Kula Media Goes From Start-up to Sell Out with Watchfire Digital Outdoor

David and Kathleen Shykula haven’t always been involved in outdoor advertising. David is a professional electrical engineer (P.Eng.) and small-business owner, and his wife Kathleen is a corporate trainer and graphic designer.

​But in 2010, the couple decided to make the move into outdoor advertising with digital billboards, and KULA Media was born. They searched around for the best signs they could find. “Because I’m an engineer, I am very curious about technical specifications, so I took my time researching all of the sign manufacturers. I knew that the quality of the signs could make or break our business, so I weighed our options very carefully.”

From the very beginning, David was impressed by Watchfire. His Watchfire Digital Outdoor representative was professional, responsive and helpful. “He was very much responsible for helping me choose Watchfire. He eagerly provided answers to all technical questions without hesitation and invited me to an all-expense-paid trip to visit Danville, Illinois to tour Watchfire’s plant. He picked me up at the airport, treated me to dinner, and took me on an excellent tour of the plant. It was fantastic! And the free LED ‘candy’ at the front entrance was a fun touch.”

David’s not short on praise for Watchfire. “The tour was great, and our representative was outstanding, but what sold me on Watchfire was the impressive, high-quality product they offer. For example,Watchfire only uses the highest quality LEDs, they have the most comprehensive 5-year warranty and the best sign calibration around, and each sign has fully encapsulated modules to seal out moisture. I also appreciate that Watchfire LED signs consume less energy than many competitors’ signs do, which is confirmed by their recent UL energy certification.”

But no matter how well-constructed a digital billboard is, it isn’t worth much if advertisers don’t buy ad space on the sign. Fortunately, that hasn’t been a problem for KULA Media. According to David, the advertisers are amazed by the clarity of Watchfire’s true 16mm display. “The billboards have been up almost six months, and I’m still receiving regular calls from people who want to know everything about them. They look that great.”

“Within one month, the signs were leased at 50%, and within two months, they were fully leased. Now we have a waiting list for ad space on the sign,” David said. “And my messages have gone from simple text-only messages to very professional looking ads, thanks to Watchfire’s sign-programming software, Ignite® Online.”

David and Kathleen are very satisfied with their decision to go with Watchfire. “We could have taken the easy way out by buying pre-made signs from overseas, but we decided to go with Watchfire’s technically superior signs so we could stand out above the competitors’ signs,” said David. “We highly recommend the company and the product. We’re very happy that the employees at Watchfire Signs are all dedicated and supportive people who truly care about us succeeding in our new business venture. We definitely made the right decision when we chose Watchfire.”

KULA media owns two 16mm Watchfire billboards, each 10’ by 19’ 10”. They stand back-to back at a red-light intersection in the heart of the Foothills Industrial Park in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

 

Digital Billboard Customers Talk About Their Success With Watchfire

We asked several digital billboard operators about their experience in converting to digital with Watchfire billboards. Watch the video to learn how operators with billboard businesses of all sizes are succeeding with digital outdoor.