Cold Calling Potential Customers

How much time does everyone spend cold calling to try and fill an open board? I put up “Ad Here” signs on my open faces but rarely get much inbound interest from them. I usually have to pick up the phone and cold call local businesses to try and fill an open face, and it sometimes can take weeks and months for them to a make a decision.

Is this normal? I’d like to expand my business but I’m not sure if I will have time to cold call 2x or 3x as much as I am now. What does everyone else do?

Absolutely none. It’s too easy for someone to say “no thanks”. If anything, I’ll go in person and deliver info on my boards. At least, it gets me to “I’ll think about it”.

Try to locate a marketing agency in your area. This would be a 3rd party that handles marketing for business owners who don’t have time or the experience to market their company. I own 4 bb faces and all are taken by agencies. I offer competitive rates in exchange for 1 year agreements. I do this part-time and it allowed me to eliminated a lot of time and effort I did to market my boards.

Good luck!

Ian, what is a ballpark figure for what a 3rd party marketing agency charges to rent the boards? Do they ever sit vacant? Also, have you ever looked into subleasing it to a large billboard company and let them rent it out? I have heard they will get a higher rent but I am not sure what kind of cut they require of the profits?

I’m not charged anything by this particular marketing agency. Perhaps it is because I offer competitive rates. I always thought M.A.'s made money charging their clients a fee on top of the cost of marketing. If they wanted a fee from me, I would bump the rent.

I never considered subleasing my billboards to another bb company. I see that as giving away money. If a board has value then you should be able to rent.