Skywriting Achieves New Levels in Advertising

Skywriting is a technique that has been around for sometime now. This rooted from the fascination of the display from jet planes which emit smoke that would create an array of writings in the sky. This has then given birth to a lot more than just pure entertainment. This technique has paved its way the media circle wherein advertisement strengthened its appeal.

Skywriting is an aerial advertising service that can be witnessed during outdoor events that call for a celebration like sport shows, air shows, the holidays and just anytime vacation season. The success of this method always relied on the cooperation of the skill and technical make up of the pilot, as well as the aircraft that he would maneuver.

If you are wondering how much the total cost is of having to get your message across the horizon, then it would be best for you to look around for competitive rates as the prices actually range depending on the different factors involved. Also, you would want to take a look at the technical skills of the pilot and the crew that the companies hire and of course, the aircraft that they will be using, as well as other expenses.

Media people have taken great lengths and tried out skywriting as their main form of advertising. This is well because of the memory recall people have when they see these messages up in the air rather than looking through advertisements on posters, television commercials, and radio airways. This aerial advertisement surely attracts more people than the rest of the methods mentioned.

Skywriting would easily have an access to those crowds of people in open areas where they will find it will be easy to have their message sent across. Puffs of air, made from biodegradable substances in order to abide by environmental standards, are used by the jet to display the message which will be written in just a few seconds. After which, this message should last about 7 or 8 minutes, just large enough and long enough to catch any body’s attention.

What’s more good news about this form of media is that it is competitively within the range of cost or if you take a look at it per thousand, it is relatively cheaper. Imagine just surfing through a 30-second TV commercial. I bet you would be dismissing it easily rather than ponder on its content. A large message written in the sky viewed by a lot of people would definitely work.

The demographics of a certain market really plays a big role in advertising and skywriting makes it possible to touch base with a wider grasp of audience in different parts of a particular area and with a more diverse selection as compared to TV, radio and print ads.

This is something hip and new and a lot of people are gladly receiving it. Aside from the fact that people are more attracted to the aerial advertising options that this technique creates, it is less costly and would in fact cover a wider scope of audience than most ads.

Have you ever been drawn to look up at the sky and saw writings form from clouds in the air? This technique is called Skywriting. This is today’s way of catching a huge crowd’s attention among all the advertisements plastered on city walls, posts, and billboards.

How Can Skywriting Boost Your Business?

The movie The Wizard of Oz, a smash hit when it came out in 1939, had a scene where the wicked witch wrote SURRENDER DOROTHY OR DIE in the sky with her broom. Ever since sky writing has fascinated people. (The witch's message was actually just special effects, produced in a 6 foot by 6 foot glass tank.) But sky writing goes back further than that. It was first tried in1922 in England. Advertisers began using skywriting at the same time but Pepsi-Cola made it famous, using skywriting from 1931 to 1953.

Are the letters really formed by smoke? Yes, skywriting smoke is made by inserting paraffin oil into the exhaust of the plane. The oil vaporizes in the heat making an environmentally friendly white smoke that lingers in the air. Of course, the pilot only injects the oil into the exhaust when he is in a position to form part of a letter.

How tall are the letters? A mile tall. How long is the message? Up to fifteen miles long. How long do the letters stay visible before drifting away? They last up to twenty minutes. What determines if the skywriting will be a success? First, the skill of the pilot. He must be really good at maneuvering the plane and knowing exactly where he is in terms of the message. Second, the size of the plane engine. It must be large enough to make the letters quickly, but it also must be hot enough to vaporize sufficient paraffin oil to make the smoke. That means the paraffin must reach 1500 degrees and to do this, some recommend 450 horsepower engines that are six times hotter than small planes.

Besides these factors, there is the weather. The wind cannot exceed three to five miles per hour. The sky must be nearly clear for the white letters to be visible against the blue sky. Since wind speed may vary at different heights, the planes will fly anywhere from 7000 and 17000 feet. At these heights, the message is visible for thirty miles on either side. Cooler air temperature makes more smoke, but the air temperature cannot exceed 95 degrees. The best months for these conditions are September and October.

How large is the message? It is usually four to six letters and it takes one to two minutes to form each letter. A shorter message is more likely to be visible at once. Why not make it longer? When a message is longer than this, it will take too long to form so that it is seen all at once. One remedy is to hire multiple pilots. The two or three pilots coordinate their maneuvers so that, as they work together, they will produce the message visible for the minutes before it drifts away.

Think about this: the pilot is writing from the top, parallel to the earth though the message may seem to be vertical. Therefore the pilot must write the letters backwards from above so that they appear correctly to the readers below. The letters must also be uniform and in a straight line so that the message is attractive. This requires great piloting skills.

This method of advertising is so novel that it almost demands to be read all the time the letters are forming. So what kind of people would benefit from hiring skywriting to get their message across? Skywriting has been used to advertise soft drinks, motion pictures, websites, political candidates, products, and so forth. One company says they skywrite fifty marriage proposals each year.

What does all this cost? The cost depends on the company, and on the availability. For example, if you must fly in a skilled pilot from some distance, that will add significant cost to the adventure. But for local skywriting, count on starting around $1000 and look for a discount if you get more than one message or the same message multiple times.

Skywriting advertising is just one of the aerial advertising services AirSign provides. Learn how AirSign has been leading the industry in providing this innovative advertising method since 1996.