9 Selling Opportunities Using “3 Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri”
Sell More Billboards Magnifying the Movie Title and Heightening OOH Awareness
Right now everyone in Outdoor Advertising worldwide, is pretty sussed, no STOKED, about the recently award-winning movie, ‘3 Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri’ (3 Billboards). As we should be. The multiple (4) awards winner at the Golden Globes, last Sunday night, won big time recognition, including Best Movie. What is next for Outdoor Advertising and ‘3 Billboards’?
‘3 Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri’ (3 Billboards) is not a topic I was very enthusiastic to write about. What more can be said, which already hasn’t already been said? The conversation among us active on social media and OOH is approaching ad nauseam. Right? Perhaps true, if we keep the same dialogue.
Time to pivot. I suspect everyone is ahead of me on what the next scene is for the OOH Industry with regards to ‘3 Billboards’.
My take on the next act? Capitalize on the high-profile and publicity of the Billboards as the star. If an award was given for best prop, ‘3 Billboards’ would be toting home more Statuettes. How many times has the word ‘Billboard’ been mentioned in a big time successful movie? Zero! The OOH Today research team discovered only one other movie with the word billboard in the title, which was ‘Billboard Dad’. 
‘Billboard Dad’, a real sleeper, as in literally puts you to sleep, of a movie about two daughters who paint an ad on a giant billboard situated high above Sunset Boulevard , in an attempt to find their recently widower father a girlfriend. Bored already. It was a direct to video movie. Never made the big screen.
Back to ‘3’ , Time to amplify selling opportunities. First, go see the movie, know the ‘3 Billboards’ story and how the billboards are part of the plot. Obviously, ‘3 Billboards’ demonstrates the impact of OOH. “The impact of OOH”, something all of us in Outdoor Advertising is intimate with daily.
The pivot? Here is an opportunity for a totally positive theme to heighten OOH awareness by magnifying the movie. Use the hype to our advantage.
9 Ideas to Create Selling Opportunities.
- Include ‘3 Billboards’ mentions in your social media, next client sales conversation and sales pitch.
- Place 3 miniature billboards in the prospects hands.
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- Buy 2, no 3 tickets, for your prospect and send them to the movie. Costco has them for 10 for 89.99 or 2 for $15. Expense it.
- Host a ‘3 Billboards’ movie party. Rent out the local theater. Eat popcorn.
- Develop a marketing plan focusing on the impact ‘3 Billboards’ was effective in the story. ‘Imagine what 3, 30 or 300 would do for you, Ms Prospect.’
- Get the Big 3 OOH Operators’ marketing departments rolling on a marketing campaign.
- Don’t wait for them. Small plant in South Bend, East Moline or Mansfield? Develop your own local push.
- OAAA marketing machine, yeah they have a great one, CMO, Stephen Freitas, creates a campaign on the ‘3 Billboards’ theme in cooperation with
- Geopath who provides the ‘numbers’ highlighting to the power of 3, 30 and 300.
What’s your idea?
Time to strike. Momentum in this great advantageous movie title, ‘3 BILLBOARDS’, is now.
We have until Oscars, March 4th, to capitalize. Possibly longer, if ‘3 Billboards’ does well a the Academy Awards.
It’s 1st quarter. Get started. Go see the movie. Send the entire office to the movie. This is a rare opportunity.
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