Brands have moved quickly to incorporate Facebook Places into their advertising strategy, with the latest campaign urging people to “check-in” to billboards across the UK for singer Cheryl Cole.

TechCrunch reports that the campaign, designed by media agency MediaCom and Polydor Records, gives fans a chance to win two free tickets (plus travel and hotel) to one of her X Factor shows.

There has long been an alliance between mobile and outdoor in the advertising world. For several years many advertising posters and billboards have been built with QR codes or Bluetooth receptors to enable consumers to download more information. Location check-in is a natural evolution, as smart phones becoming increasingly widespread. The Cheryl Cole billboards are among the first for Facebook Places, but a similar concept was used earlier in the summer when Gowalla users were invited to “check-in” to a giant billboard for the New Jersey Nets in New York City.

Other innovative uses of Facebook Places since its launch in August include a marketing campaign for the University of Kentucky, singer James Blunt using Places check-ins to reward concert goers with free music downloads, and a scavenger hunt in San Francisco for Giants baseball player Tim Lincecum.