The Marketing Manager's Yearbook 2006
Evolution of a Medium - Outdoor Advertising & Ambient Media
James Davies, Board Director - Hyperspace
Posterscope
In the beginning…
Outdoor advertising has been described as probably the oldest medium there is, dating back to the days of cave paintings and roman signage. In modern times, the term outdoor described a relatively small selection of advertising options, notably roadside posters and those appearing on the transport networks such as over-ground or underground train stations, buses etc.
Most campaigns were bought on a long-term basis with advertisers appearing on the same sites all year round. With so many sites across the country, specialist agencies were required to buy and manage these ‘holdings’ on behalf of advertisers and their agencies - the poster specialists. As time went on, campaign lengths became shorter and the environments in which poster sites could be bought expanded dramatically ranging from supermarkets to leisure destinations and educational establishments. The number of formats available also increased from traditional sizes such as billboards (48 and 96 sheets) and bus shelters (four and six sheets) to trolley panels, petrol pump nozzles, washroom posters, sandwich bags and countless other formats.
Consequently, the terms above and below-the-line became blurred as the marketplace evolved and the role of the poster specialist changed drastically as advertisers and media planning and buying agencies needed a source of expertise across an impossibly large range of advertising formats and environments.
We now talk in terms of out-of-home communications and our buying power, experience, insight and expertise needs to cover everything from field marketing and events to billboards and digital screens - all of which are unified by the fact that they are consumed by people when they are out of their homes.
…and then…
The out-of-home sector has received a great deal of attention of late with existing users increasing their spend and many new advertisers adding the medium to their communications plans. This is partly as a result of some of the failings of other traditional media such as TV, but also due to the increased coverage, targeting, flexibility and engagement that out-of-home now offers.
Much of this extra attention has been focused on what some have historically termed ‘ambient media’. (Interestingly though some of the more important developments have been within the more traditional areas of the out-of-home sector such as improvements in roadside poster quality and illumination, the huge investment from the major media owners and their partnerships with local authorities, as well as improvements in the areas of accountability and research. Arguably aspects like these probably have a much more profound effect on the effectiveness and efficiency of a brands communications)
So what does ‘ambient media’ actually mean? You will get a wide variety of different answers to this question depending on whom you ask. Most people will agree that the term is based around non-traditional out-of-home advertising, but exactly what should be included has never been definitively agreed, with contentious opportunities including building wraps, taxis, phone boxes, six sheets in new environments etc.
We believe there is little value in trying to segment what is already a relatively small part of the advertising landscape and an even smaller part of the communications world. After all, outdoor only accounts for 9.3% of total display advertising expenditure. Instead, advertisers’ interests are better served by taking a more inclusive approach and trying to gain a deeper understanding of the role that certain elements play.
Non-traditional formats, however you define them were the fastest growing sectors within the out-of-home medium (and were worth £92m in 2005). However, over the last few years growth slowed to be broadly commensurate with the growth in spend on traditional out-of-home formats. More recently digital out-of-home (primarily screens) has taken over as the leading sub-sector in terms of percentage growth bringing a whole new set of perspectives as to how the medium can be used.
In the same way that the types of opportunities that could be defined as ‘non-traditional’ are particularly diverse, so are the potential roles for these communications. Some uses might include:
- One-off stunts to generate PR: a word of caution - these are often used with little thought to accountability or legality. Coming up with wacky ideas is easy; understanding and measuring the potential effect is not, plus many advertisers are not made aware of the legal liability to which they are then exposing themselves
- Media firsts/surprise: it is easy to get overly concerned about this, forgetting that most consumers may not have seen a previous campaign by another advertiser. We have been asked many times to replicate our idea of hiding postcard ads into the pocket of clothes in stores, as consumers are still surprised by this even if advertising practitioners aren’t
- Tactical targeting: the beauty of some of the more unusual formats is the unique mindset that consumers might be in, or the specific people reached. The screens in extreme sports centres spring to mind
- Broadcast cover: non-traditional doesn’t necessarily mean niche in terms of coverage and targeting and the rising levels of interest in retail based formats is certainly valid given the potential in terms of accountability, scale and influence over purchasing decisions.
Unfortunately, the attempts to segment and label non-traditional opportunities led to a situation where the ‘ambient’ sector as a whole gained a somewhat poor reputation. The existence of fly-by-night contractors and those out for a quick buck overshadowed some of the very reputable operators and the term ambient often became associated with low levels of accountability and understanding. This is certainly an unfair criticism in many cases where contractors have invested significant sums into initiatives such as barcode tracked posting and effectiveness research. Should we really deem a cow jacket as being similar to a supermarket trolley poster?
