Viral 'Bachelor' Billboards Prove the Power of Signage
At 8 a.m., March 6, Outfront Media got an email from "The Bachelor" fans looking to make a big splash. By 12 p.m. billboards were up.
On Tuesday, March 6, billboards aimed at The Bachelor’s Arie Luyendyk Jr. circulated throughout social media. They appeared to be a direct response to Luyendyk Jr. publicly breaking up with his new fiance Becca Kufrin during the show’s season finale that aired the night before, for runner up Lauren Burnham. The billboards read: “Arie...not okay, just leave. - Everyone.”
At around 8 a.m. that Tuesday morning, Carly Zipp, Senior Director of Communications, Sponsorships, and Events at Outfront Media checked her inbox and saw she had received an email from fans of The Bachelor. Upset by the show’s finale, they wanted to make a big statement before its second part (that would be taping that evening), and they wanted to enlist Outfront Media to help them do it. By Noon billboards conveying the fans’ “disgust” went up in New York, California, and Minnesota. And within 72 hours the billboards reached over 760 million press, social, and TV impressions, according to Outfront Media.
Wide-Format & Sinage spoke to Zipp to learn how this passion project came to be within the span of four hours, and what makes billboard advertising so consistently affecting.
Creating the Viral Bachelor Billboards
Zipp said that almost immediately after receiving The Bachelor fans’ email, Outfront Media’s National Creative Director, Eddy Herty mocked up a concept and design, and sent it back to the fans for approval. Upon approval, Outfront Media checked to see what spaces were available for the billboard, and because of the tight turnaround they resorted to digital.
“We could only do it on digital, obviously because it's the push of a button, opposed to putting up a vinyl, or painting a wall,” said Zipp.
Around 11:30 am Outfront learned what areas they were targeting. They focused on New York, California, and Minnesota.
“We put up one in Times Square for the wow factor, one in Minnesota because that's where Becca's [Kufrin] from, and one in Los Angeles because that's where it's [The Bachelor] filmed, and that's where they were going to be filming the second part finale,” said Zipp. “It was all going to be live, and we had a certain amount of availability around there, so that's where we were able to get the boards up, and they were up by noon.”
It didn’t take long for fans and entertainment reporters alike to notice the billboards.
They quickly became a trending topic on twitter, and every major entertainment, and celebrity outlet had picked up the story—even former Vice President Joe Biden tweeted about the billboards. And then, Zipp received a call from The Bachelor producers—something Zipp guessed might happen— asking if they could include the billboards on the show, to which she obliged.
Outfront Media also created a second billboard for The Bachelor fans that went up the next day, after Kufrin was named the new bachelorette on the second part of the series' finale. The new billboard read: "Strong, Beautiful Woman, Seeking Man with Back Bone."
But this isn’t the first time that one of Outfront Media’s projects has gained major nationwide attention. A couple of months ago, Giants fans asked Outfront to create a billboard to show how upset they were by former Giants Coach Ben McAdoo’s decision to bench Eli Manning. The billboard read, “Big Blue Shame On You,” in Giants colors, near Giants stadium. The billboard went viral, made it on the cover of The Daily News, and landed in Sports Illustrated. Shortly after the billboards went up McAdoo was fired. Something that seemed a little more than coincidental.
“The New York Post contacted us first thing and said, ‘Do you think the billboards had a role in that since they are the voice of the fans?’” Zipp said, recounting the aftermath of McAdoo’s termination.
Why Have Billboards Remained Such a Powerful Medium
When asked why Zipp thinks Billboards continue to remain such powerful, and affecting forms of advertising, she said it boils down to their acceptability, accessibility, and affordability.
Smaller brands with smaller budgets can really benefit from putting themselves out there and making a splash with a billboard according to Zipp.
“A lot of times we'll have clients come to us and say, ‘I only have so much budget, and I really want to make a big impact, and you know what I love about your medium is it's a huge open canvas for me to tell my story, and develop my brand,’” Zipp said.
People are also becoming more and more savvy, according to Zipp, when it comes to avoiding online advertising. Consumers are closing tabs, and downloading ad-blocking software—but billboards are impossible to turn off.
“People are driving by, and they're seeing it, and whether they like it, or not, it's kinda stuck in their heads, particularly if it's noticeable creative,” said Zipp.
Billboards are meant for making a big splash, and sending a big message. It doesn’t matter whether you’re a passionate fan, or a company trying to advertise. No matter the scale of the message you’re trying to convey, you can be sure that you’ll be heard when you have the right signage, complete with clear copy and creative visuals.
