Lots of companies want to fund your billboard or digital sign by providing lease financing. The benefits of leasing include 100% financing and sometimes a lack of a personal guarantee. Billboard financing leases often have three big drawbacks: (1) You don’t know how much the lease costs. I once had […]
Author: Dave Westburg
Effective Billboard Advertising
Mark Dressekie, a London Car Dealer, sent me a terrific infographic on effective billboard advertising. I especially like the five tips at the end of the graphic. 6 words or less. Don’t make your message too long because people are driving and don’t have much time to focus. There’s only room […]
Pros and Cons of Trivision Billboards
I’ve financed numerous trivision billboards and own a couple trivision billboards. Here’s my take on the pros and cons of owning a trivision. Pros of Owning a Trivision Lower capital cost. A new trivision head runs $26,000/side, versus $150,000-200,000 for a digital billboard. Lower Electricity – My trivision has electric […]
What Are Billboard Easements Worth?
“How much is my billboard land lease worth?” I get asked that question by landowners wanting to sell their billboard leases and by investors and billboard companies who want to buy easements under billboards. The answer: 6 to 10 times the annual cashflow associated with the lease. In other words […]
Prepayment Penalties Can Kill You If You Use Billboard Lease Financing.
There are several finance companies which make billboard equipment leases. They are anxious to tell you that leasing will save your capital by allowing you to finance 100% of the cost of the sign. None of them talk about prepayment penalties. Lease prepayment penalties can kill you. It’s normal for […]
Five Questions for Jeff Moore, Media Resources
Jeff Moore is the United States Sales Rep for Media Resources (www.mediaresources.com) a Canadian company which provides digital sign products and services to billboard companies in Canada and the United States. I interviewed Jeff recently to find out what they do and how they can help small billboard companies. Jeff’s […]
Five Facts You May Not Know About Out Of Home
Here are five facts you may not know about out of home advertising taken from an October 8, 2014 Media Life Magazine article: Out of home advertising trails only TV as “most trustworthy media. Out of home advertising reaches nearly 90% of US adults, primarily while they are riding cars, […]
Four Things To Think About When Buying A Digital Sign
I’m a huge fan of Bob Klausmeier. He’s written a terrific article in the September/October 2014 issue of Out Of Home Magazine on what to think about when you are selecting a digital billboard. Here are my takeaways: Square footage matters. Always ask a manufacturer how many square feet their […]
Why personal guarantees are so important to billboard lenders
A personal guarantee is a requirement for almost every loan I do. 20 of our 22 existing loans require personal guarantees. The only two borrowers who don’t guarantee are non-profit companies where no single person is in charge. I’ve also sometimes made loans without a personal guarantee when a borrower […]
Interest Rates Aren’t Everything In Billboard Loan Financing
I often I pick up the phone and have a conversation goes something like this. “Hi, I want a billboard loan. What’s your rate?” The borrowing rate is an important part but it isn’t the only thing that matters. I’ve had customers chase rate and then get in a liquidity […]