The other potentially negative aspect associated with the expansion of this sector is the inevitable consumer bombardment. Within many media channels such as TV or radio, advertising is clearly interruptive and if used carelessly, out-of-home could be viewed in the same way - now that you can stick ads almost anywhere.
…but now…
Out-of-home, including the non-traditional aspects clearly presents a potentially valuable opportunity for advertisers, especially given the amount of time we now spend out of our homes. This typically accounts for c.60% of a working adult’s time whilst in-home media channels are fragmenting. But as we have seen, it can be easy to get things wrong, so in today’s marketplace with the shifts in consumer behaviours and attitudes, how can we make the most of the non-traditional aspects of out-of-home?
- Start by thinking about consumers - who they are, where they go, what they do and the associated mindsets with each
- Take advantage of the investment in research that has made over the last few years to make your decisions more informed
- Take a more holistic approach to out-of-home - think and aim to learn about how various opportunities complement each other given the breadth of the marketplace
- Consider creating bespoke solutions so that the environments covered or formats used are driven by advertiser requirements, not media owner inventory (Posterscope have a division called Hyperspace that specifically develops such solutions)
- View each campaign as an opportunity to learn.
In addition there are two increasingly important areas that can make out-of-home even more powerful: digital and interactive/engagement based opportunities. A few years ago digital out of home media was virtually non-existent with the only notable opportunities being ‘jumbotron’ screens at a handful of football stadia, the ill-fated forecourt TV and a scattering of event based screens such as those at pop concerts. Since then the market has exploded with more than 100 media contractors operating more than 50,000 screens across more than 50 environments. Networks are launching every month and now include taxis, buses, stations, supermarkets, pubs and bars, hair salons, shopping malls, numerous retailers and many more.
Our Hyperspace division estimates the digital out-of-home market to be worth £20.5m in 2005 growing to more than £35m in the next few years with digitisation delivering various positive attributes including:
- Shorter lead times - no printing required
- Flexible weighting and flighting - campaigns can be of any duration
- Daypart buying - improved targeting and efficiency
- Creative scope - moving images
- New environments - landlords are often more open to digital
- Interactivity
As with all communications the less passive or more interesting we make them, the greater the chance that we will have an effect on consumers. Technology when integrated into out-of-home communication opportunities allows advertisers to further engage and interact with consumers. This could take many forms such as those involving the senses e.g. fragrance dispensing posters or those adapted to play music or sounds, or touch screens that enable users to interact. Those waiting for buses at our Buena Vista bus shelters can choose which DVD style content they wish to watch on the screens embedded into the posters.
Given that mobile phones are designed primarily to be used out-of-home there is some clear convergence with the medium. This has led us to construct campaigns whereby consumers can download content from poster to phone via Bluetooth or infrared. For the release of Coldplay’s X&Y album over 13,000 files were sent to phones over two weeks in six locations.
Amongst other things, we are already working with technology that recognises the type of person (e.g. age, sex, race) standing in front of a screen and tailors content accordingly, so the future for out-of-home is certainly exciting. The crucial factor for any interactive campaign is adding value to the consumer’s experience through attractive, unique or appropriate content/incentives.
In a world obsessed with new media, the irony is that the oldest medium is currently the most fast-moving, innovative (not to mention effective) communication channel available to advertisers.
About Posterscope
Posterscope is the undisputed market leading out-of-home communications agency, billing £350m per year in the UK. We are also the largest outdoor media buying point in the world and work for 130 different media agencies including Carat, Mediacom and ZenithOptimedia, as well as with advertisers directly. Our research and marketing services division provides insight and effectiveness analysis and we were the first out-of-home specialist to launch a dedicated digital and creative media division - Hyperspace. Over the last four years Hyperspace have been providing our clients with the opportunity to integrate technology and specialist production methods into campaigns as well as creating bespoke communications channels.
James Davies
Biography
James Davies is a board director at Posterscope and has run their Hyperspace division since launch in 2002. James graduated with a degree in physics and joined Posterscope in 1997 after a period working within the WPP group.
James has been involved in many high profile campaigns including 118118 launch, Absolut Vodka’s igloo and ice rink, Kenzo’s field of poppies and Sony Ericsson’s pioneering interactive combination of picture messaging and digital OOH screens as well as the more recent Bluetooth based campaign for Coldplay