Out of Bounds

With margins on some of out-of-home media shrinking, are billboards, transit-shelter graphics, and other outdoor applications still worth your while? With a growth in multi-platform jobs (think digital signage coordinated with taxi-top signage and even staircase wraps) there are growing opportunities to turn that slim-pickings gig into a healthier revenue driver.

According to the Global entertainment and media outlook 2014-2018 by PwC (formerly PricewaterhouseCoopers), global spending on physical out-of-home advertising will stagnate until 2017, then begin to decline slightly, while digital out-of-home options (DOOH) will increase steadily.

But why hasn’t there already been significant growth? For example, a 2013 PQ Media report found that the 7.4 percent increase in revenue for DOOH operators in 2012 was the smallest climb since the recession.

Reports blame weak global economies and, the PwC report notes, difficulties in measuring outcomes: “One of the major OOH advertising adoption has been the lack of tools, compared with other types of advertising, to measure audience and campaign effectiveness.” As reporting improves, expect accelerated growth in this sector. McKinsey & Co. predicts average annual increases, globally, of 3.4 to 5.1 percent through 2016.

This year’s OBIE awards reflect that. The Outdoor Advertising Association of America’s 42 winners represent a mix of client types, from the city of Denver to Hostess, but in nearly every category, there are DOOH options popping up all over. And, increasingly, these ads are part of a multi-platform campaign that reaches viewers on the street, at shopping malls, and on smart devices – anywhere and everywhere they might be. We’ve selected the top projects for your review.