Some days, I look back at old photos of when I first arrived in Dubai in 2004, and I often see in the background a barely built JBR or a dormant plot of land where Downtown Dubai now sits with its plethora of high-rise towers.
Before-and-after pictures of Dubai and nearby cities have become staples in the growth narrative of the region, whether they are aerial shots of Dubai Marina, the day the Emirates Golf Club first opened, or comparisons of what Dubai Airport started out as versus what it is today.
One thing that always strikes me, though, bearing in mind this is only going back 20 years, is how densely populated the OOH landscape has now become. From a couple of unipoles and lampposts on our iconic Sheikh Zayed Road, to what we see today with building wraps, megacoms, special builds and back-to-back scaffoldings, which seemingly stretch from one interchange to another.
The evolution of OOH advertising
With a population growth from fewer than 1.5 million in 2005 to more than 3.5 million today, the city’s upward trajectory has been mirrored by the number of OOH sites needed to communicate the increased volume of brand messages all vying for consumer attention and catering to the increase in demand created as a result.
The same, however, is not true of other major global cities. Whilst populations have also grown (albeit at a slower rate) in global hubs such as New York, London, Paris, Shanghai and Tokyo, the OOH advertising opportunities have evolved in a different direction.
Initially, it was through the redevelopment and physical appearance of their iconic sites, which has now moved into the creation of experiential areas enabling advertisers to activate and bring their brands to life beyond billboards.
Even as new sites develop in these key international markets, brand display space remains, but the real advantage is the ability to curate experiences for passersby and offer a level of interaction that goes a step further.
When the Sphere launched in Las Vegas in late 2023, images of the stunning creatives being hosted on there (and emojis, of course) did the rounds across social media and the advertising industry. As groundbreaking as it is, the project is in fact focused on its ability to host events, concerts, and brand-led gatherings as much as its enormous dome-like display space.
Similarly, when the Outernet opened in London, the display screens across its giant Now Vista, Now Building, Now Trending and Now Arcade sites represented the largest combined digital OOH screen site in the UK, but it was the capability created through the investment in their technology that was the real story.
How brands can go beyond billboards in the Middle East
Brands such as Diriyah Gate, DCT Abu Dhabi and AlUla ran successful campaigns, using a range of advancements such as live feeds, gestural interactivity, real-time motion capture, audio-reactive graphics and even interactive floor deployment to bring some of these Middle East entities to life.
Physical activations like this aren’t necessarily new, but they are the key drivers of OOH investment across major international markets currently. They elevate sites beyond competitors, landlords reap the monetisation rewards and, most importantly, brands love them.
Middle East brands in particular need that extra edge to bring their visions to life in front of potential consumers. Off-plan projects, regions that don’t yet exist, and future hosts of global sporting events can be blasted out across billboards all over the world.
Until an audience in London or New York or Shanghai sees, feels and hears the brand, the scepticism won’t go away. Having a strategic physical presence at Harrods in Knightsbridge, the Outernet London, or the newly launched Below-The-Lights at Piccadilly bridges brand-consumer gaps like nothing else can.
The Outernet, for example boasts more than 220,000 daily visitors and became one of the UK’s most visited tourist sites in 2023 – such was the lure of the content (and brand communications) at the district.
With the recent announcement of the Sphere coming to Abu Dhabi, it looks like we could see more of this approach in the region too. Certainly, in terms of global campaigns, the proof is in the experiential pudding.
By Manoj Khimji, Managing Director, The MediaVantage
