DOOH advertising: how programmatic technology is transforming out-of-home ads

Advertising billboards and banners are everywhere, remaining one of the oldest and most consistent ways of advertising. With the emergence of digital technologies, the concept of out-of-home advertising has transformed a lot. It goes about the same banners and billboards being digitized. From dynamic billboards to interactive screens, digital out-of-home advertising (DOOH) brings a fresh, high-tech edge to outdoor media, blending creativity with data-driven precision. Now, programmatic technology transforms the adtech domain, opening even broader horizons for DOOH.

In this post, we’ll explore how DOOH is changing the game for advertisers through programmatic technology. We will also explore the key strategies to make your campaigns stand out, and the innovative trends shaping the future of this fast-growing medium.

What is DOOH (digital out-of-home) advertising?

Let's start with a clear definition. Digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising is a modern twist on outdoor ads, using digital screens to showcase dynamic, engaging content. One of the biggest advantages of DOOH ads is that they can be updated instantly and customized for specific audiences. Whether it’s a vibrant display in a busy city center or an interactive screen at a transit stop, DOOH allows brands to connect with people on the go. To some extent, it can be viewed as an ad industry's dynamic response to the increasingly dynamic world.

Digital out-of-home (DOOH) vs. traditional out-of-home (OOH)

In brief, digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising is just like traditional out-of-home (OOH) advertising taking a few steps further in terms of technological advancement. Here are the most important differences between the two advertising approaches:

• While OOH uses static formats like printed billboards, posters, and banners, DOOH relies on digital screens displaying dynamic, animated, or rotating content, which ensures a more dynamic and creative approach to advertising.

• When dealing with OOH, you need to take some time and effort to change or update content. Meanwhile, when it comes to DOOH, content can be updated instantly in real-time.

• Contrary to OOH, which targets broad audiences based on location, DOOH provides more precise targeting, as such ads can adapt to the time of the day, weather, and shifting audience demographics.

• OOH ads are generally non-interactive, while DOOH can open interactivity opportunities through touch screens, QR codes, or augmented reality (AR) integrations.

• Unlike OOH, DOOH has analytical potential as DOOH campaigns are often combined with tools for data analytics allowing advertising specialists to measure campaign performance.

• While the cost of OOH advertising might be lower compared to DOOH campaigns, DOOH brings greater scalability and potential cost savings in the long run.

The table below illustrates the above-mentioned differences more vividly. 

How does programmatic DOOH work?

Programmatic DOOH (pDOOH) streamlines the process of buying and selling outdoor ad space by using automated technology, much like other programmatic ad channels.

Advertisers can use demand-side platforms (DSPs) to bid on available ad inventory listed on an Ad Exchange. After that, they can connect with supply-side platforms (SSPs) representing publishers offering digital screen space. As a result, advertisers can choose among the best options, finding the most fitting locations in terms of their campaign targeting.

[Check out our recent article for more insights on the promises of programmatic advertising!]

Benefits of DOOH advertising

As has already been mentioned, there are many notable differences between traditional out-of-home advertising and digital out-of-home advertising. Mostly, it goes about the significant benefits of DOOH. After all, digital advertising allows companies to leverage the newest technologies to enhance their campaigns. The list of the main DOOH benefits includes the following:

• Flexibility and reach: Ads can be easily updated in real-time, which allows adapting campaigns to different locations, audiences, weather conditions, or times of day.

• Better visual potential: Dynamic, high-quality digital displays capture attention with vibrant, animated, and interactive content. People are more likely to engage with messages on digital billboards than the ones presented on traditional printed ads.

• Enhanced interactivity: Interactivity can boost the efficiency of an advertising campaign dramatically. DOOH ads leave space for introducing interactive elements like touchscreens, QR codes, or AR integrations, ensuring more diverse and engaging interactions with the audience.

• Real-time campaign adjustments: There might be a situation when you realize that your campaign doesn't perform as expected and you need to make adjustments as soon as possible. DOOH allows you to update or switch content almost instantly. As a result, you get more control over your messaging.

• Data-driven insights: You can use analytics to measure audience interaction and optimize campaigns for better results. This is especially relevant to interactive DOOH ads.

• Sustainability: Sustainability is an important factor in the modern business environment, and DOOH outperforms OOH in this regard. Digital ads reduce the need for printing and physical materials, contributing to more eco-friendly advertising practices.

