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Do Those Big Signs Actually Bring Business to Chattanooga?

If you've driven around Chattanooga, you know the view. There’s the beautiful river, the mountains in the distance, and… plenty of big signs. Billboards. They’re hard to miss. They tell us where to eat, which doctor to see, and remind us for the millionth time to visit Rock City.

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As drivers, we might barely notice them after a while. But if you’re a business owner in Chattanooga, these signs represent a big decision. A single billboard can cost thousands of dollars a month. That’s real money for a local cafe, a repair shop, or a startup. So the burning question is: does putting your name on one of these Chattanooga billboards actually bring people through your door?

I talked to several local business owners and marketers to find out. The answer isn’t a simple yes or no. It’s a story of strategy, creativity, and sometimes, just good old-fashioned luck.

Why Bet on a Billboard?

In our world of Instagram ads and Google search results, a giant sign on the side of the road can feel a little… 1995. But that’s exactly why some businesses love them.

“You can’t click ‘skip’ on a billboard,” one advertising manager told me with a laugh. “It sits there, seven days a week, talking to everyone who passes by—whether they want to listen or not.”

For businesses that serve people right here in town, this is golden. A website can attract visitors from across the country, but a tire shop doesn’t need customers from California. It needs locals. A well-placed billboard on a commute route acts like a daily hello to its perfect audience.

The main goal is often “brand awareness.” It’s a fancy term for making sure people don’t forget you exist. Seeing a law firm’s name every day on the way home makes it the first one you think of when you, well, need a lawyer.

But How Do You Know It's Working?

This is the trickiest part. With an online ad, you get a detailed report: 1,000 people saw it, 50 clicked, 5 bought something. A billboard doesn’t give you a report card. You have to be clever to trace your customers back to those Chattanooga billboards.

Here’s how local businesses are doing it:

·         The Magic Code: This is the most popular trick. The billboard offers a discount and a special code. “Mention this billboard for 10% off!” or “Use code HIGHWAY25 online.” When someone uses that code, it’s a direct hit. The business knows the billboard just paid for itself.

·         The Special Website: Instead of listing their main website, the ad will send people to a specific page. “Visit oursite.com/chattsign” is a lot easier to track. All the traffic to that little “/chattsign” page is billboard traffic.

·         The Dedicated Phone Line: Some services, like roofers or doctors, still rely on phone calls. They’ll set up a unique phone number just for the billboard. Every call to that number came from that sign.

·         Just Asking! Never underestimate the power of a simple conversation. Cashiers are often trained to ask, “How did you hear about us today?” You’d be surprised how many people honestly reply, “I saw your sign on 153!”

Stories from the Road: What Worked (and What Didn’t)

Theory is one thing. Real life is another. Here’s what local business owners had to say.

The Barbecue Startup
A new BBQ joint opened near a busy interstate exit. Their biggest problem? No one knew they were there. They sunk a good chunk of their startup budget into a bright digital billboard for three months.

“We kept the message stupid simple,” the owner told me. “A picture of our pulled pork plate and the words ‘Next Exit, BBQ.’ That’s it. We also told our staff to ask everyone where they heard about us.”

The result? For the first two months, nearly half of all new customers mentioned the sign. “It put us on the map. It was worth every penny for that initial push.”

The Tourist Tour Company
A company that offers kayak tours uses billboards to snag tourists as they’re driving into the city. Their signs are strategically placed on I-24 West, welcoming visitors from Atlanta and Nashville.

“We use a different website link on each billboard,” the manager explained. “So we know which entrance to the city is performing best. The one south of town brings us way more traffic than the north one. That info is priceless for planning our next ad buy.”

It’s a smart way to use these Chattanooga billboards—not just as ads, but as data-collection tools.

The Gym That Learned the Hard Way
Not every story is a success. The owner of a new fitness studio invested in a billboard on a street that looked busy but was actually mostly used by people speeding by to get to the highway.

“We put a QR code on it and everything,” she said. “We got maybe ten scans in three months. It was a total waste. The lesson? Location isn’t everything—it’s the only thing. You need a spot where people are moving slowly enough to actually read and process the message.”

The Bottom Line

So, do Chattanooga billboards drive business?

The consensus is yes, but with a lot of asterisks. They work best when:

·         The message is simple and easy to understand in under 5 seconds.

·         The location is brilliant (high traffic, slow speed, near your business).

·         The business has a clear way to track results, like a unique code or URL.

·         The goal is brand recognition or targeting local customers.

They are not a magic bullet. A bad billboard in a bad location is just a very expensive piece of wood and metal. But a smart, well-tracked billboard campaign can be a powerful part of a local business’s growth. It’s a classic form of advertising that, even in our digital age, still has the power to make drivers turn their wheels and visit a new place. And in a city like Chattanooga, that’s a powerful thing.