Research Assignment
Introduction
Even multi-million dollar tech companies like Facebook and Google turn towards Out-of-home advertising when they wish to spread the word about their newest product or feature. But, they aren’t alone, in mid-2018, Reddit co-founder Alexis O’Hanian announced a substantial investment in a digital billboard booking company called AdQuick. Around the same time, it was announced that Netflix had purchased assets from a prominent billboard company in Los Angeles. The reason is simple: For all the strengths of online ads, when you want a message to get noticed, you go with out-of-home.
What is OOH Advertising?
Out-of-home advertising (OOH) is any visual advertising media found outside of the home. This can include billboards and signs, ads on street furniture like bus shelters or benches, in transit areas like airports or train stations, and place-based ad media like you might see at a stadium or in the cinema. These various formats account for thousands of locations and millions of screens around the world.
OOH is an expansive category, and today represents spending of about $29 billion across key markets around the world. Some of the world’s most important advertisers, including McDonalds, Apple, Amazon, HBO, and Coca-Cola, all make regular and extensive use of various OOH formats in their campaigns.
Why do companies still use it?
Online advertising can be a little frustrating for media buyers. Ad blockers are in widespread use, and those users who don’t use ad blockers are so bombarded with advertising that it’s difficult to stand out. If an ad’s not above the fold on a popular site, its odds of being seen are not the greatest.
These aren’t worries with out-of-home. Billboards, signs, digital screens, and the rest of the out-of-home family are unskippable. They’re also unblockable, short of holding a hand up in front of your eyes. There’s no fold to be lost beneath and no shortage of visibility. In other words, they’re the ideal vehicle for the big, colourful messages that brands are trying to get out.
Research from Ocean NeuroScience found that “consumers are 48% more likely to click on a mobile ad after being exposed to the same ad on an out-of-home ad first.”
Nielsen Today, OOH is enjoying significant upwards momentum, with savvy marketers devoting more of their budgets to OOH campaigns. Of traditional media categories, it is the only one currently growing, at just over 2% in 2018. The industry as a whole is expected to reach about $33 billion in sales by 2021.
Examples of OOH Advertising
Bus shelter advertising provides high visibility in areas with lots of footfall. The size, brightness and eye-level position makes for an engaging experience for all who walk past. Seeing as budget is often a key factor in deciding which advertising spaces are best for you and your business interests, bus shelters are among the best value for money – offering plenty of space in highly accessible places.
Billboards will ensure your advert is maximising its impact on viewers. Billboards have become part of the infrastructure of our cities and as such have changed the landscape of our daily lives. They’re a great way to reach large amounts of people every day – particularly those who commute or are often stuck in traffic on busy roads. Billboards can draw more attention and be seen by more people than any out-of-home advertising means, thereby greatly increasing the impact of your brand.
Vehicle Advertising
While static adverts such as billboards can be an effective way to capitalise on an area of high traffic, the number of people reached is limited to that specific location. Vehicle advertising avoids this, and instead presents an on-the-go advertisement in the form of a printed graphic either placed on the side of the vehicle in question, or as a vinyl wrap covering its body.
This is an effective and popular type of outdoor advertising due to the increased exposure it offers. The vehicle in question (often a taxi, bus, or van) is constantly on the move, and so the advert is able to reach people in a much wider catchment area.
How it has changed overtime
OOH advertising or commonly known as OOH is something we cannot ignore. There are billboards which are fetching and unique in uncountable ways. However, OOH advertising can trace its lineage back to the earliest civilizations. Thousands of years ago, the Egyptians used tall stone obelisks to publicize laws and treaties. Albeit modes of advertising have changed over the centuries, OOH advertising is still a most common medium used to advertise today.
Through the years, the OOH campaign has changed significantly. The relevance and content are mainly centered on targeting a niche audience. With attention span declining rapidly it comes as no surprise when more & more inventive mediums and methods are being implemented on OOH campaigns. The latest development is 3D billboards, which are successfully drawing positive attention from onlookers worldwide. Mankind is experimenting with technologies consistently and in the coming years, this would be revealed through OOH.
Coca Cola is a great brand to follow in the evolution of OOH. From the 60s to the 2000s, Coca Cola has embraced the form of advertising and found new ways to market their campaigns. In 2004, Coca Cola was among the first to create a digital billboard in Times Square.
In the current climate of coronavirus and quarantine, OOH advertisements have lost demand and impact. Less people have been leaving their homes to see advertisements. However, it is predicted that the business will pick up quickly when we return to our old habits.
People will return to the streets and begin traveling again, eager to spend time outdoors. OOH will be plentiful as companies return to this form of advertising once again.