By Bilal Maisoor
As the out-of-home (OOH) advertising landscape evolves, traditional mediums like billboards and transit ads are no longer sufficient to capture the attention of today's mobile and fast-moving audiences. Introducing vehicle advertising into the mix adds a dynamic, mobile, and highly visible medium that other static OOH formats simply can't offer.
Studies have consistently shown that vehicle advertising is one of the most effective forms of outdoor advertising. A study by the Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA) found that vehicle wraps can generate between 30,000 to 70,000 impressions daily. Additionally, research indicates that 98% of drivers and passengers notice ads on trucks and other vehicles .
This mobile form of advertising ensures that brands are not confined to a single spot and can cover various parts of a city in a single day. With people spending an average of 20 hours per week on the road, vehicle ads are a moving billboard that follows your target audience wherever they go.
Sri Lanka, particularly Colombo, is an ideal environment for vehicle-based advertising. According to the 2023 TomTom Traffic Index, Colombo ranks as one of the most congested cities in the world, with drivers spending 67% extra travel time stuck in traffic. The city's heavy traffic congestion, paired with high population density, ensures that vehicles carrying ads are seen by countless people every single day.
In Colombo, there are over 2 million daily commuters, making the roads of this city one of the most attractive mediums for vehicle ads. With these staggering numbers, vehicle advertising in Sri Lanka provides unmatched exposure, ensuring that brands get high visibility and greater reach than static billboards can offer.
Vehicle ads have the unique advantage of being able to target multiple locations in a day, reaching different audiences based on the route the vehicle takes. This makes them particularly powerful in reaching a diverse and widespread audience—from busy commercial areas to more suburban regions. Plus, in a place like Colombo where public transport is still developing, personal vehicles dominate, giving vehicle ads a high level of visibility
Globally, vehicle advertising is rapidly growing in popularity. Research from the Nielsen OOH Advertising Study shows that vehicle ads have a recall rate of 97%, one of the highest of any OOH medium. Furthermore, fleet graphics, which include ads on trucks and other commercial vehicles, can result in boosting brand recognition 15 times more than other forms of advertising.
This blend of local traffic realities and global advertising trends proves that vehicle advertising is the ideal OOH medium for Sri Lanka. By adding this powerful advertising tool, brands can tap into a growing opportunity to get in front of their audience in ways that are cost-effective, mobile, and highly visible