The Design of 3D Billboards Advertising in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Introduction

Advancements in technology, science and communication are rapidly changing the world we live in. These changes have been the main driving forces of the rapid increase in globalization. Accordingly, advancements impacted business ideas, knowledge and information amongst varied and scattered people located round the globe. One of the most significant impacts of globalization on the business world is the enormous empowerment of the consumer as a global citizen.  As indicated by Terkan, (2014) the consumer has become more powerful and important in the twenty first century than in previous years, and capturing and maintaining customers informs the need for the effective management of advertising and marketing processes to meet the challenges of the increasingly globalizing world.  As mentioned by Hutter (2015), consumers are overwhelmed with advertisements and this has necessitated that  companies come up with new ways of gaining customer's attention.

“Advertising is impersonal communication of information about products, services or ideas through various media, and it is usually persuasive by nature and paid for by identified sponsors” (Frolova, 2014). Moreover, as discussed by Baba (2012) advertising’s role of delivering specific messages to a particular target audience has given it a prominent role in organizations of all sizes, as it is relied upon to aid in the marketing of products and services. Advertising helps consumers in making decisions concerning the products to purchase, as well as helping manufacturers in reaching a wide area of consumers and increasing their sales.

Billboards are the most impactful and largest medium of advertisement for out of home advertisement. As noted by Siddiqui et. al. (2016), ever since advertising by billboards the first emerged in the early 1900’s, companies like Palmolive and Coca-Cola, have been using this eye catching medium. According to Taylor et.al. (2006), there are four primary reasons why businesses use billboard advertising: 1) visibility, 2) media efficiency, 3) local presence, and 4) tangible response.

Franke and Taylor (2017) indicated that billboard advertising is the use of sizeable displays of advertising that are visible over a large distance for an extensive audienceMoreover, Siddiqui et. Al. (2016) pointed that billboards are very effective in promoting advertisement, as well as introducing and expanding of products and that they should be used for four main purposes; local presence, media efficiency, visibility, and tangible response.

2.0 Aim and Objectives

This research aims to understand the current status of 3D billboard design in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The specific aims are as follows:

• To identify the current practices of billboard design in design companies located in Jeddah.
• To determine the obstacles facing advertising companies in the design of 3D billboard.

3.0 Literature review

Billboard advertising is defined by Akoren (2015) as “outdoor advertising”, which increases brand visibility on a daily basis because of its ability to be easily noticed  by the target group. Wilson, Baack and Till, (2015) added that using billboard takes a short time to notify a large group of audience about a certain product.

Siddiqui et. al (2016) mentioned that while advertising has progressed and undergone diversification into out of the box methods of advertisement,roadside advertisement and billboards have remained the most effective way to capture the target audience using land transportation. Regardless of all other marketing and advertising strategies, billboards remain on the top of the list because it’s the most popular form used in the industry. Thus, the execution is very important. Billboards have caught the attention of many through their catchy content, strategic location, size, reach, visibility, frequency and many other features which in return help brands to take space in a consumer’s mind resulting in increased revenue.  Below are some of these features in detail as mentioned by Siddiqui et. al (2016).

1) Location

Chmielewski and Tompalski (2017) argue that for the local presence, billboards should generate awareness as well as indicate the proximity of the business. In addition, they should provide a tangible response from the customers, as they are believed to increase customer sales as well as customer traffic. Thus, billboards should be located in a high-traffic area.

Location of the billboard is important to ensure that it is highly visible to the public. As mentioned by Siddiqui et. al (2016), locations also have a relationship with the brand in the sense thatthe billboard is located  in the particular geographical targeted area; therefore, in order to create increased brand awareness through billboards, a strategic location should be selected. Brands should keep this point in mind before deciding where to place advertising, because it can be  a huge monetary investment. The billboard which has greater reach will be more costly than the one which has comparatively less reach.

2) Visibility

Visibility on billboards means, according to  Osborne and Coleman (2008), that they can be easily seen and have the ability to make a strong impression, 24 hours a day. The media efficiency indicates that the advertisement should reach the targeted group frequently, at a relatively low cost.

