Christmas Billboard Advertising for Local Businesses (2026 Guide)
How a local business can run a Christmas billboard ad in 2026: what to say, which dates matter, what it costs from £10 a day, and how late you can leave it.
Every December, the big brands put their Christmas ads on the biggest billboards in the country. They plan them months ahead, through an agency, for a sum with a lot of zeros.
You don't need any of that. A local business can put a Christmas ad on a digital billboard down the road for £10 a day, book it on a phone, and have it running the same day. The screens are the same kind the brands use. The front door is just a lot smaller.
Here is how to do it well.
What to put on a Christmas billboard
A billboard gets a few seconds of attention from someone driving or walking past. That is enough for one idea. At Christmas, the ideas that work are the ones with a deadline built in:
| Business | The Christmas ad |
|---|---|
| Restaurant, pub or cafe | "Christmas party bookings open" or "Still tables for Christmas Eve" |
| Salon or barber | "Book your Christmas cut now" with your last free dates |
| Shop | "Gift vouchers in store" or "Order by 18 December" |
| Takeaway | Your Christmas Day and Boxing Day opening hours |
| Gym | "January starts here" with a New Year offer, run from Boxing Day |
| Tradespeople | "Booking now for January" so you start the year full |
Keep the words short. Your business name, one offer and one way to find you is plenty. If you have a website, the address is usually enough. More on this in what makes a good billboard ad.
The dates that matter in 2026
You don't need to run all of December. Pick the days when your customers are making the decision you want them to make.
| Date | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Friday 27 November | Black Friday. Good for shops with a real offer. |
| Late November to early December | People book Christmas meals and parties now. Restaurants and pubs should run early. |
| Saturday 19 December | The last Saturday before Christmas, often one of the busiest shopping days of the year. |
| Monday 21 to Thursday 24 December | Last-minute gifts, vouchers and opening hours. |
| Saturday 26 December onwards | Boxing Day sales and New Year offers. Gyms, this is your week. |
Christmas Day 2026 falls on a Friday, so many people finish work on the 23rd or 24th. Plan your "last chance" message for the days before that.
How late you can leave it
Later than you think. The old way to book a billboard needs weeks of notice, so most local businesses never start. On FameCake, three in four business ads start within a day of being paid for. You can decide on a Tuesday that you want to be on a billboard on Wednesday.
One caveat: the busiest Saturdays in December are popular. If you want a particular screen on 19 December, book it a few days ahead. Every ad also goes through a quick content check before it runs, so don't leave a same-day ad until the evening before.
How long to run it
Longer than a day. A billboard works by repetition. Most people pass the same screens on the same routes every day. The first time, they don't notice your ad. By the end of the week, they have seen it several times, and they are far more likely to remember you when they need you.
The businesses that give up on billboards usually ran for one day, heard nothing and stopped. One day is right for one thing: a message tied to a date, like your Christmas Eve opening hours. For anything else, run a week at least, and two weeks if you can.
If the budget is tight, use fewer screens for longer. One screen for two weeks gives the same people many chances to see you. Ten screens for one day gives each of them one.
Longer runs also earn more free time. Go and see your ad, take a selfie with it and upload it. Once it is verified, Boost adds 20% to your booked time for free. A one-day ad gets about 5 extra hours. A two-week ad gets nearly 3 extra days.
What it costs
There is no Christmas surcharge on FameCake. A single digital screen starts at £10 for a full day. Busier roadside and shopping centre screens cost more, and you see the price of each screen before you pay. There is no minimum spend and no contract.
A sensible Christmas plan for a small business:
- One screen near your shop for the two weeks before Christmas. About £140 to £280.
- Restaurants and pubs: one screen from late November to mid December, while people book their parties. About £210 to £420 for three weeks.
- A New Year ad for the week from Boxing Day. About £70 to £140, while most people are planning their New Year.
For prices across the country, see the UK billboard advertising cost guide.
How to book a Christmas billboard
- Find a screen near your customers on the screens map.
- Upload your Christmas artwork, or type your offer and let the built-in designer make it.
- Pick your days. A week or more works best.
- Pay. Your ad goes through a quick check and starts on the date you chose.
The brands planned their Christmas billboards months ago. You can book yours in December and still be on the same kind of screen. That part of the deal is quite nice.
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