One of Billboard Insider’s 5 tips for starting an out of home company is to assemble a team of proven vendors. To thrive in the out of home business you’ll need to add these vendors to your team.
Accounting & management tools.
Accounting software (QuickBooks or Wave) allows your to bill clients and record financials. Billboard management software (Apparatix, Billboard Planet, Sign Dash) can help you to bill clients, track leases, see how your billboards are doing and manage your website. Brown Dog Outdoor and Skydragon will assist you with digital billboard management or accounts receivable billing and collections.
Ad design
When you get started you’ll need a good ad design. Billboard ads are different from other kinds of ads due to word and space constraints. Here’s an alphabetical list of out of home ad designers: Billboards etc, Greg Callaham, Out of Home Creative, Owen Design, SkyDragon, Wes Frick Design Agency, Lindmark Ink, Brown Dog Outdoor.
Automated sales platforms
Take advantage of national advertising by connecting your digital billboards to Adomni, Adquick, Blip and Vistar. If you are a member of the IBO connect your billboards to the IBO Speedway.
Broker
If you buy billboards or sell billboards an out of home advertising broker will help you to get top price and to conduct a sale smoothly. See Drachman M&A, Johnsen,Fretty, SignValue, Stark Capital, Williamson and Associates or Kalil & Co. SignValue also provides out of home plant and lease evaluations.
Digital billboards
Your digital billboard needs to be reliable. It needs good operating software. It needs excellent after sale support. Here’s an alphabetical list of digital billboard manufacturers which Billboard Insider recommends: Daktronics, Formetco, Media Resources and Watchfire. Lucit allows retailers to program dynamic ads on your digital billboards.
Financing
88% of Billboard Insider’s readers have used debt to grow their out of home companies. Here’s an alphabetical list of lenders who specialize in out of home: Billboard Loans, Stark Capital, Verde Outdoor Capital, YESCO Financial Solutions.
Impressions
Many national and regional ad buyers want to see impressions data for your billboards for they can calculate a cost per thousand views (“CPM”). You can get this from Geopath or Place Exchange.
Installations and maintenance
If you aren’t doing the installs yourself you need a good vinyl installer. Same goes for sign maintenance, electric work and brush clearing. Take a look at Billboard Insider’s Out of Home Contractors list. SignSpring has a spring system which reduces static billboard installation time.
Insurance
Many of you landlords will want to be named on your commerial and liability policy so they know you’ll cover them for acidents involving your billboard on their property. You also might want to consider digital billboard replacement insurance (not always commercially feasible). The two insurance vendors to contact are Arachas Bassler Insurance and The Cone Company.
Legal
The value of your company is determined by your billboard leases, easements and ad contracts. Here are six out of home law firms that can draft your docs, assist you with acquisitions and provide advice if you have to challenge regulatory authorities: Sloane Law Office, Hamlin|Cody, Michael F Wright, Robbins Kelly Patterson Tucker, Rothfelder and Falick, SettlePou, .
Lighting
You want energy efficient, bright lights for your billboards (Formetco or Reliable Electric). Outdoorlink allows you to remotely monitor and control your lights or digital billboard. If you are thinking of solar power look at Autonomous Power Solutions, Reliable Electric or Formetco.
Sales tools
Kevin Gephart trains out of home sales teams and helps build sales organizations. SignBird provides marketing video and pictures of your signs.
Structures
You want safe affordable structures. Here’s an alphabetical list of steel structure fabricators: Profab, Lindmark Steel, Formetco, , Selective Structures, RMG Outdoor, All Steel, and Horizon. Formetco also provides all the ancillary hardware and parts you need for your billboards. Outdoor Advertising Covers provides custom facades for monument style billboards. Genlogs pays $200/month to rent space on your billboards for privacy enabled sensors to measure commercial trucking.
Vinyl Printing
You want a company which cheaply, accurately and quickly produces vinyl for your static billboards. Here’s an alphabetical list: CircleGraphics, Lindmark Ink, Independents Service Company, VinylWorks, Billboards etc,. And if you wish to sell your used billboard vinyl there’s Repurposed Materials.
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