19 Jan When Tech Companies Advertise in Meat Space: 13 Amazing Billboard Ad Examples

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AdEspresso is big on great Facebook ads. That’s why we have a gallery of examples, and why we are constantly analyzing ads to find out what works and what doesn’t.

We know that good Facebook ads combine smart design with principles from psychology to create eye-catching graphics. These strategies have been used in advertising for a long time — especially on the largest ads around: billboards.

We’ve found that a lot of the psychological principles that make great billboards also make great Facebook ads.

In the spirit of showing great ads for inspiration, we have 13 of the best billboard ads by tech companies. Although they might seem low-tech, these clever, eye-catching billboards could be just what you need to spark the next great idea for your own campaign.

As we explored earlier, psychology has shown that compelling ads use short, powerful copy, include emotional images, and rely on key color combinations to catch attention.

Although billboards are an old-school advertising technique, they’re still going strong today. Even the most cutting-edge tech companies are still using them to advertise their products. In fact, they’re so popular that SketchDeck, a company that specializes in high-quality design for businesses, broke down billboards according to scientific principals.

Here’re the ones we liked the most.

1. Apple TV

For the revamp of the Apple TV in 2015, Apple implemented a colorful campaign in Los Angeles, based around the motif of television color bars. At first glance this appears to be a minimalist campaign centered on bright color and strong geometric design:
 However, the real strength of the campaign lies in the use of characters and shows from content partners Disney/Pixar and HBO. By including recognizable movies and TV shows, the ads go beyond the Apple TV as just a device and jump into the heart of the product’s appeal: quality content.

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2. Lyft

Ridesharing service Lyft implemented a wry series of ads that played on the frustrations of drivers on Los Angeles’ Santa Monica Boulevard. Their wordy billboards are used specifically to target drivers who are stuck at a standstill, providing an empathetic message while presenting their service as an alternative to the frustration of traffic.

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These billboards model a key concept for any good ad campaign: knowing your customer. By empathizing with the boredom of being stuck a slow-moving jam, they give themselves the perfect opportunity to present their ridesharing as the perfect solution.

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3. Slack

For Slack’s first advertising campaign, a “takeover” style strategy was implemented across Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Cleveland, and Charlotte. Transit, street level, and billboard campaigns were part of one huge campaign aimed to boost the company’s profile.

Slack’s ads are particularly interesting, for they are filled with positive and effervescent imagery with metrics about how the product benefits you with increased productivity and organization, rather than just drawing attention to the product itself.

{Slack Digital Billboard, Minneapolis | source}

By the way, this campaign was also featured in Web banner ads and print publications — proof that “real-world” advertising techniques translate to digital.

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4. Dropbox

Another campaign that plays perfectly to its audience is Dropbox’s first ad campaign. Their billboards cater to customers doing collaborative work with the familiar language of a workflow/timeline. This emphasizes the product’s flexible organizational capabilities, particularly regarding collaboration, annotation, and media integration.

They also create a “narrative” for each billboard — for example, the one below takes the viewer through the process of journalists publishing an article. A smart choice was to use filename extensions that intuitively show the flexibility of Dropbox’s cloud storage platform.

{Investigative Journalism Narrative | source}

5. Spotify

Spotify used their best assets — their massive listener base and powerful analytics — to create a cheeky campaign celebrating outliers in major city centers, such as at the Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan. This approach used politics and hyperlocal focus to really connect with people. For example, the picture blow shows a billboard in New York referencing the Hamilton soundtrack, while the next is a billboard in the UK that reads, “Dear 3,749 people who streamed ‘It’s The End Of The World As We Know It’ the day of the Brexit Vote. Hang in There.” (Great targeting, Spotify!)
 Spotify used the same audacious graphic design in personalized emails sent to each subscriber at the end of 2016, which detailed the unique quirks of each listener’s analytics — another great example of ads branching “the real world” and the internet.

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6. Google Android

Google brought some playful minimalism to the otherwise cluttered Times Square experience in late 2014 with a call to celebrate diversity and customization. This campaign integrated a hybrid approach to a physical ad takeover: it called for individuals to create their own Android avatar that could appear on the massive video billboard.

This playful and customizable experience is aligned with the flexibility of the Android user experience, a key concept for Android, as it is different than the more rigid nature of competitor Apple’s mobile ecosystem.

