The year 2019 that just ended was chequered with lots of opportunities and challenges for media owners, marketing professionals and stakeholders within the larger marketing ecosystem. OOH advertising is however proving to be a strong and more relevant channel to reach audiences across multiple environments and purchase touchpoints.
As trend spotters, we were able to analyze certain recurring patterns within the industry that would have significant implications in redefining the usage of Out-of-Home Advertising along the consumer’s journey going forward. We believe that OOH advertising will play a major or even the lead role in driving higher rates of consumer conversion. Here are some top trends to watch out for in 2020;
- The Growth Of DOOH
In a manner of speaking, Digital out of Home (DOOH) talks about all things digital media offers for marketing campaigns and engagements outside of the home. It comprises all kinds of out-of-home (OOH) display, digital signage, digital billboard or display with programmed ad content that is constantly being updated from a remote location with the use of addressable electronic, LED, and screen technology that does not include TV advertising and radio advertising.
Continued change in consumer tastes, behaviour and knowledge, growing investments from media owners to convert existing static billboards to digital assets and globalisation are all factors driving the DOOH growth. Furthermore, flexibility of content deployment and opportunity of cross media integration are key influencers of the adoption of Digital Out-of-Home. Yet to be verified statistics from the Lagos State Signage & Advertisement Agency (LASAA) indicates a growth of 34% (2017 vs 2019) for roadside digital displays. There is also an increased number of smaller digital displays in retail and various point of interests (POIs) including fuel stations, eateries, supermarkets, malls, clubs etc.
We project that digitalisation of OOH will help;
- Drive higher rate of acceptability by the end-users,
- Create flexibility for content exposure to custom audiences
- Brands to interact in with relevant audiences in relevant context on the go
- Drive optimal advertiser cost and effectiveness
- Opportunity for the development of real-time targeted campaigns
- And allows for a more accurate measurement.
As we continue to witness an increase in cutting edge technology, big data and improved digital and programmatic knowledge in the world at large, investment’s on DOOH will keep on rising as we move further into the year.
- Data Advancement And Channel Integration
OOH advertising in Nigeria witnessed a remarkable turn in 2019, with the launch of “Moving Audiences” a location data platform for planning & buying of OOH advertising in market by Interaction Channel Limited. Advertisers can now use data science to drive their decisions about investments in OOH media for effective audience reach and optimal ROI.
With what ICL-Moving Walls collaboration have brought to the market the construct and the engagement of OOH as a marketing channel is set to change. New frontiers never before seen in this market are now being opened to the media owners, the advertisers and the agencies, not just media agencies, but also experiential agencies. A whole lot of changes are about to unfold in 2020, using data science, channel integration and automation. The implication of all of these is that as the various constituent sectors gain traction in the use of this science applications, the OOH channel is set for upward swing in 2020 and beyond. This is the new normal and irreversible trend; data science, channel integration and automation are gearing up to significantly impact OOH in 2020 and beyond.
As it concerns precision in location planning and the offering usable data for achieving a qualitative and measurable result, intelligent deployment of data is going to be the game-changer for the medium.
Presently, primary demographic markers are being phased out in more and more markets as more advanced behavioural planning tools are employed in order to get a better outcomes. As behavioural indices are summed up with insights obtained from the location, advertising campaigns can become more laser-focused and beneficial to the relevant target audience within that space and time. On this, digital marketing ranks very high. With behavioural data as well, the results of advertising campaigns are better measured.
Agencies will be able to use insights obtained from real-time data to determine how brands will engage with consumers along the whole purchase journey. We are at the early stages of this comprehensive creative renaissance, where brands are leveraging experiential strategy to design integrated campaign plans that will yield great results for brands.
Omni-channel campaigns must now fully integrate OOH with TV, social and digital (mobile channels), to effectively reach target audiences across several physical locations and touchpoints where consumer purchases are happening in real-time.
A TouchPoints™ report indicates that, “OOH drastically increases campaign reach (316%) when paired with mobile advertising”.
- Technology Scalability
2020 is about scaling to drive a difference for advertisers who will be part of the consumers play. Technology will continue to impact OOH – smart use of location data for audience targeting and measurability of actual audiences reached. Industry adoption of OOH media as an accountable advertising channel will increase in terms of committed investment by existing OOH advertisers and new players who want to explore more effective & efficient media opportunities.
As we move further in the year, advertisers will be drawn to designing and deploying (test & learn) campaigns that prioritize the use of audience insights through machine learning and Artificial Intelligence e.g. strategic content deployment to identified DOOH locations and audiences in real-time.
Powered by cutting edge technology, advertisers and brands can now effectively sync offline and online advertising activities going by the capabilities of the just launched “Moving Audiences” platform sponsored by ICL.