DOOH formats and inventory

DOOH provides a rich potential for diverse advertisement formats. As long as digital screens can be placed almost anywhere, there are great opportunities for DOOH format diversity. Let's explore the most common DOOH media. 

Large format

Large-format DOOH ads are shown on large digital billboards or screens in high-traffic areas. They are commonly placed on or near highways, city centers, and stadiums. With their eye-catching size and visibility, these ads are designed to attract a broad audience.

Place-based

Place-based DOOH relies on digital screens located in specific venues such as airports, shopping malls, retail stores, and gyms. These ads target people in specific locations and environments. Such advertising practices ensure more efficient targeting through tailored messages.

Transit ads

There is also a common practice of displaying DOOH ads in or around transportation systems. For example, advertisements can be placed in buses, trains, subway stations, and taxis. This format targets commuters and travelers, offering a captive audience with high dwell times during their journeys.

Street furniture

Sometimes, digital ads are placed on outdoor structures like bus shelters, kiosks, or benches. With such an approach, advertisers can reach pedestrians in urban areas. In most cases, street furniture DOOH ads are placed in high-traffic zones like streets, parks, and public squares.

Retail

Retail DOOH ads are typically displayed on screens within stores, malls, or other locations near the points of sale. These ads are primarily aimed at influencing consumer purchasing decisions in real time. Quite often, they are located near the shops where the advertised products can be purchased.

Airport and venues

A common practice is placing ads in airports, stadiums, or event venues that fall under this category. These ads are often strategically placed to reach travelers or event-goers. As a result, the companies get an opportunity to target people in transit or before a live event.

Digital billboards

Digital billboards are large outdoor screens that display rotating advertisements. A perfect example of a location full of such billboards is the iconic Times Square in New York. Digital billboards are commonly found in high-traffic areas such as highways, city streets, and busy intersections. These ads are eye-catching and offer the flexibility to change content quickly.

Interactive kiosks

Interactive DOOH displays let users interact with content through touchscreens or other interactive features. Found in places like malls, retail stores, and public areas, these formats boost customer engagement and offer opportunities for valuable data collection. Such data can later be used to gather insights on potential customers, their preferences, and ways of attracting them to the ads.

Targeting and capabilities of DOOH advertising

It gets better as we are ready to present you with some unique capabilities of a regular digital out-of-home ad. By figuring such capabilities out and exploring fitting targeting practices, you can enhance the efficiency of your DOOH campaigns drastically. So, these are the most important capabilities and targeting types of digital out-of-home ads.

Location-based targeting

Digital out-of-home media can present messages based on specific geographic locations. Companies that use them can leverage GSP data or pre-defined zones to ensure that their campaigns reach the right audience in the most fitting areas. For example, advertisements are often placed near retail stores or in high-traffic areas.

Weather-based targeting

Weather-based targeting allows advertisers to present advertising content relevant to real-time weather conditions. For example, ads for ice cream might appear on hot days, while ads for winter outdoor clothes can be displayed during the coldest days.

Time-based targeting

This capability schedules ads to run at specific times of day, which ensures that the message aligns with audience behaviors and routines. For instance, companies can show coffee ads during morning commutes, while restaurant promotions play during lunch or dinner hours.

Audience demographic targeting

Digital out-of-home programmatic systems use data to target specific audience demographics, such as age, gender, or income level. This allows marketers to deliver messages that perfectly align with the expectations of a target audience.

Behavioral targeting

Behavioral targeting is based on data on consumer habits and preferences. For example, ads for fitness gear might appear in areas frequented by gym-goers. Meanwhile, ads for restaurants might target business centers or tourist locations.  

Event-based DOOH targeting

Quite often, ads are introduced during specific events, such as sports games or festivals. The key point is to make the ad's message relevant to the event's context. In this regard, there appear great opportunities for tailoring ad messages to the needs of the audience.

Data integration and retargeting

DOOH can integrate with external data sources, such as mobile devices or social media platforms. This allows marketers to create seamless retargeting campaigns. For example, someone who interacted with an online ad could see a follow-up message on a nearby digital screen.

Proximity targeting

This capability delivers ads to audiences within a specific distance of the display. For example, a nearby café might use proximity targeting to promote its menu to bypassers. While such an approach is still rather rare in the DOOH domain, it has vast potential.

Measuring your DOOH campaign

Now that you know the main approaches and practices in the domain of digital out-of-home advertising, it's time to discuss the methods applied for measuring such campaigns. Measuring the effectiveness of your DOOH campaign is crucial to understanding its impact and optimizing future efforts. Here is a list of the most common DOOH campaign metrics.

