OOH IS COOL AGAIN

10.8.19 | Lark Katchur

THEN

Out-of-home (OOH) advertising started a long time ago…

Egyptians employed tall stones – obelisks – to publicize laws and treaties. The Romans took it a step further by painting advertisements for chariot races and gladiator contests on their theatres and even The Colosseum. Unfortunately, there are no chariot traffic counts to be found, so we’re not sure if the Romans would be up to par with today’s analytics, but they sure could fill a stadium.

NOW

OOH’s options, application, and impact for marketing products and services is as relevant today as it was in the Roman times. At Inline we know the strength and value of incorporating OOH in a comprehensive media strategy to launch a product, promote a brand’s visibility, and create excitement. After all, you can’t skip it, block it, or turn the channel. There is an ever-increasing place in a campaign’s media mix for OOH’s myriad of options: static and digital billboards and posters, mobile billboards on everything from trucks to tuk tuks, wallscapes and murals, transit, shelters and benches, street furniture, place-based screens in malls, on ski lifts, and everywhere in between. And with the increasing use of OOH takeovers, you may see OOH ads on all of these places at once.

THE FUTURE IS HERE

Programmatic advertising may have started in the digital space, but outdoor has capitalized on the learnings from programmatic digital and TV to hit the ground running. Digital OOH displays can be audience-targeted and programmed with messaging across national, regional, and even local networks. OOH is competing in the mobile geotargeting space via creative with custom triggers. Advertising messages on digital billboards can be changed based on traffic flows: a short blurb when traffic is moving; longer verbiage in gridlock.  By relying on mobile location data, custom messages can be served to a consumer shopping in the mall, waiting for the bus, or on the ski lift.

According to eMarketer, OOH is one of the only forms of traditional media ad spend that is expected to increase over the next four years. Additionally, consumers 18-64 spend more time with OOH than any other media except television (OAAA). OOH has come a long way from the Roman times, and with new innovations in the industry, dare we say… out-of-home is cool again.