Advertising on the Go

Truckside companies keep on rollin'

BySheila Hayes Signs of the Times magazine

Early last year (see Truck Advertisers Drive into the Future), the OAAA announced its formation of the Truckside Advertising Council of
                                                                                  America (TACA) to serve the needs of mobile advertisers. Transit messages -- typically
                                                                                  affixed to moving vehicles or positioned in key transit areas -- are becoming increasingly
                                                                                  popular among outdoor advertisers. As reported in Signs of the Time's October 2000
                                                                                  issue, transit ads, along with street furniture, are the outdoor industry's second most
                                                                                  popular form of out-of-home advertising.

                                                                                 The dazzling graphics and high-tech imagery used on trucks today are garnering local
                                                                                  and national media attention. Many brands, including McDonald's, Saab, the Texas
                                                                                  Lottery and Sprint PCS, have successfully implemented truckside-advertising and
                                                                                  mobile-billboard campaigns in the past 18 months to reach their target audiences
                                                                                  where they work, play and congregate.

                                                                                  Offering unprecedented cost efficiency, truckside advertising incorporates new tracking
systems that measure impressions/performance and enable advertisers to assess campaign effectiveness.

Truckside advertising uniquely matches advertisers with third-party urban delivery trucks and over-the-road conveyance or freight trucks.
Also known as "pure advertising," mobile billboards serve short-term, promotional purposes. They are typically found on flat-panel,
advertising-dedicated trucks.

Due to the increasing popularity of truckside and mobile-billboard advertising, several new outdoor media companies offer national
coverage, as well as an array of service and production options. While some firms provide adhesive-vinyl applications, others offer framing
systems that use a welded-beading/aluminum-frame track process and allow the use of non-adhesive vinyl substrates. Both processes
boast appealing benefits with photorealistic output of more than 150 dpi.

In a December 2000 milestone, the Traffic Audit Bureau for Media Measurement (TAB) launched its new truckside media measurement
methodology.

According to OAAA chief marketing officer Stephen Freitas, "Outdoor advertising is experiencing
unprecedented growth in resources and revenue, and truckside advertising plays a key role in
fueling this growth by providing advertisers an important new planning option."

"Marrying basic advertising with technology to drive truckside and mobile-billboard mapping
and measurement is a complete value-added benefit," says Mark Freeman, a truckside
advertiser and president of the Chicago Downtown Owner/Operator Committee. "The photo
quality and food-focus of our Chicago trucks is ideal for driving impulse purchases -- the
core of our downtown business," Mark continues.

The images showcased here are examples of this outdoor-advertising media format.