The outdoor advertising medium is one of those media mediums that aren't often at the forefront of the mind when planning a marketing campaign - perhaps because it is difficult to know if you are pin pointing your target audience, how many people see it, can ROI be accurately measured as a result? It is however, a very effective medium in targeting mass audience when they are out and about. Outdoor media is strategically placed where there is more footfall and/or dwell time, such like stations where people, on average, are waiting for a train for up to 30 minutes (statistic relevant to Euston station).In fact, Euston station is where JCDecaux recently launched their new all encompassing digital screens which cover the whole station and can digitally interact with each other, allowing brands and advertisers to explore the opportunity of new creative ideas which can enhance the visual experience for their audience. Currently they have a car advertisement where the car zips round the screen, each screen following on from the next - needless to say, this is very good at capturing attention.
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| Euston Station Digital Screen Outdoor media comes in all different shapes and sizes, the most common probably being the 6 sheets which can be stand alone or at bus stops (usually to catch people walking out and about - typical in shopping malls, pedestrianised shopping streets). Another common one being the 48 sheet (standard billboard size) - usually placed along main road sides where there is a lot of traffic or by traffic lights where there is more dwell time in the car and even car parks. In fact you can get elevated 6 sheets within car parks to ensure every car can see the advert from every part of the car park. |
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| JCDecaux Fake Street |
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| JCDecaux Interactive Bus Stop |
Outdoor media is also stretching beyond the physical boundaries of structured formats, i.e they can now be more innovative in how they present the mediums - such like wrapping. Wrapping is where they go beyond physical formats like 6 sheets and 48 sheets and 'wrap' a certain area in a brand or advertisement, this will draw the attention of the consumers and make the brand unavoidable as most 6 sheet formats (and the like)can perhaps blend into the background. This innovation has extended to more digital and interactive formats, such as digital screens found at bus stops which can be interactive and engage the audience whilst they are waiting for the bus - in turn creating more brand awareness. This is an effective way of engaging the consumer with the brand and it is a lot of fun to do whilst passing time at a bus stop!
In fact, outdoor media is growing to a new level with the introduction of augmented reality, where people passing by in the station would stand in a certain location and they would have a 'fallen angel' stand next to them which they could only see on the projected screen in front of them. This had a fantastic response, with people really engaging with the brand and having fun with it, which then caused massive attraction, of other people in the station, to get involved - this then becomes viral, as word-of-mouth spreads from the people who had the experience - good word-of-mouth is something money cannot buy....
To watch the video of Lynx augmented reality at London Victoria station, click on the link below;
You can also be very specific with your outdoor advertisement in terms of what material it is printed on (you can get new vinyl ads which do not crinkle and look a lot more flatter and effective than wallpaper ones), whether you have it on a sight with lights, or a premium location where it is on a fancy structural design - making it look more attractive - all coming at a juicy price of course! In fact, companies have gone mad for outdoor advertisement with the ever encroaching Olympics, whereby the outdoor advertisers themselves are all going crazy for the best spots on all the road that lead into London and the Olympic area. This is a great opportunity for brands to get their message across to the masses, especially as the Olympics are supposed to attract 10 million people to the site.
Overall, outdoor media is a very good way of of supporting integrated marketing campaigns as well as continually reminding the audience to buy their products over others (Coca-Cola use outdoor advertisement to keep reminding their consumers to choose them when they want a drink). Outdoor advertisers such like JCDecaux, Clear Channel and Primesight all use traditional means as well as innovative ideas using digital and other creative space, however, companies which focus on nontraditional means are creeping in as brands try to find new ways of grabbing their consumers attention - where no idea is impossible - where temporary adverts can be made in organic matter and are placed in sort of a guerrilla way and then bacteria is placed on top which slowly eats away at the advert so it completely disappears after a given amount of time - I am not sure it is going to replace any of the traditional forms of outdoor media, but it offers an alternative idea in an industry where innovative advertisement options are more than welcome!
