Put Your Ads Where Your Customers Are Your ad, that is. Place-based advertising allows you to reach your ideal customers with the right message, in the right place at the right time.

Put your marketing message where your best prospects can't miss it. From posters in college campus laundry rooms and major health clubs to ads on hospitality carts that cruise golf courses, you can choose the right place and context for your advertising. Place-based advertising, or what the industry calls "alternative out-of-home" advertising, allows you to reach prospects wherever they happen to be and when they're in a receptive frame of mind.

There are numerous place-based options to fit any goal and budget, and that can make choosing just the right ones a tricky job. When evaluating this type of advertising opportunity, be sure you can answer yes to one or more of these five important questions:

1. Does the location draw your best prospects? What makes place-based ads so attractive is that they can literally go wherever your prospects go. Are your best prospects tennis players? You can advertise on scoreboards at public tennis courts. Do you want to reach boaters? You can place ads and informational materials at their favorite marinas. There are posters above diaper-changing stations that target parents and on phone kiosks located near public basketball courts and urban parks that reach teenage boys. Where will your best prospects be when they see your ad?