FOCUS - OUTDOOR ADVERTISING: Ads for outdoor media require special creative skills

<p>Outdoor ads should be simple yet compelling, advised Mr Steve </p><p>Elrick, creative director of Bartle Bogle Hegarty. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Speaking at the Asian Outdoor Advertising Seminar 2000 in Singapore </p><p>recently, Mr Elrick said that outdoor in Asia is underated but likely to </p><p>grow as an advertising medium, given what some markets are already </p><p>doing. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"It costs a lot of money to make TV ads, (so) I'm surprised people </p><p>aren't using outdoor advertising more," he said. "Marketers often tend </p><p>to think, 'If we don't have a TV ad, we're not producing a proper </p><p>campaign'." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Mr Elrick warned that outdoor ads, unlike TV ads, cannot be 'covered' by </p><p>fantastic cinematography or other effects. "If an idea is weak, it will </p><p>be obvious to everyone how unimpressive the idea is." But if done right, </p><p>they can go a long way in reaching the audience, he suggested. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The rule of thumb for a successful outdoor ad is; keep it simple. </p><p>Present a very compelling thought that people cannot ignore. And always </p><p>leave something for the audience to work at instead of giving the answer </p><p>straight out, because "there's a much better chance of people </p><p>remembering your ad if they have to work at it a bit", said Mr Elrick, </p><p>adding that "outdoor space is the space inside someone's head that </p><p>you're trying to get to." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In Asia, where outdoor is treated as a support medium and media owners </p><p>are, to some extent, under-selling the medium, outdoor has yet to reach </p><p>its best. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"There are a lot more options to make outdoor more interesting and it </p><p>can be exponentially better," said Mr Elrick. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>He pointed out, however, that the markets are seeing more creative use </p><p>of outdoor lately, and cited as an example Singapore's Comfort taxi tops </p><p>where a potentially boring space has been creatively turned into a very </p><p>interesting and effective advertising space. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>While he maintains that the use of outdoor is still conservative in </p><p>Asia, on the whole Mr Elrick said he is "upbeat about outdoor" and </p><p>believes it will one day become the most important mass communication </p><p>broadcast medium. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>