Lucrative eye-catcher in a prime location
Mega-posters on construction scaffolding provide an attractive platform for large-scale advertising campaigns. What was once a niche market is growing.
Megaposters on scaffolding offer an attractive platform for large-scale advertising. The former niche is growing, with a maximum of 60 megaposters hanging in Switzerland at any one time, covering the scaffolding of construction projects in the most prominent locations possible and advertising products and services. In the advertising industry, posters over 12 m2 fall into this category, but they are usually at least 60 m2 in size and cover up to 400 m2 or even larger areas. There are currently a particularly large number of them, but this is not because there are more jobs available. The economic situation has caused advertising budgets to fall in recent years, with money being cut mainly for special campaigns, including megaposters. That is now a thing of the past; advertising budgets and interest are increasing again. However, many factors determine whether such an advertising space on a scaffold can be marketed.
Tricky location searchBefore a location can even be considered, some clarifications are necessary. "Only properties in prime locations are of interest, otherwise there is no chance of marketing," explains Felix Rothweiler, Managing Director of Clear Channel Felice GmbH, one of the brokerage companies for megaposters. First and foremost, an urban environment is required. Zurich, Basel and Bern are particularly interesting, but a sales market can also be found in Lucerne, St. Gallen, Winterthur and Lugano. According to Rothweiler, Geneva and Lausanne would be very popular with advertisers, but no permits for advertising space on scaffolding are being issued in these two cities for the time being.
Finally, the location within a city is also decisive: shopping streets, pedestrian zones and heavily frequented streets. For example, Bellevue in Zurich, Barfüsserplatz in Basel or the old town in Bern. "The number of eye contacts and their quality are of particular interest," says Rothweiler.
Finding the ideal location is not enough; there are many regulations to be observed. The authorities are particularly restrictive when issuing permits near places of interest. The authorities involved are the building police, the traffic police and a specialist department for advertising structures at the Office for Urban Development (or similar, depending on the canton). Another decisive factor is whether a planned megaposter would be located on a building that is on public land or on private land. In both cases, permit fees are due, in the former case an additional fee for the use of public land.
"The fees can account for up to a third of the total price," Rothweiler knows from experience. It's not just the location that matters, but not just any motif can be printed. It is carefully checked whether it could fit in with the surroundings. Different test approaches apply depending on the location. At Bellevue in Zurich, for example, no more than five words are generally permitted, plus the logo.
The owner decidesToo many trees in the forest of paragraphs? There are various brokerage agencies that take care of the matter, contact clients when they view a suitable property, clarify options and interests with property managers and owners.
The customers - companies from the 300 biggest brands - reach the intermediaries, sometimes via advertising and media agencies. If there is a good chance that a location and a poster will be approved, it is up to the owner. They not only decide whether they want a megaposter in principle, but also what kind of advertising is suitable for them.
"In 90 percent of cases, the owner is the decision-maker and says what can and cannot be done on his construction site," confirms Rothweiler. Dates and local conditions are discussed with the site manager and the scaffolder, also with regard to site installation. It may be helpful to use a crane during assembly.
Façade climbers rarely in demandA scaffolding façade must meet certain requirements. For example, it should be as straight as possible, free of - in this case disruptive - scaffolding stairs, lifts, splinter guards or plumbing runs. If cables cannot be attached in any other way, for example from streetcar lines or street lighting, slots and the like must be made during the poster printing process, so careful preliminary clarification is important.
Because the wind load can be significant, the affected scaffolding must be anchored twice as strongly. One anchorage is required for every 10 m2 of advertising space. Specialized façade climbers are rarely required for installation - as in the case of the Messeturm Basel, for example - but the classic method is usually used.
It is primarily the building owner or developer who earns money, with most of the rental income going into their pockets. The prices for advertising space vary. As a rule, the following factors are decisive: city, exact location/neighborhood, number of views per month, frontal or angled view and the size of the poster. Rental prices range from CHF 10,000 to just under CHF 60,000 per month. The highest prices are paid for locations such as the aforementioned Bellevue in Zurich. Then there are the fees, which according to Rothweiler are most expensive in Zurich at CHF 60/m2/month, followed by Basel at CHF 33/m2/month.
The media service, production and costs for installation and removal are also calculated. As the poster is the property of the client, they also decide what happens to the posters made of net vinyl after they have been dismantled. "Around half is destroyed, the rest is released for further processing," says Rothweiler. The material often ends up with social institutions, which process the tarpaulins into bags or similar items in sheltered workshops or employment programs.
Mega popularZurich is extremely popular,
when it comes to megaposters on scaffolding. Accordingly, the Office for Urban Development drew up a concept for dealing with megaposters at an early stage. According to Bernhard Lüthi, Head of Advertising Installations at the Office of Urban Development, around 90 percent of the megaposters approved in Zurich are on scaffolding. Half of these are on public property. On average, there are around six installations at any one time, and around 30 posters are approved each year. "Because the framework conditions are clearly defined, refusals are the exception," explains Liechti. "As a rule, we try to clarify the permissibility of installations before the application is submitted."
