Outdoor advertising (known as out-of-home advertising) has been an impactful advertising strategy for many years. The projected ad spend for out-of-home advertising in India is around US$520m in 2025, which shows that brands are focusing more on this method to stand out from their competitors in the crowded digital advertising space. Brands that use outdoor advertising properly can amplify their offline presence. But many brands do not choose the right option for their outdoor advertising campaigns. Hence, their campaigns turn out to be unsuccessful. From dynamic billboards to static banners, the key to choosing the right outdoor advertising option lies in your brand goals. So, how do you choose the best option for your brand? Keep reading this blog, and you will know.
What Is Outdoor Advertising
Outdoor advertising is a method of advertising that reaches the audience when they are out of their homes (which is why they are called out-of-home advertising). Outdoor advertising is not just another marketing method that gets skipped or scrolled past, but it has the potential to make the audience stop and notice a brand’s message. This advertising method involves using various outdoor mediums and placing the advertisements in strategic locations that increase the reach and visibility for a business, whether it is a new startup or a large firm. This outdoor advertising strategy is a great option for companies looking to increase their brand awareness in a short time in a new location.
Outdoor Advertising Based On Brand Goals
Launch New Products
Placing an advertisement in high-traffic outdoor locations can help a brand successfully launch new products due to the immediate attention hook of the advertisement elements, like the text, color, or other brand elements
Target Local Audience
If your brand goal is to target audiences in various locations, using hyper-local ads is the best choice. Here, you can design your outdoor ads with customized designs, language, pictures, etc., for each location.
Increase Brand Awareness
Digital ads can be easily skipped, but outdoor ads have the potential to capture the attention of the audience in your target location with the help of the right medium and maximize brand awareness.
Reach More Audiences Daily
Choosing the right locations for your outdoor ads can also make a difference. Brands that want to reach more audiences daily can place their ads in locations like busy streets, highways, intersections, bus stops, etc., where new commuters can see their ads every day.
Build Brand Trust
Credibility is one of the top brand advertising goals, and outdoor advertising helps gain the trust of the audience by being a tangible advertisement rather than some digital ad that does not build trust.
Promote Festive or Seasonal Deals
During different seasons or festive days, brands that choose to advertise outdoors see more sales because of the easy communication of their deals and promotional offers.
Types Of Outdoor Advertising
Street Furniture Ads
Street furniture ads make use of public furniture, like park benches, bus stops, lamp posts, etc., which can be seen by a large number of audiences when they are in public spaces.
Static Banners/Billboards
These are the traditional billboards that you see in busy streets, alongside highway roads, and city outskirts. Static billboards are usually very large, hence they grab the attention of the audience easily if placed in the right locations.
Posters/Flyers
Posters or flyers are more visible to pedestrians since they are placed at eye level on electrical poles, lamp posts, trees, and street panels or columns. It is an affordable option for outdoor advertising to promote limited-time offers or deals.
Digital Billboards
Among the many outdoor advertising options, digital billboards are gaining popularity because of their dynamic advertising features. With these billboards, brands can display videos, multiple images, and text to grab their audience’s attention.
Point Of Sales Advertising
POS (Point of sale) outdoor advertising is a common type of advertising that can be found in stores, supermarkets, or other retail units at the point where the consumers purchase goods. Examples are store displays, digital screens, in-store signs (banners), etc.
Experience Advertising
This is when consumers experience outdoor advertising in real-time with the help of stunt marketing, guerrilla marketing, flash mobs, and face-to-face marketing, which connects them more to the brand and increases brand recall.
Transit Advertising
Transit advertising is nothing but the outdoor ads placed on moving vehicles, like trucks, trains, cabs, autos, buses, which do not stay in one place but keep on moving to new locations and increase the ad reach.
Real-World Case Studies
Here are some real-world case studies of brands that have successfully used the outdoor marketing strategy.
1) Reebok’s Interactive Billboard
Reebok had installed an outdoor advertisement (billboard) that had a camera for tracking speed and promoted their new shoes. So, passersby were challenged to run very fast, and their speed would be tracked by the camera. Those who reached the speed received their brand new shoes for free. This is an example of outdoor experience marketing.
2) British Airways #lookup Campaign
This airline brand installed a digital billboard that would display a child pointing at the sky whenever a plane flew over it. It smartly recognized the plane name and encouraged people to #lookup, which caught their attention immediately.
Choosing Outdoor Advertising Mediums For Your Brand
The table below will give you an idea of the best outdoor ad formats to choose for your brand, based on outdoor advertisement goals.
| Mediums | Best For | Audience Reach | Ad Locations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billboards | Brand awareness | High | Busy streets or Highways |
| Transit Ads | Increasing daily reach | Very high | Metros, buses, trains, autos, cabs, etc |
| Street Furniture | Local audience engagement | Medium | Bus stops, public areas, and street panels |
| Digital Screens | Visual and dynamic outdoor campaigns | Medium to high | City centers, unipoles, tripoles, etc. |
| POS Advertising | Increasing last-minute conversions | Medium | Retail stores and checkout stations |
Key Takeaways
- OOH is an effective outdoor advertising strategy that amplifies a brand’s offline presence.
- Brands can choose various outdoor advertising options based on their specific advertising goals.
- Digital billboard advertising is perfect for brands to showcase dynamic, visual, and multiple content throughout the day.
- Transit outdoor advertisement reaches more people daily since the ads are placed on moving vehicles
