Alternative Media
Outdoor formats that do not fall into the categories of: billboards, street furniture or transit. Most alternative media is used to create customized solutions for advertisers.
Billboard
Large format advertising displays intended for viewing from extended distances, generally more than 50 feet. Billboard displays include, but not limited to: 30-sheet posters, 8-sheet posters, vinyl-wrapped posters, bulletins, wall murals and stadium/arena signage.
Bleed
Poster copy that extends to the edge of a poster panel frame on all sides.
Bulletin
A standardized outdoor format commonly measuring 14′ x 48′ in overall size. Sold either as permanent displays or in rotary packages. Bulletin copy can be rendered using hand painting techniques, computer production or printing on paper.
Charting a Showing
The process of selecting individual unit locations to maximize outdoor advertising objectives.
Circulation
Traffic volume in a market.
Computer Production
The process of rendering artwork digitally onto a single-sheet vinyl display surface.
Co-Op
The sharing of advertising costs between a manufacturer and distributor or dealer. Common to all media.
Copy
Artwork displayed on an outdoor unit.
Copy Area
The viewing area on an outdoor unit.
Coverage
The boundaries of a market. The term also refers to the percentage of a county or counties exposed to an outdoor advertising campaign.
Creative Brief
Detailed marketing objectives that pertain to the design of an outdoor campaign. Common to all media.
Daily Impressions
Also called DEC (Daily Effective Circulation). The estimated number of persons passing an outdoor location on an average day.
DEC
Daily Effective Circulation. The average number of persons passing and potentially exposed to an advertising display for either 12 hours (unilluminated – 6:00am to 6:00pm) or 18 hours (illuminated – 6:00am to 12:00 midnight).
Demographic Profiles
Audience breakdowns based on various characteristics such as age, sex, income and education.
Display Period
The interval of exposure when an outdoor advertising campaign is viewed.
Distribution
The strategic placement of outdoor units across a market.
Exposure
Represents the reasonable opportunities for advertising to be seen and read. Common to all media.
Face
The surface area on an outdoor unit where advertising copy is displayed. A unit may have more than one face.
Facing
The cardinal direction that an outdoor unit faces. As an example, a north facing bulletin would be viewed by vehicles traveling south.
Flagging
A tear that causes poster paper to hang loose from a bulletin or poster panel face.
Flexible Face
Single-sheet vinyl used in computer painting.
Flight
A period of time. The length of an advertising campaign, sometimes divided into distinct segments over the course of weeks.
Frequency
The average number of times an individual has the opportunity to see an advertising message during a defined period of time. Frequency (and reach) in outdoor advertising is typically measured over a four week period.
Highway Beautification Act of 1965
Federal legislation sometimes referred to as the Lady Bird Johnson Act or HBA. The act was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson and mandates state controls regarding outdoor media on interstate highways.
Illuminated
An outdoor unit equipped with lighting that provides night time illumination of an advertising message, usually from dusk until midnight.
Impression
Is a term used by all media to quantify the number of people who have an opportunity to see an ad in a given period of time.
Location List
A listing of all locations included in a specific outdoor program.
Mobile Billboard
A truck equipped with one or more poster panel units. The truck can either be parked at specified venues or driven around designated localities.
OAAA
Outdoor Advertising Association of America . The term refers to a national trade association representing and supported by the member plant operators, suppliers, associates and international members. The mission of the OAAA is to promote, protect and improve the outdoor advertising medium by focusing on legislation, marketing, product improvement, new technologies and industry unity.
OBIE Award
An annual award that recognizes creative excellence in outdoor media. The OBIE Award program is administered by the OAAA.
Official Counts
The traffic counts taken from official (governmental) sources such as city, state or county departments of transportation.
Off-Premise Sign
A sign that advertises products or services that are not sold, produced, manufactured or furnished on the property where the sign is located. An outdoor display is an off-premise sign.
On-Premise Sign
A sign that advertises products or services that are sold, produced, manufactured or furnished on the property where the sign is located.
Out of Home
All advertising that is specifically intended to reach consumers outside the home. Out of home includes, but is not limited to, outdoor media and radio.
Outdoor Advertising
The term refers to many forms of media that carry advertising messages to consumer audiences outside the home. Outdoor products are divided among three primary categories, billboards, street furniture and transit.
Permanent Bulletin
A bulletin that remains permanently located at a specified site throughout the term of a contract, usually for long periods. A permanent bulletin program can build strong brand recognition in specific market areas.
Poster Panel
A outdoor unit that can accommodate 30-sheet and 8-sheet poster displays.
Posting Date
The date when a poster program is scheduled to commence. A five day leeway is customary.
Posting Instructions
Detailed marketing objectives provided to an outdoor company by an advertiser or agency. The information is used to chart a showing with the greatest efficiency in reaching a desired target audience.
Posting Leeway
The outdoor company is allowed a grace period of five working days before and after a scheduled posting date. This allows the company to complete posting a showing without penalty in the event of a delay caused by weather or unforeseen circumstances.
Post-Turn
An outdoor unit with a slatted face that allows three different copy messages to revolve at intermittent intervals. Sometimes referred to as a Trivision.
Proof-of-Performance
Certification by an outdoor company that contracted advertising services have been rendered.
Reach
The approximate percentage of a target audience’s population which will be potentially exposed to an advertising message at least once during a specified period of time. Reach is normally measured over four week periods. Common to all media.
Rotary Bulletin
A standardized 14′ x 48′ bulletin that is moved to different locations in a market at fixed intervals, usually every 60 or 90 days. A rotary bulletin program can provide balanced reach in a market.
Sign
Any structure used to display information regarding a product or service. An outdoor unit is a sign.
Street Furniture
Advertising displays, many that provide a public amenity, positioned at close proximity to pedestrians for eye-level viewing or at a curbside to impact vehicular traffic. Street furniture displays include, but are not limited to: transit shelters, newsstands/news racks, kiosks, shopping mall panels, convenience store panels and in-store signage.
Target Audience
The profile of the most desired consumer prospects for a product or service, listed by characteristics such as demography, lifestyle, brand or media consumption, purchase behavior, etc. Common to all media.
Traffic Audit
The third party verification of traffic circulation in a market. Traffic audit information is used to calculate outdoor advertising DEC figures.
Traffic Count
The recording of the vehicles and pedestrians passing a given point; used by TAB to authenticate the potential exposure of outdoor advertising structures.
Transit
Transit advertising are displays affixed to moving vehicles or in the common areas of transit terminals and stations. Transit displays include, but are not limited to: bus panels, train/rail panels, airport panels, taxi panels and mobile advertising signage (trucks).
Transit Poster (Bus)
Posters attached to the exterior of buses. Common displays are king panels measuring 30” x 144” in overall size with a bleed copy area of 29” x 144”, queen panels measuring 30” x 88” in overall size with a bleed copy area of 29” x 88”, and side-tail panels measuring 21” x 70” in overall size with the same bleed copy area.
Transit Poster (Commuter Rail)
Posters displayed in commuter rail stations and on trains.
Transit Shelter
A curbside structure located at regular stopping points along urban bus routes. Backlit posters are affixed to transit shelter structures using a standardized display format measuring 69” x 48” in overall size with a bleed copy area of 67” x 46”.
Unit
Any outdoor advertising display.
Vinyl
A single-sheet substrate on which an advertising message is rendered by either computer production or hand painting. Vinyl is primarily used on the face of bulletins & Premiere products.
Wallscape
Murals painted or attached directly onto the exterior surface of a building.
Note: Glossary provided by the Outdoor Advertising Association America