Sidiqque et. al. (2016) added that visibility is an important factor when price is kept in consideration. Thus, cost of a billboard depends on its location which is affected by the range of its visibility.

3) Size

Size of the billboard refers to its height and width. As mentioned by Siddiqui (2016) the large billboards of big brands like Coca Cola, Pepsi or Sun Silk grab the direct attention of consumer and directly relate to the brand’s popularity. Normal and small size billboard usually represent sophisticated brands and are used by companies that recently launched their brand and want to create consumer awareness.  Smaller billboards, although less costly, can easily be overlooked and do not have the impact of larger ones. Some launching companies  using advertising  billboards prefer small size billboards because it can be seen to represent the size of the company and quality of the brand;  there are other   companies that  go for larger  size billboards in exclusive preferred locations,  and stillothers that  have an alternative  strategy while launching, of wanting  extensive visibility  with maximum frequency without considering the exact target audience - their aim is to build a name within the  market and  create brand awareness in  every individual whether a consumer or non-consumer.

4) Content

The content of a billboard refers to the imagery, text, graphics and visuals used in a billboard. Siddiqui et. al (2016) said some brands use 3D and 4D billboard content which involves moving objects attached to the billboard. Renowned brands tend to use just images because people are already aware about the brand and the purpose is just to showcase their products. In contrast the content of a billboard for launching brands should be minimal and catchy so that the consumer can get the idea of brand that is being advertised. The average time spent on viewing a billboard by the consumer is approximately three seconds. If you consider this, it suggests that companies should use the strategy to work only on content, creativity, and images, and shouldn’t put too much value in location. Marketers have to work hard on the content of a billboard; there are many considerations, for example text must be appropriate for  the culture of the market; and must be ethical with no grammar mistakes. The wrong content can damage a brand completely or even take a brand to its end, but it’s also the content which can take a brand to the highest peak of success. Moreover, content must be set according to your target market and target audience in terms of language and images which must be presented in a way that your audience can easily understand the message. The message must be clear in content because customers viewing the billboard do not take the time to study long detailed content.

4.0 Methodology

The researcher collected the data using an online survey. The survey link was sent to 22 advertising companies, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, However, only 10 companies responded, these are: 1) Al Arabia Advertising 2) Abdul Latif Jameel Advertising 3) Tohama Advertising 4) 3Point  Advertising 5) Saudi Snag 6) Al Alam Alafa Company Advertising 7) Dora Jeddah Advertising 8) Four Line International Advertising 9) Al Qafela Advertising 10) Al Tayeb Advertising.

5.0 Results

|Exploring the designers’ perspective on several aspects concerning 3D advertising billboards, the findings of the study showed the following:

6 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that 3D billboard advertising can support the development of Saudi Arabia toward the vision of 2030, and 4 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agreed that 3D billboard advertising can support the development of Saudi Arabia that toward the vision of 2030. (See figure 1: 3D Billboards Advertising and the Development of Saudi Arabia toward the vision of 2030)

Figure 1: 3D Billboards Advertising and the development of Saudi Arabia toward the vision of 2030

Regarding the effectiveness of 3D billboards on commercial advertising, as shown in figure 2, 7 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agreed that 3D billboard advertising is effective for commercial advertising, and 3 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that 3D billboards advertising is effective for commercial advertising.

Figure 2: Effectiveness of 3D Billboards Advertising on Commercial Advertising Business

As shown in figure 3, in considering the advantages of 3D over 2D advertising billboards in business, the study showed that 5 out of 10 advertising companies indicated that 3D billboards attract more attention than 2D advertising billboards do. Moreover, 4 out of 10 advertising companies indicated that 3D billboards increase sales more than 2D advertising billboards do. However, only 1 out of 10 advertising companies indicated that 3D billboards give long engagement in the viewer’s mind than 2D advertising billboards do.

