to have an impact. Visibility equals legibility and increased engagement. The proximity of a billboard to the road might affect how visible it is to drivers. For urban billboards, sometimes a street-level approach is best, depending on the area. In most cases, the more visible the ad, the higher the cost will be.

Follow the Experts

We are the experts of our locations. If you’re unsure about where to advertise, we can help you find the perfect location for your brand in any of our markets. Based on demographics you are looking to target, we can give you a set of options in different states for you to choose from.

Consider Your Options

Flexibility is key with outdoor advertising. Are you looking to make a big impression to millions on the side of a highway? Or would you rather make a surgical approach and target a specific audience frequently? This will determine how much your investment will be.

Change Your Creative

Depending on your target demographic, you might consider different creative. For instance, if you wanted to advertise in an area with a lot of Spanish speakers, we can help you create ad copy in Spanish to reach that audience more effectively. Location doesn’t have to be a burden—rather, it can be an opportunity.

The cost of a particular billboard is often measured by the number of impressions it garners. CPM, or cost per mille, stands for the cost for every thousand impressions for each billboard. There are three main factors that affect this data point.

Demographics

Demographics are directly related to the type of people who are likely to see this ad. Are you advertising in an area with a lot of younger residents? Or perhaps an area with a high population of married residents? Metrics like income level, age, and gender are important to get to know who you are likely to target. Depending on the audience, your cost will fluctuate, especially if you are advertising to people with higher income levels.

Circulation

Circulation is a fancy word for traffic, or how busy the area is. This information comes from local transportation authorities, so it’s completely independent and trustworthy. If your ad is located on a busy intersection, it’s likely to cost more. However, it’s important to note that circulation does not include a metric as to whether or not people are seeing the billboard.

Impressions

This is where the true value lies. Yes, it’s important to advertise where there is a lot of traffic, but it doesn’t do you any good to do so if nobody is looking at your billboard. Impressions are the number of people who actually see the ad, and this number is audited by Geopath, an independent firm that confirms data garnered by OOH. A billboard with a lot of impressions is worth more because it catches more attention.

Billboards often come with small additional costs to create the advertisement apart from the weekly rental. Below is a summary of common additional costs for which to prepare.

Design

The graphic design that goes into creating a billboard can be an additional cost. For a business that doesn’t have it’s own design department, it’s often the case that you’ll have to hire a freelance designer or let us do it for you. Big national brands often do this in house, so it’s not an extra expense.

Materials

Billboards (except Digitals) are vinyl sheets that are tightly draped on our panels. The vinyl itself is an additional charge, both for the material itself and the printing. The cost varies from format to format, and of course the larger the size, the more costly the final product will be.

Installation

The vinyl sheet needs to be draped on the billboard structure or panel. Sometimes installation is included in the weekly rental rate—it all depends on the campaign and the contract. We’re always willing to work with you to come up with the best option for your business.