My career in commercial design has had me working a a wide variety of different marketing arenas. But one channel that I’ve rarely had an opportunity to work in is outdoor advertising. That changed this month when I took on a billboard design project for Hornblower Cruises.

And this, my first ever US Interstate system billboard advertising design gig, was one of the largest sizings offered by Lamar/Clear Channel: a 14′ x 48′ behemoth cuddled up to the I-8 freeway with an estimated 100k views per 24-hour period. I build my gallows high, baby.

I even wrote the copy. We had a copywriter on board, but I had a concept in mind that fit one of our photo assets which gave me some insight where the copywriter was more or less flying blind. This design was to be mounted on a property situated just outside of Yuma, AZ where the next stop of any importance was the client’s market of San Diego — thus the headline. Isn’t it just the most profound copy you’ve ever laid eyes on?

But seriously, it’s right in line with outdoor marketing practices which are driven by the reality that the viewers have sometimes only microseconds to absorb messaging, so every extra letter carries weight. So with that in mind, I think we got it right.