Insider this week had the opportunity to interview Trent Lindmark, President of Blue Sky Outdoor and Blue Sky Digital Printing in Norman, Oklahoma.

Company: Blue Sky Outdoor Advertising

Headquarters: 2380 Industrial Blvd. Norman, OK 73069

Phone:  405-928-5800

Email: info@blueskyoutdoor.com

Tell us about your territory and inventory? 

We have 750 bulletins faces across Oklahoma on interstates and major highways. We also have 7 digital units in the Oklahoma City Metro area.

 I understand you are planning a name change? 

We are changing the outdoor side to Lindmark Outdoor Media but keeping the printing company as Blue Sky Digital Printing.

 Does a name change take a lot of preparation to roll out?  

It has not been too bad because we needed to redo the website and change the names plates anyway, so now was a good time to do it.

You also have a vinyl printing business. Can you tell us about Blue Sky Digital Printing and will it be impacted by the name change? 

The printing company is its own stand-alone company, so changing the name of the outdoor side will not affect it at all.

Trent, you have a lot of experience in the billboard industry for someone so young. What are some of the key things you have learned along the way?  

Simply put – cash is king.  Keep the king healthy by keeping your eye on both the big picture and the little picture.  Looking at the little picture, you want to keep your overhead low and your income high.  One of the key overhead areas that everybody knows about is lease costs.  If you’re bidding on a new un-built location don’t overpay.  Remember that you can’t win them all.  One of the key factors in producing income is information.  It’s best to give potential advertisers as much information about your board inventory as possible.  Having a detailed website will help potential advertisers make a better decision on how they can spend their advertising dollars with you.  Looking at the big picture, remember that though times may be good now, the economy can change in a hurry.  The billboard business is capital intensive, and it’s really easy to borrow money during the good times.  But, watch your overall debt-equity ratio so you don’t get over-leveraged should the bad times come knocking.   

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