Global advertising spend is facing strong pressure, especially with the decline in the value of traditional media (TV, radio and press), with mobile and internet now taking the lion’s share. But the market share of out-of-home (OOH) has actually increased from 8 per cent to 10 per cent of traditional media ad spend, according to a report from Magna and Rapport. Investment in digital out-of-home (DOOH) inventory is the main driver behind OOH growth and attractiveness (see chart, right). PWC predicts that DOOH advertising revenues will overtake traditional spend in 2020, growing at a rate of 15 per cent a year for the next four years. In fact, in the UK, DOOH ad spend has already increased tremendously and is expected to account for 47 per cent of the total UK OOH market by 2018, according to GroupM forecasts released in June 2017. The MENA region, and specifically Dubai, are now at a turning point.
So what does the DOOH revolution mean for advertisers?
The DOOH revolution is not so much about the screen itself but much more about the added value you are offering to your clients through a comprehensive digital eco-system. It’s not about hardware, it’s about software.
First, DOOH is creating a disruption in the way we are buying media. We now have the ability to move towards selling an audience instead of only selling digital advertising panels. This means moving away from the traditional method of having a set number of advertisers running in a loop over a defined period, and towards advertisers buying a share of time, which fluctuates during the day and all through the campaign period.
JCDecaux is experimenting in the UK and France with a real-time digital management platform called “SmartBrics”, soon to be implemented in the Middle East region as well. This real-time digital management platform (DMP) uses data to manage digital assets in retail, street furniture and airports environments to increase campaign efficiency through targeted communication.
Second, our ability to get access to real-time and live data is a game changer in the industry: DOOH is all about making the media smarter. Providing useful and contextualised information has become a must. For instance, at Tecom Business Parks in Dubai (pictured, right), our premium digital screens are providing real-time information such as traffic updates, weather forecasts and prayer times, which incentivises people to look at the screens. We also offer our clients the opportunity to contextualise their advertising message.
A contextualised advertising message will be even more efficient. To meet these needs, JCDecaux has developed Dynamic Content Solutions, a tool that allows advertisers to change their artworks based on specific data feeds (including weather, time of day and social media). This innovative solution allows us to deliver the right message, in the right way to the right audience at the right time in an automated and dynamic way. In 2017, at Dubai International Airport, watch brand Korloff did a campaign using Dynamic Content Solutions, adapting their artwork based on flight origin (pictured, left). Passengers coming from China and waiting for their luggage at the belt could see the customised artwork in Chinese; passengers coming from Arabic-speaking countries would see the message in Arabic. This technology allows us to offer tactical solutions to our clients. Thanks to studies of shoppers, we know that some nationalities are more receptive
to advertising in their own language – such as Chinese or Russian passengers. Many advertisers have already chosen Dynamic Content Solutions, including Twitter, Redbull, Mall of the Emirates, Emirates Leisure and Virgin Mobile.
In the UK, Google did a dynamic, intelligent search campaign delivering location-spe- cific information to consumers via JCDecaux’s premium location at Old Street, a favoured environment for tech and media companies in London. The creative is dynamically adapted to feature information that is relevant to the local area, including local cafes, updates on the traffic, weather, news and more. It also posts real-time information on what people are searching for. The site has been turned into a connected space, providing the community with useful information about the surrounding area. As a result of this campaign, Google has become a
valued part of the Old Street community, transforming Old Street into a central noticeboard for the local area. This prime example shows that DOOH has become the media of choice for leading digital players and how DOOH and online advertising are intimately linked and complemen- tary to one another.
DOOH is also specifically relevant to drive people to stores within retail or travel retail environments. For instance, in the UK, JCDecaux has designed a customised scheduling retail advertising system for a leading supermarket chain, Tesco, that targets customers based on their behaviour. The model works by analysing the customer profile according to different data. Data inputs are based on products consumers have in their baskets, their life stage, their life style or their background. JCDecaux can then build audience clusters based on various consumption modes and lifestyle. In addition, Tesco is providing JCDecaux with detailed data of footfall and product consumption by TODDOW (time of day, day of week). The data is processed to create an index to automatically increase when target audience is high, and decrease when target audience is low. Cross- ing all the data Smartbrics will build-up a customised proposal (including the number of screens, locations, number of days and time of day) to deliver a precise number
of impressions to the specific target sought by the advertiser within a defined budget. And we know it works. SmartScreen at Tesco is proven to deliver sales uplift, increased market share and category growth. According to Nielsen, SmartScreen campaigns see an average 23 per cent sales uplift during a campaign and an 11 per cent sales uplift post campaign.
The digital disruption of the OOH industry is a fantastic opportunity to provide new and more relevant solutions to brands. More expertise, investment and innovation than ever is required to unlock the full potential of DOOH.
A new economic model is being invented where the entire digital ecosystem must be considered as a comprehensive platform where all stakeholders will bring more data insights to feed and improve this shared platform. The revolution has already started; it is time to embrace the ‘platformisation’ of the digital out of home industry.
