Insider just finished William Martin’s biography of Billy Graham: A Prophet with Honor – The Billy Graham Story.  Graham (1918-2018) was a remarkable man who lived a scandal free life and changed lives with his preaching.  He used billboards to publicize his crusades.  Some quotes from the biography.

Graham used billboards to promote his first big crusade in Los Angeles

“Graham may have relinquished his doubt and pride at Forest Home but he did not relinquish his faith in publicity.  On the contrary he pressured a wary committee into spending $25,000 for posters, billboards radio, announcements and newspaper ads urging Los Angelenos to “visit the Canvas Cathedral with the Steeple of Light” to hear “America’s Sensational Young Evangelist.”

Graham’s 1954 crusade publicity was named ad campaign of the year by the Advertising Club of London

“The blitz, whose 50,000 pound price tag astonished the crusade committee, included nearly 10,000 press announcement, almost 30,000 posters bearing the evangelist’s picture and the simple directive “Hear Billy Graham” and hundreds of thousands of handbills.”

Graham used billboards in other parts of Europe:

“Each crusade involved a saturation advertising campaign, and though ‘Graham sometimes professed to wish he never had to see his name on another billboard or banner, even his closest friends and staunchest backers admit that he handled whatever embarrassment he felt with considerable equanimity.  Bob Evans recalled that shortly before the 1986 crusade “when he came to Paris, he said “Get some more pictures up.  I don’t see my picture up enough.” He got special permission to put posters in the Metro stations”

Graham’s publicity agent Fred Dinert said this about advertising:

“Bill understands the value of publicity…We do newspapers.  We do the billboards, we buy spots, and everything else.  I believe all that helps but the real answer is God.”

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