A method that works well; in recent years, only one or two requests have been rejected. Most of them were due to traffic safety issues with scaffolding in exposed locations; sometimes the installations were not able to comply with building regulations.
Liechti would never approve a megaposter in the old town (scaffolding and façades), on the façades of buildings of artistic and cultural-historical value or anywhere where the legal requirements of the Canton of Zurich's Planning and Building Act (PBG) regarding classification and traffic safety aspects (SSV/SVG) are not met.
Sandra D'Arienzo
Tricky location searchBefore a location can even be considered, some clarifications are necessary. "Only properties in prime locations are of interest, otherwise there is no chance of marketing," explains Felix Rothweiler, Managing Director of Clear Channel Felice GmbH, one of the brokerage companies for megaposters. First and foremost, an urban environment is required. Zurich, Basel and Bern are particularly interesting, but a sales market can also be found in Lucerne, St. Gallen, Winterthur and Lugano. According to Rothweiler, Geneva and Lausanne would be very popular with advertisers, but no permits for advertising space on scaffolding are being issued in these two cities for the time being.
Finally, the location within a city is also decisive: shopping streets, pedestrian zones and heavily frequented streets. For example, Bellevue in Zurich, Barfüsserplatz in Basel or the old town in Bern. "The number of eye contacts and their quality are of particular interest," says Rothweiler.
Finding the ideal location is not enough; there are many regulations to be observed. The authorities are particularly restrictive when issuing permits near places of interest. The authorities involved are the building police, the traffic police and a specialist department for advertising structures at the Office for Urban Development (or similar, depending on the canton). Another decisive factor is whether a planned megaposter would be located on a building that is on public land or on private land. In both cases, permit fees are due, in the former case an additional fee for the use of public land.
"The fees can account for up to a third of the total price," Rothweiler knows from experience. It's not just the location that matters, but not just any motif can be printed. It is carefully checked whether it could fit in with the surroundings. Different test approaches apply depending on the location. At Bellevue in Zurich, for example, no more than five words are generally permitted, plus the logo.
The owner decidesToo many trees in the forest of paragraphs? There are various brokerage agencies that take care of the matter, contact clients when they view a suitable property, clarify options and interests with property managers and owners.
The customers - companies from the 300 biggest brands - reach the intermediaries, sometimes via advertising and media agencies. If there is a good chance that a location and a poster will be approved, it is up to the owner. They not only decide whether they want a megaposter in principle, but also what kind of advertising is suitable for them.
"In 90 percent of cases, the owner is the decision-maker and says what can and cannot be done on his construction site," confirms Rothweiler. Dates and local conditions are discussed with the site manager and the scaffolder, also with regard to site installation. It may be helpful to use a crane during assembly.
Façade climbers rarely in demandA scaffolding façade must meet certain requirements. For example, it should be as straight as possible, free of - in this case disruptive - scaffolding stairs, lifts, splinter guards or plumbing runs. If cables cannot be attached in any other way, for example from streetcar lines or street lighting, slots and the like must be made during the poster printing process, so careful preliminary clarification is important.
Because the wind load can be significant, the affected scaffolding must be anchored twice as strongly. One anchorage is required for every 10 m2 of advertising space. Specialized façade climbers are rarely required for installation - as in the case of the Messeturm Basel, for example - but the classic method is usually used.
It is primarily the building owner or developer who earns money, with most of the rental income going into their pockets. The prices for advertising space vary. As a rule, the following factors are decisive: city, exact location/neighborhood, number of views per month, frontal or angled view and the size of the poster. Rental prices range from CHF 10,000 to just under CHF 60,000 per month. The highest prices are paid for locations such as the aforementioned Bellevue in Zurich. Then there are the fees, which according to Rothweiler are most expensive in Zurich at CHF 60/m2/month, followed by Basel at CHF 33/m2/month.
The media service, production and costs for installation and removal are also calculated. As the poster is the property of the client, they also decide what happens to the posters made of net vinyl after they have been dismantled. "Around half is destroyed, the rest is released for further processing," says Rothweiler. The material often ends up with social institutions, which process the tarpaulins into bags or similar items in sheltered workshops or employment programs.
Mega popularZurich is extremely popular,
when it comes to megaposters on scaffolding. Accordingly, the Office for Urban Development drew up a concept for dealing with megaposters at an early stage. According to Bernhard Lüthi, Head of Advertising Installations at the Office of Urban Development, around 90 percent of the megaposters approved in Zurich are on scaffolding. Half of these are on public property. On average, there are around six installations at any one time, and around 30 posters are approved each year. "Because the framework conditions are clearly defined, refusals are the exception," explains Liechti. "As a rule, we try to clarify the permissibility of installations before the application is submitted."
A method that works well; in recent years, only one or two requests have been rejected. Most of them were due to traffic safety issues with scaffolding in exposed locations; sometimes the installations were not able to comply with building regulations.
Liechti would never approve a megaposter in the old town (scaffolding and façades), on the façades of buildings of artistic and cultural-historical value or anywhere where the legal requirements of the Canton of Zurich's Planning and Building Act (PBG) regarding classification and traffic safety aspects (SSV/SVG) are not met.
Sandra D'Arienzo
