The key to outdoor advertising is to stand out and get the average person to look. Especially in urban environments with busy streets, the need to cut through the noise and make an impact is crucial. This is where guerrilla marketing emerges as a potent tool.
Unconventional marketing combines innovation with functionality and resourcefulness to create impactful tools for brands. One such tool that has lately been super-successful in attracting eyeballs are the humble bollard covers.
These promising yet simple means to advertise are highly effective in urban landscapes. Here we explore everything about the tool including why it’s your perfect guerrilla marketing tool.
What are Bollard Covers?
Bollard covers are protective covers that slip over bollards along walkways or pavements. They are typically made of a variety of materials, including plastic or corflute, and are used for several purposes, one of which is outdoor advertising. In addition to immense visibility, they help protect bollards from extreme weather conditions and subsequent damage like corrosion, which makes them one of the most promising and preferred marketing tools for brands today.
Print advertising companies offer exciting and creative new products in bollard covers to help brands combine marketing with utility.
For example, PBC offers custom-printed square, slip-over, and triangular bollard covers for the utmost versatility. Designed with waterproof and weatherproof materials, they can be used effectively across a range of high-traffic areas from parking lots to busy streets to improve visibility for your brand.
Why Bollard Covers Are Perfect for Guerrilla Marketing?
For starters, bollards are typically found in busy urban spaces like parking lots, shopping malls, city centres, sidewalks, and similar areas, all of which attract large crowds of people throughout the day. Advertising over bollards, hence proves to be a promising and effective way for brands to enhance their visibility, without having to spend too big an amount. In other words, bollard covers allow brands to capitalise on the inherent visibility of bollards as a potent alternative to large billboards or other expensive installations. They are an easy, customisable, and low-cost option that businesses of all sizes can leverage.
Creatively Charged
Bollard covers are compact sizewise, but for the same reason, they pack a punch when it comes to creativity. The limited space challenges brands to use concise and effective copy or graphics, which helps deliver the message most impactfully. Every element on a bollard sleeve counts and that necessitates due thought over each. Whether it is a clever logo, a pun on words, a high-quality image, or a QR code for passersby to engage with, they require strategic thinking, making brands explore more out-of-the-box ideas and embrace guerrilla marketing. Brands selling complex products or services can also leverage creative ways to sell their offerings.
High Visibility
As mentioned earlier, bollards are strategically placed in areas of high foot traffic like malls, parks, transit centres, subways, etc. Naturally, a creative ad on a bollard will be hard for passersby to ignore. Brands get to display their message in areas where they will likely attract the most eyes, thereby allowing them to generate a high ROI on a comparatively small investment.
Thoughtfully placed bollard sleeve advertisements can especially be effective with customers at various stages in their buyer journey. For example, an advertisement for a sale placed a few feet outside the shop of a brand has the potential to induce more conversions from customers already primed to make a purchase.
Ideal for Location-Oriented Campaigns
Bollard sleeves bring with them the distinct advantage of being adaptable and customisable. They can be effectively used as print assets for hyper-localised marketing campaigns in conjunction with digital media. Brands looking to bank on demographic attributes, such as local communities or location-specific segments of people, can leverage thoughtfully tailored bollard sleeves with references to local cultural elements to improve their sales. For example, a local sports club can consider including their team colours or mascots, with a QR code that directly links passersby to the tickets page to resonate with the local community and induce sales.
Interactive Potential
A large part of guerrilla marketing involves creating unique and memorable ad experiences for potential customers. In this sense, bollard covers offer the perfect way to incorporate engagement in compact spaces. Brands can include QR codes that take customers to lucrative offers and sales pages. Alternatively, they can also include AR elements to infuse a hidden surprise for passersby that will effectively transform a static bollard cover into a dynamic experience digitally. When used cleverly to offer time-appropriate discounts or deals like an evening markdown, or a free pass for an event, bollard covers present the perfect opportunity to embrace interactive marketing.
Sustainability
Sustainability is undeniably the need of the hour and bollard sleeves provide an opportunity for brands to incorporate the same in their marketing efforts. By utilising eco-friendly and reusable materials, companies get to advertise without having to leave a gaping carbon footprint. It also adds to their reputation as a brand that takes green initiatives seriously.
PBC UK provides square, slip-on, and triangular bollard covers made from reusable Correx boards that are weatherproof and waterproof. They are also fully customisable for brands to incorporate various design elements including engaging QR codes.
Wrapping up
Bollard covers are an innovative, highly effective, and possibly underutilised guerrilla marketing tool that offers several advantages including affordability, flexibility, and strategic positioning to target high-traffic areas. For the same reason, they are ideal for urban spaces and for brands looking to run location-specific campaigns. Partnering with the right print asset company with the right ethical values in place will also help embrace sustainability in the process. In every way, bollard covers are one of the most potent and innovative means to reach prospective customers without burning a hole in the pocket.
To kickstart your guerrilla marketing journey with customisable bollard covers, get in touch with PBC.
Author-Bio
Nimesh Kerai serves as the Printing Head at Printed Bollard Covers in London. He has consistently delivered high-quality prints and signs to clients by using his technical expertise and ability to stay current with technology changes. This has reinforced the Printed Bollard Covers’ position as one of the most sought-after signage firms in London. He frequently shares his ideas with the general public via informative and engaging blogs.
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