According to Tasty Ad “spec art in the outdoor advertising industry is simply a series of ads created for a potential customer.”[1] Experience shows that spec art gets the job done and yet some out-of-home account executives still aren’t using it in their pitches.[2] If your sales team is not already using it, here is why they should:
1. Visual learning is the most effective way to grasp a concept.
“Visuals help people grasp concepts easily by stimulating imagination and affecting their cognitive capabilities.” [3]
Advertisers are guaranteed to respond better to being able to see what their creative could look like on the exact screens it will be on than a generic PDF about billboards, a clip art billboard that doesn’t show the reality of what they’re buying, or even worse, no spec art at all.
2. The sales rep is the OOH expert, not the advertiser.
It is the duty of the sales rep to show advertisers what they are able to do on billboards. How is an advertiser supposed to know that they can promote inventory in an automated way on billboards, just like they can do all over the internet? The rep is supposed to tell them or, better yet, show them.
3. Hot tip: PRE-PITCH.
Check out their social media. Whatever they are promoting there, they want to promote on billboards. Whether they’re promoting happy customers, new inventory, testimonials, etc. they can put that on billboards and they will, if given the opportunity. Use spec art to show them that they can!
Start pitching with spec art for a more effective, successful pitch. Even better, show the spec art on the actual screens for the perfect pitch.
References: [1] TastyAd. (2022, January 11). The importance of Billboard Spec Art. Tasty Ad - The Billboard People. Retrieved February 24, 2023, from https://www.tastyad.com/importance-of-spec-art/
[2] Roberts, M. (2019, October 7). Proof that spec art sells. Billboard Insider™. Retrieved February 27, 2023, from https://billboardinsider.com/proof-that-spec-art-sells/
[3] Jandhyala, D. (2021, May 12). Visual learning: 6 reasons why visuals are the most powerful aspect of eLearning. Visual Learning: 6 Reasons Why Visuals Are The Most Powerful Aspect Of eLearning . Retrieved February 24, 2023, from https://elearningindustry.com/visual-learning-6-reasons-visuals-powerful-aspect-elearning