How to Create Billboard Artwork with Canva

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Overview

So you've decided to create your own billboard artwork. We can help.

Before you begin, you'll need to have a few things ready. First, make sure you know the size of artwork you'll need. The most common sizes on Fliphound right now are 1800x500 and 1500x500. Creating at least these two sizes will allow you to run ads on most billboards currently in our system. For example, these sizes allow you to display advertisement on our 14'x48' and 10'x30' large format digital billboards.

Second, you'll probably want to have a high quality logo file to add to your artwork. If you can find a logo file with a transparent background, that will work even better since you'll be able to lay it on top of a background image or style seamlessly.

We strongly recommend using Canva to actually create your ad, but if you have a preferred image editor you can use that instead. Know what size you need and have your logo ready? Let's get started.

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Basic concepts and best practices

 

Keep it simple: 1 image, 1 logo, 7 words

That's all you need to build an effective ad. More images and words can be useful, but are more than likely going to clutter your ad and make it have less impact at a quick glance.

Use a clear and clean font

Make sure your font is legible to users cruising past your intended billboard at 60 miles per hour or the posted speed limit. Choosing a large, bold, and easy to read font can mean the difference between your ad getting noticed and read, or getting ignored.

Every inch counts

While good use of whitespace is important on other mediums, you'll want to take advantage of every pixel on a digital billboard. Feel free to increase the font size you use and the size of images and logos.

Be on brand

Viewers of your ads are likely to look up your business several hours after seeing your ad, so you want to make sure they know they've found the right business.

Promote your web address or location or phone number

The most successful billboard advertisers use outdoor advertising to promote their company, product and/or service and include one of the following: web address or location or a phone number (vanity phone numbers work best) there is simply not enough room include all three on your ad Many Fliphound advertisers are focusing on promoting their web address since everyone is online and your web address is central to all of your other marketing initiatives (including social media, print, radio and TV). If you use your web address make sure your business or product can be found on the internet (via a URL or Facebook page).

 

For additional information see: creative specification and effective ad design tips or creative inspiration billboard ad examples and images.

Building in Canva

Now let's take the concepts we just learned and apply them to creating your first ad in canva. After creating an account, you'll want to click the "Use custom dimensions" button in the upper right hand corner of your dashboard, and enter the dimensions for the ad you need. Remember, the most common are 1800x500 and 1500x500 (pixels).

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To build out your ad, you can either select images from the ones available in Canva or upload your own. For a great primer on using Canva, be sure to check out their getting started section.

As you build your ad, remember what we learned about being succinct, using bold, legible fonts, and utilizing every pixel.

Exporting to Fliphound

After you've built your ad, you'll need to export it from your image editor and then upload it to Fliphound. To export from Canva, you'll want to select "Image: For Web (JPG)".

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Then, log into Fliphound and go to your Creative page. Click "Upload" in the upper right corner, and browse for the file you just downloaded. Now, give your ad a name and click "Save Creative".

That's it! Once your ad is reviewed by the Fliphound team you'll be able to use it on every billboard on our platform with that size. You can repeat this process for any other sizes you've created, or add them both at once to the same creative to simplify the assigning process (preferred method).

Here's a summary of all the steps involved in creating your own billboard ad:

  • Create ad in Canva

    Select your preferred size, upload your logo and images, and create your ad.

  • Export from Canva

    Select the Image for Web option (JPG) from the download options.

  • Upload to Fliphound

    Head over to your Creative page, and click upload to add your new ad to your account.

  • Assign to billboards

    Once approved, your new ad is ready to be assigned to packages, contracts, and bids.

Any questions?

If you have any questions feel free to reach out to us.

We also offer creative services if you'd like to hire us to build your ad. Head over to this page and fill out a design brief to get started.