• Impressions: Measure the number of people who are likely to take your ad into account. To estimate impressions, you can measure traffic data, footfall analytics, and other audience measurement tools.

• Engagement rates: You can measure the efficiency of your campaign by tracking interactions, such as QR code scans, app downloads, or website visits driven by the offers promoted via your campaign.

• Audience Demographics: Leverage data to analyze the age, gender, income level, and other characteristics of the audience reached by your campaign.

• Attribution metrics: Use technology like mobile location data to track whether exposure to your DOOH ad led to specific actions. The list of such actions includes store visits or online purchases.

• Creative effectiveness: If possible, measure how well your ad creatives resonate with the audience. Consider metrics like dwell time and visual attention.

• Sales impact: Correlate the campaign with sales data to determine its impact on your revenue growth.

[Leverage the power of an efficient ad exchange platform for your DOOH campaigns!]

Best DOOH campaign examples

DOOH advertising practices really work. Here are some notable examples of DOOH campaigns that inspire marketers globally. While advertisers on this list took quite different approaches to advertising, all the examples presented here, eventually, led their companies to success.

British Airways’ Look Up campaign

To start off, let's explore the example from one of the biggest airline companies in the world. British Airways captivated audiences with its "Look Up" campaign. The company used digital billboards to display live flight information as planes flew overhead. By synchronizing real-time flight data with billboard content, the campaign delivered an immersive experience to customers globally, significantly promoting the British Airways brand.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand’s DOOH campaign by Perion’s Hivestack

Here is a successful example of a DOOH campaign primarily oriented on sustainability. This story serves as a perfect example of the value of programmatic DOOH advertising. Fire and Emergency New Zealand used geotargeting to display DOOH ads in high-risk fire zones. The programmatic part behind the campaign lies in the fact that the content of ads is dynamically adjusted based on real-time environmental factors, such as weather.

Helena Rubinstein's DOOH campaign

Luxury cosmetics brand Helena Rubinstein launched a highly targeted DOOH campaign to promote their latest products. The marketers leveraged audience analytics to place ads in locations with high foot traffic and the ideal demographic. Augmented reality (AR) integrations ensured better audience engagement. Such an interactive experience ensured high conversion rates for the DOOH campaign.

Netflix’s Stranger Things 3D campaign

Here is one of the most popular digital out-of-home examples. One of the most popular modern TV series owes much of its popularity to DOOH advertising. To promote the new season of "Stranger Things," Netflix deployed eye-catching 3D billboards in busy urban locations. The displays featured iconic elements and characters from the show. The company used a systematic programming approach to ensure that the content on the billboards remains dynamic and engages more audiences.

Consider Teqblaze your trusted partner

The examples above illustrate the value of DOOH in the modern domain of advertising. To leverage all the benefits of programmatic digital out-of-home advertising, you need to rely on an experienced technology partner. Teqblaze would be a perfect choice as we have a profound expertise in the AdTech industry, as well as a deep knowledge of how modern advertising trends and technologies can be leveraged to drive success for our clients in different domains.

In our portfolio, we have notable cases involving ad exchange through resource optimization, control over the ad's supply path, and efficient way for monitoring the most favorable options for purchasing ads. In particular, our White Label SSP+ Ad Exchange platform helped a US-based adtech company recover over 30% of previously lost revenue from unmonetized ad requests, offering enhanced control over their revenue streams while optimizing bidding and pricing strategies. Our solution also boosted the cost-efficiency of a traffic monetization platform engaged in the advertising domain, including DOOH practices. 

By using our White Label SSP+ADX platform, the customer managed onboard demand sources and integrated publishers while decreasing the reliance on Google's ad bidding strategy. You can count on us if you need a quality off-the-shelf solution for an ad exchange, BI services, help with launching or operating your own platform for DOOH, or other off-the-shelf solutions for enhanced marketing efforts. We value our reputation, work with the best, and are always ready to help our customers take their advertising efforts to the next level.

Final words

Programmatic technology is revolutionizing the digital OOH advertising landscape, offering unparalleled flexibility, precision targeting, and data-driven insights. As the industry continues to evolve, leveraging these advanced tools will be critical for staying ahead in a competitive market. Whether you're looking to launch a groundbreaking DOOH campaign or leverage an excellent adtech platform, Teqblaze is here to guide you. Contact us and we will help you unlock the full potential of programmatic DOOH and drive measurable success.