Billboard Advertising in Malaysia: A Complete Guide

Gantry Billboards

This is a large structure with the ad mounted on both sides. As the name implies, the gantry is shaped like an arch and is uniquely designed to attract the attention of the viewers who utilize the particular main road either head-on or from opposite road(off-side).

The cost of using this media space range from RM60,000 to RM80,000 per year. In most cases, gantry boards are placed in prime locations or highways.

Arch Billboards or sometimes being called Iconic Gantry

Where arch billboards are concerned, there are the permanent ones which are usually enacted either by the government or by the media owner. 

One of the unique media used in this type of advertising is an arch billboard. As the name implies, it is a billboard which is designed in an arch shape and looks very different from the more conventional large printed billboards.

An arch billboard can be designed in different shapes as long as it contains an overhead shelter-like form. The most common type of arch billboard would be those that are found between boundaries, especially along highways.
Using arch billboards for your advertising needs will give your brand or product a very unique and different campaign. It can be designed to provide a message that goes with the arch or being a media that stands out. This will surely attract more attention and impressions as compared to traditional billboards.

Highly visible

Most arch billboard is very visible as permanent ones are usually enacted high above the ground level which gives your ad a very good platform to be seen by the general public from all directions.

Rental Price Range: 
City Center/CBD: RM800,000 to RM1,200,000 per annum
Highways(eg. Federal Highway, NKVE HIghway): RM1,000,000 to RM2,000,000 per annum
Plus Highway: RM1,000,000 to RM1,200,000 per annum 

Rooftop Billboards

Billboards that are attached on the rooftop of buildings and structures can be very impactful at cities and towns especially when there are expressways or main roads travelling between them. They can either be 14ft x 48ft or 20ft x 60ft and usually cost between RM15,000 and RM30,000 per month depending on the location.

In most cases, rooftop billboards can be best used if your ads have minimal text and large images because the locations are usually at fast-paced traffic areas.

Rental Price Range: 
City Center/CBD: RM220,000 to RM350,000 per annum

Overhead Bridges(OHB)

Billboards are attached on the side of the overhead bridge and are usually horizontal rectangles.

These billboards are commonly attached on highways and major roads where traffic flows through and under the overhead bridges while they are usually seen at urban towns and cities at intersections and junctions.

Rental Price Range: 
City Center/CBD: RM200,000 to RM500,000 per annum
Highways(eg. Federal Highway, NKVE HIghway): RM150,000 to RM280,000 per annum
Plus Highway: RM120,000 to RM280,000 per annum 

Wall Signs – Wallscapes Billboards

Wall signs are smaller as compared to other forms of billboards but this media can be extremely impactful as they can be placed at highly strategic areas and walls of buildings. Wall signs are available in customized sizes and can start from RM180,000 per annum. This range could the go up to RM500,000 per year especially those facing major highways.

Citilight Poster

This type of media is usually seen on pedestrian walkways and at street furniture like taxi or bus stands. City Light Posters are basically backlit structures that illuminate a poster attached for the viewer.

As such, this type of outdoor board is very effective to target pedestrians and passer-bys. The usual sizes of the City Light Poster is 2m square(5 feet x 10 feet).

Rental Price Range: 
City Center/CBD: RM45,000 to RM65,000 per annum

Pillar Wraps / Column Posters

Pillar wraps would be an exciting option when you use OOH media. It can be quite effective especially if your ad is seen in the location where most of your target audience is. Using pillar wraps can be quite challenging as you get repetition but you do not want to sound too long-winded. Graphics is crucial while text can be used too. The good thing about using pillar wrap is that you can target pedestrians who would have time to read your ad.

• Types: Generally, there are only a few main types of pillar wraps. They are all quite identical which are presented in portrait format. Basically, the distinguishing factor would be the size of the space.
• Locations: Among the most common locations you will find pillar wraps would be the external parts of train stations. LRT and KL Monorail stations are most common where the wraps can be seen by the commuters, cars and vehicles and passer-bys. Besides that, you will find pillar wraps in places like commercial centers, universities and institutes of higher learning.
• Price: If you plan to advertise on pillar wraps, be ready to be charged based several pillars at any time. The production cost can be quite high depending on the size of the pillar.

