Resource Centers:(News, information, and tools to support your practice)
January 2010
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Chiro Biz Quiz: Billboard advertising for doctors
You’ve probably never considered billboard advertising as part of your overall marketing plan.
Maybe you think billboard ads are unprofessional or don’t work well for your type of profession. This perception, however, is incorrect. When used appropriately, billboards can increase the name recognition of your practice, and project a professional image too.
The key to successful billboard advertising is to first recognize that billboards should never be used as your sole form of marketing. Instead, billboards should be used as a single part of a larger marketing plan to enhance name recognition of your practice.
There are several types of billboards. Specialized billboards, such as digital and mobile, are available, but have not been as well tested as traditional billboards.
The type of billboard you would use is called a bulletin. These are 14 feet by 48 feet signs that are typically printed on vinyl and can be removed and changed easily.
Location, location, location
Generally, professional billboards work best in small towns or suburbs and placed on heavily trafficked, local roads. Placement at key intersections, red lights, or stop signs is most desirable. This allows more time for passersby to read your billboard.
Freeway locations can work if they are part of the everyday commute of your target patients. But remember, the read time for cars speeding by your sign is reduced to about five seconds on a turnpike. Rush hour traffic, however, will benefit you in this regard.
The billboard company should be able to give you drive-by statistics for your chosen location.
Costs for billboards vary widely depending on the location. They can range from $300 to more than $5,000 per month.
In addition, there is also the expense of creating the billboard, which can also vary widely from several hundred dollars and up for creative work.
Common differences
While many of the same principles that go into effective ad design apply to billboards, there are some fundamental differences you will need to consider.
The biggest
For example: Get their attention with a great graphic, provide a headline message that appeals to their emotions and creates a desire for your services, and then create a call to action with an acronym or phone number.
If you are tempted to include details about the practice, remember they can get this information from other forms of advertising or when they call.
Any copy less than 1.5 feet by 2 feet may not be seen on a turnpike. Use the billboard space wisely to get your message across and to create a response.
Finally, when your billboard is in place, you should carefully track the return on investment. Ask patients how they heard about your practice or for a more accurate result, use a different phone number on the billboard ads. You should also drive by your billboard location frequently at different times and days to see how visible your message is and to test the actual impact of the billboard under real driving conditions.
Billboard advertising can be an effective addition to your practice marketing program, but you have to follow some basic principles and keep it professional.
Marc H. Sencer, MD, is the president of MDs for DCs, which provides intensive one-on-one training, medical staffing, and ongoing practice management support to chiropractic integrated practices. He can be reached at 800-916-1462 or through www.mdsfordcs.com.
Test yourself
Test your knowledge about the benefits of billboard marketing with this true and false quiz.
1. Billboard ads can be the centerpiece of a practice marketing program.
2. The copy on a billboard should be at least 6 inches in height.
3. You can copy your Yellow Page or other print ad to make an effective billboard.
4. The average time a driver on a turnpike has to read a billboard ad is 15 seconds.
Answers: All of the statements are false.
Statement No.1 is false because billboard ads are useful adjuncts to a marketing program to strengthen name recognition, but they should not be the only part of the plan.
No. 2 is false because the copy on billboard ads must be at least 1.5 feet by 2 feet tall to be visible from a fast-moving vehicle.
No. 3 is false because copying your other print ads onto a billboard is a poor strategy. Billboards should be much less detailed than other forms of print media.
The average time a turnpike driver has to read your billboard is around five seconds, unless slowed in rush hour, which is why No. 4 is false.
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