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7. Snapchat

Snapchat relied on great design and a hyperlocal approach when building their billboard campaign that created physical representations of local geofilters across the country. This campaign prompts viewers to try out geofilters, while also subtly gesturing towards the importance of the app in our everyday social experiences.

Each design featured Snapchat’s signature yellow, which helped to tie the campaign together.

This campaign celebrates the quirks of each location, as well as the artists who have produced the pieces. Both serve as an emotional hook into the ads, whether it be through the hot sun and plants of Phoenix or the bridges of Boston.

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8. Cisco

Cisco implemented a brilliant proof of concept digital billboard in 2014, where the copy of their ad adjusts based on the speed of traffic. Though the message isn’t advertising a specific Cisco service, its location in San Francisco heightens brand awareness and positions Cisco as an innovator for those in the tech industry.

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Just as you want to get the most bang for your buck with your social media ads, companies will be looking to get the same thing from their “offline” (or Out of Home) counterparts. With connected billboards like this one, developments for billboard analytics are endless. As the internet of things grows more and more interconnected, the prospect of live A/B testing may soon be available for every ad a company puts out.

9. IBM

Many regard IBM as a staid, veteran brand, but this campaign showcasing their Connected Cities initiative highlights how IBM aims to radically alter our expectations of urban spaces.

IBM’s initiative focuses on the Internet of Things — our network of “smart” devices — and how we can use technology to improve our relationships with our spaces and our communities. These physical improvements like ramps and benches create a tangible allegory that’s easy for the public to understand.
 At its core, the ads say: if IBM can reimagine a billboard to keep you dry or help you up the stairs, then imagine the innovations it can achieve with its powerful technology.

Plus, turning advertisements into public good helps to generate a long-lasting, positive brand association for those who have come into contact with the campaign.

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10. Netsuite

Netsuite is a leading software as a service provider that integrates business and customer management platforms for small to medium businesses and nonprofit organizations. Instead of focusing on bright graphics, they have a series of iterative ads featuring their clients.

This shows passers-by the variety of services that Netshare offers, while giving social proof of their high quality. By making a series of ads with the same format, Netshare can connect their brand with many well-known companies without jamming too much into one billboard.
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11. Nest

This campaign by Nest, maker of connected smart home devices, offers a novel approach by using multiple billboards to produce a single ad. With splashes of color and amusing slogans, these playful ads highlight both the product at hand and the everyday “mayhem” that goes on inside your home.

By encouraging viewers to think about what their dogs or kids might get up to while home alone, Nest avoids the more sinister use applications of home security hardware and maintains a positive, lighthearted message. The use of multiple billboards for each ad engages the viewer for more time than a traditional billboard, and makes the campaign more memorable.
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12. Yahoo

Yahoo was known for its long-running neon billboard in San Francisco, which was up from 2001-2011. The billboard used tropes of 1950s motel imagery whose Americana vibe was immediately impactful.

But while this playful illuminated billboard is memorable due to its aesthetic sensibility, that isn’t the only quality that made this an iconic ad.

The use of the letterboard meant that the billboard was always relevant, promoting viewers to regularly check back to see if the witty message has changed.
This is an excellent example of how making small tweaks to a campaign can help you take advantage of current events, from celebrating your tenth anniversary to getting the most out of Halloween.
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13. Airbnb

This Airbnb campaign is a great example of how making controversial statements garners a lot of attention. The confrontational tone and passionate color of these billboards have certainly left a lasting impression.
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We know that negative ads can be really eye-catching, and Airbnb plays on that principal here in their risky campaign. They adopt a snarky tone and focus on belittling regulation.
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Unfortunately, this approach didn’t work out so well for Airbnb, and the campaign was widely derided for being entitled and in poor taste.

Airbnb has all the components of a great campaign — bold, simple design, a dialogue with its audience, and the psychological hook of negativity — but it was not self-aware and antagonized more than it charmed. Still, if you’re going off of the adage “all press is good press,” then it certainly did its job.

Great design wins, every time

These ads work because they have great design. From clever ad copy to bold color, they are built to catch and hold our attention.

Whether your ad has to engage someone while they’re zooming down the highway or scrolling down their social media feeds, it’s outstanding visuals and a strong message that will get your ads attention, and drive business for your brand.

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