How Small Businesses Can Compete with National Brands Using Outdoor Ad

When it comes to out-of-home advertising, national brands aren’t the only ones who can benefit and find profitable success. Small businesses may often feel outmatched by the budgets and resources that national brands may have.

We see huge brands splashed across online platforms and among massive formats in highly populated city centers. Big names do have a point of dominance, but small businesses can find the same success in their own right with OOH ads.

Small businesses are able to dominate local communities, penetrate communities with a familiar and trustworthy presence, and capture profitable attention right where it matters the most for them: their community. Here’s how small businesses can use OOH to compete with national brands.

Leverage Local Relevance

National brands may have deep pockets and seemingly limitless creative budgets, but they are not able to master the art of personalization! Small businesses can tailor their campaigns and billboard messaging to nestle their way into the heart of a community and leverage it to their advantage.

This can be done through:

• Calling out local pride: By placing billboards that directly tie the brand’s involvement in the community to the community itself, like calling out how a company has been operating in a given town for 10+ years.
• Integrating local references: Using local phrases and lingo builds stronger connections than generic and corporate messaging.
• Targeting key intersections: Placing your message on roads and near traffic lights allows potential customers to be repeatedly exposed to a given ad where they travel daily.

Keep Messaging Simple and Bold

National brands sometimes overcomplicate their messaging or use obscure humor that can miss the mark. Small businesses can win the dollar with concise clarity that directly resonates with their area.

A simple message that states that a company just opened or is offering a promotion cuts through the complex messaging big brands can create and lets viewers know exactly what is going on.

Furthermore, optimizing the imagery itself through large fonts and high-contrast colors will ensure your ad is visible and legible from far distances, reaching audiences at the farthest distances.

Remember, OOH works best when your message can be understood in seconds; sometimes, that’s all the time you get to convert a viewer!

Pair OOH with Digital Offerings

OOH is one of those ad formats that does not need to work alone! Combining static OOH with digital displays and services can amplify your digital presence, and there are a variety of ways you can access this.

Some ways are through:

• QR codes and quick-to-type URLs that can directly take people from the physical world to an online destination curated by you.
• Digital signage is extremely eye-catching and way more recognizable and memorable than some static formats.
• Retargeting campaigns that can introduce ads to the mobile devices of individuals who have potentially viewed your OOH ad.

These integrations allow small businesses to extend their reach and maximize their return on investment.

Final Thoughts

Competing with national brands doesn’t require national budgets. It requires a well-thought-out strategy and strong local placement. OOH advertising gives small businesses the visibility and local relevance they need to stand tall against giant competitors. When that strategy is determined, the sky is the limit!