Column Billboards

This is the type of billboards that you usually see along highways and roads. Column billboards are very visible as they are usually enacted high above the ground. Advertising in this type of billboards will give your brand a lot of impressions as they usually stand out among the crowd and can be easily spotted from different directions. Advantages of using column billboards include:

Large and loud

Column billboards are basically very large panels. Your brand will have a strong presence on the column billboards which can be seen by the public. In most cases, column billboards are enacted in the middle of a location with high traffic, giving it the exposure from different sides. This is coupled with the fact that it can be seen from a far distance.

Different formats

One of the advantages of column billboards is that it can be designed into different formats. This is where it can be mounted on the centre, on the side like a flag or any other shapes suitable. As they are placed on top of a very high pole, you can customize your ads the way you like on the column billboard.

Lighting

A column billboard which is illuminated will be very impressive and attractive, particularly when it is dark. You can adopt conventional lighting or use more modern LED technology which is more cost effective and energy efficient.

Content

The content to be printed on the wraparound can be easily changed and modified when necessary.

Bus Shelter

One of the most effective methods of street furniture advertising is using bus shelters. For a 5 to 12 panel shelter, the cost is about RM12,000 per month for every shelter.

This media is very impactful and effective especially if you are targeting commuters who use bus as well as other public transportation modes. In bus shelter ads, the message is usually placed on top or by the side of the structure.

Directional Sign

In this type of outdoor boards, your ad will be placed on directional signboards usually at the bottom part of the sign. In most cases, the Directional Sign is placed either in the front or the back of the structure where the sizes can be limited.

However, it is a very impactful media because these signs captivate a large target audience.

Street Lamp/Backlit Box

This is the type of outdoor board which is attached to a street lamp. It is very much like a common light box which is 1.8m x 1.2m in size. Prices for these spaces are between RM1,000 and RM2,000 per unit (on the pole) monthly.

Trivision

Trivision billboards are one of the earliest types of dynamic billboards. It involves using triangular-shaped poles which are turned concurrently. Trivision was one of the most sought after dynamic billboards when it was first introduced.

As such, this type of billboard can provide up to 3 different ads at any time. The size of the ads depends on the dimension of the structure where it is usually 10ft x 40ft or 20ft x 60ft per face which will then determine the pricing of using this space that range from RM50,000 to RM600,000 per year.

Mega Light

Mega Light refers to the type of digital poster which uses lighting technology. The common measurement of this board is 9m square which is one of the costlier modes of advertising. For a 66-faces per month Mega Light space, it will start from RM450,000 while for 33-faces per month boards, prices start from RM230,000 per month.

City Star

City Star boards cost about RM120,000 for a 26-faces space per month and RM65,000 for a 13-faces space monthly. This media measures 9m square and can be effectively used to target viewers at high traffic locations as well as busy walkways in towns and cities mainly because they are not too large in size and can be seen from people who are using the pedestrian walkways.

Metrolite

Metrolite boards measure at 2m square and is an effective media for advertising for brand owners who are targeting pedestrians, commuters and people who use public transport.

This type of media space costs about RM35,000 for a 14-faces design per month and can be very impactful especially if used at high traffic locations where the board can capture high impressions among the people around that particular vicinity.

Budget and Size

Billboard sizes are very important as they will determine how ‘visible’ your ads will be. This is usually determined by factors like the location of the billboard and more importantly with how high the billboard will be mounted.

Apart from that, billboard sizes will determine the financial expenditure as larger boards will require larger printouts which in turn will require higher expenditure.

Lighting and Illumination for billboards

In billboard advertising, using lighting is not compulsory if you are planning to minimize your cost. There are several reasons to this. To begin with, your billboard ad can be clearly seen (and read) in daytime because of natural sunlight. Considering that the hours between 12.00am and 6.00am are dark, most of the effectiveness from billboard ads would come during daytime. As such, lighting or illumination for your billboard at night might not be as crucial as you might think. This can be because there are at least 70% lesser traffic at night which means poor ROI. You would not want to spend most of your budget for a single media in the least possibility of viewership, would you?

On the other hand, if your billboard is located in high traffic areas with traffic congestion lasting to later than 11pm, you should consider lighting as it will have good effect on your visual.