Billboard facts for kids

A billboard (or billing board) is a large sign displaying advertisements. They are usually placed in places where many people will see them, such as alongside busy roads or in marketplaces. They show large posters, bulletins, and other kinds of visual advertisements.

Style

Billboards that are along roads are designed to be noticed, since they are seen for only a few seconds. They usually have only a few words on them. Sometimes they have a humorous picture on them. For example, Chick-fil-A billboards have cows trying to get people to eat chicken.

Kinds of billboards

Painted billboards are made usually by hand. They are painted onto large pieces of paper, which are then attached to large panels. The panels are then installed using cranes.

Digital billboards use large screens to show the advertisement. Some digital billboards can change their message every so often, so several advertisements show up on the same billboard.

Painted billboards these are now quite rare having been replaced by graphically produced billboards. However, in instances where only a single board is required they are still used in some areas.

Mobile billboards the purpose of mobile billboards is to go to where their target audience happens to be such as where a large event is taking place. As they are less common the advertisement tends to be more memorable.

Three-dimensional billboards. Another modern type of billboard and due to the artistry that they often contain they capture the attention and interest of all who see them.

History

Some of the earliest billboards were made in the 1880s. In the early 1900s, many people in the U.S. were buying cars like the Ford Model Ts. During this time, it became popular for businesses to put billboards along highways.

Related pages

• Neon sign
• Poster
• Street furniture

Images for kids

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  A billboard mural saying "Before the law, all people are equal" fixed into place by a cooperative of artists along the approach road to Mogadishu International Airport

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  Digital billboards abound in Times Square, Manhattan.

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  Mobile billboard in East Coast Park, Singapore

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  A billboard for attachable paper ads near the market square in Seinäjoki, Finland

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  This is one of three contested billboards in the coastal zone of Humboldt Bay that were cut down by an unknown vandal in 2013.

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  Panoramic view of Los Angeles looking north from the Pacific Electric Building, ca. 1 January 1907

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  A billboard frame in Swindon, England

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  ATB Financial ad, Edmonton

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  Non-commercial advertisement is used around the world by governments and non-profit organisations to obtain donations, volunteer support or change consumer behavior. North Dakota, May 2004.

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  1908 billboard, Salt Lake City, Utah

See also

In Spanish: Valla publicitaria para niños