Figure 3: The Advantages of 3D over 2D Advertising Billboards in Business

Figure 4a: Obstacles in Designing 3D Billboard Advertising

 When noting  the obstacles to  designing 3D advertising billboards according to the advertising companies beliefs, companies selected between the following eight options:

1) Manufacturing process 2) Lack of creativity or (know-how) 3) Lack of specialized designers 4) Designers cost 5) Equipment availability 6) Location of installment 7) Installation process 8) Material and fabrics. (see figure 4a)

With reference to the manufacturing process as an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, the results of the study showed that 8 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that the manufacturing process is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising.  Only 1 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agreed that the manufacturing process is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising. However, 1 out of 10 advertising companies indicated that it is neutral.

Figure4b: ObstaclesinDesigning3DBillboardAdvertising

On the other hand, as shown in figure 4a, 4 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that lack of creativity or (know-how) is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, also 2 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agreed that lack of creativity or (know-how) is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising. While 4 out of 10 advertising companies disagreed that lack of creativity or (know-how) is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising;

In addition, with reference to a lack of specialized designers, the results indicated that 3 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agree that it is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, and 3 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that it is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising. While 3 out of 10 advertising companies disagreed that a lack of specialized designers is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, and only 1 out of 10 advertising companies is neutral regarding the lack of specialized designers as an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising.

Regarding the designer cost, as shown in figure 4a, 4 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that designer cost is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, and 4 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agree that designer cost is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, while  2 out of 10 advertising companies are neutral.

Considering equipment availability as an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, as shown in figure 4a, the results showed that 5 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that equipment availability is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, and 2 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agree that it is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising. While 1 out of 10 advertising companies disagreed that equipment availability is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, and 2 out of 10 advertising companies are neutral

Considering  the location of installment, the results showed that 4 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that location of installment is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, and 1 out of 10 strongly agreed that location of installment is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, while 2 out of 10 advertising companies disagreed that location of installment is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising and 3 out of 10 advertising companies are neutral regarding the location of installment as an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising. (See figure 4b)

Moreover, as shown in figure 4b, the results showed that 2 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that installation process is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising and 4 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agree that installation process is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising. However, 1 out of 10 advertising companies strongly disagree that installation process is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising and 3 out of 10 indicated that it is neutral.

Considering whether materials and fabrics are an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, 3 out of 10 advertising companies agreed and 3 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agreed that material and fabrics are an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising. While 3 out of 10 advertising companies disagreed that materials and fabrics, are an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising and only 1 out of 10 advertising companies pointed that it is neutral (see figure 4b).

As shown in figure 5, the results showed that 6 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agreed that every company should have a graphic designer come up with the design of the 3D billboard advertisements. In addition, 4 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that every company should have a graphic designer to design the 3D billboard advertisements;

Figure 5: The Need for a specialized Graphic Designer In Every Company

As shown in figure 6, considering the four proposed actions from the design companies to enhance the design of 3D advertising billboards, the results indicated that 3 out of 10 advertising companies believed that hiring professional qualified designers is important. 2 out of 10 advertising companies indicated that providing advanced production equipment is important, while 2 out of 10 indicated that increasing the knowledge of the employees by training will help with the development of 3D billboards for design companies. 3 out of 10 advertising companies indicated that providing a set of guidelines for graphic designers to design 3D advertising billboard would help with the development of 3D billboards for design companies.

Figure 6: Development of 3D Billboards Design

 Referring to the need for a specialized installation team, as shown in figure 7, 7 out of 10 advertising companies agreed that every company should have their own 3D billboard installation team. 1 out of 10 advertising companies strongly agreed that every company should have their own 3D billboard installation team; however, 1 out of 10 advertising companies disagreed, and 1 out of 10 is neutral.

Figure 7: 3D Billboard Installation Team

As shown in figure 7, when considering a 3D billboard installation team, 7 out 10  of the advertising companies agreed that every company should have their own 3D billboard installation team, while 2 out of 10 of the advertising companies strongly agree that every company should have their own 3D billboard installation team, 1 out of 10 advertising companies disagree that every company should have their own 3D billboard installation team, and 1 out of 10 of the advertising companies is neutral on the question of whether or not every company should have its  own 3D billboard installation team.

6.0 Discussion

Billboard advertising has the ability to subtly affect people’s day to day lives and change their perception about a brand.  3D billboards are gaining more leverage in the world of outdoor advertising. They are used to enhance advertising, create more memorable experiences with the consumers, and increase their level of satisfaction.

3D billboard advertising can support the development of Saudi Arabia toward the vision of 2030. Hence, this study aims to understand the development process of 3D billboard design in Saudi Arabia and particularly in the city of Jeddah from Jeddah based design companies’ perspective focusing on the obstacles and the possible enhancements.

Peszko (2016), pointed out that visual advertising is one of the most common forms of advertising communications in the world; its main purpose is to engage involvement of the recipient’s sense of sight and attract his/her attention for at least a few seconds. This was supported by the study results which showed that 3D billboards advertising are effective for commercial advertising.

Siddiqui (2016) confirmed that billboards are very effective in promoting advertisement. The results of this study showed that the 3D billboards advertising are effective for  commercial advertising, and have several advantages  over the 2D billboards such as attracting attention (as stated by 50% of the advertising companies), stuck in the viewer’s mind (as stated by 40% of the advertising companies), and increased sales.

Moreover, regarding the obstacles to designing 3D billboard advertising, advertising companies reported the following:

1)      Manufacturing process: 90% of advertising companies agreed that the manufacturing process is an obstacle to designing 3D billboard advertising.

2)      Lack of creativity or (know-how): 50% of the advertising companies agreed that lack of creativity or (know-how) is an obstacle to designing 3D billboard advertising.

3)      Lack of specialized designers: 60% of the advertising companies agreed that the lack of specialized designers it is an obstacle to designing 3D billboard advertising.

4)      Equipment availability: 50% of the advertising companies agreed that equipment availability is an obstacle to designing 3D billboard advertising.

5)      Location: 50% of the advertising companies agreed that location of installment is an obstacle to designing 3D billboard advertising. According to Siddiqui (2016), billboards have caught the attention of many through their catchy content, strategic location, sizes, reach, visibility, frequency and many other features, which in return help brands to take space in a consumer’s mind through frequent exposure and subsequently increase revenue.

6)      Installation Process: 60% of the advertising companies agreed that installation process is an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising, which was also supported by the literature. 70% of the advertising companies agree that every company should have their own 3D billboard installation team. The researcher believes that hiring professional, qualified designers is important because qualified designers have the knowledge of how to market a product and will come up with a creative idea on how to advertise the product. On the other hand, the researcher believes that companies should have their own 3D billboard installation team so they will be able to execute the design made by the professional designers, as a 3D billboard.

7)       Materials and Fabrics: 60% of the advertising companies agreed that material and fabrics are an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising. The researcher also believes that the materials and fabrics are an obstacle in designing 3D billboard advertising due to a lack of knowledge and experience in material and fabric selection; this impedes the fabrication and manufacture of the 3D billboard.

On examining the positive impact and effectiveness of 3D billboard advertising, the study considered proposed possibilities to enhance the development of 3D Billboards for design companies. The results indicated that the following actions might aid in the development of effective  3D billboard designing in Saudi Arabia: 1) hiring professional, qualified designers; 2) providing advanced production equipment; 3) increasing the know-how of the employees by training; and 4) providing a set of guidelines for graphic designers to design 3D advertising billboards.

Examples of 3D billboards found in Saudi Arabia can be seen figure 10. The Berain water company billboard, was designed by a Saudi freelance designer, because Berain does not  have an on staff  designer. On the other hand, McDonald’s and KFC (see figure 11) are  franchised companies who use 3D billboard advertising in Jeddah because they use this type of advertisement internationally and they want the same look and feel of the brand in Saudi Arabia.

Figure 10: 3D billboard In Jeddah Streets