“As an Insights & Analytics Lead at Locala, I’ve had the privilege of witnessing firsthand most of recent transformative shifts in the adtech landscape. One area that has seen significant evolution is Digital Out of Home (DOOH) advertising. Until recently, DOOH buying was largely influenced by the environment of the screens (whether they were located in malls, train stations, or other high-traffic areas..) and probable affinity to certain audiences based on traffic patterns at specific times of the day. While effective, this approach often missed the intricate nuances of local brand preferences”.

 

The Landscape of DOOH Buying

DOOH advertising has experienced rapid growth. According to Statista, the global digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising revenue is projected to grow by over 10 percent in 2023, reaching almost €16.48 billion. This significant increase in investment highlights the importance and potential of DOOH in the modern advertising mix. However, with increased investment comes the need for more sophisticated strategies.

The traditional approach, while effective in its own right, often missed the mark when it came to understanding and leveraging local brand affinities. Every region, city, and even neighborhood can have distinct brand preferences and shopping patterns, influenced by a myriad of factors from cultural nuances to economic conditions.

The Shift Towards Local Brand Affinity

Locala is proud to introduce a new planning capability that allows DOOH screen selection based on screen affinity with a chosen brand, a feature we call Dynamic Commerce Area (DCA). DCA is a revolutionary approach to DOOH advertising. It enables brands to select DOOH screens based on their affinity with specific brands, ensuring that the advertising message resonates with the local audience.

With DCA, brands can redefine the way they approach DOOH advertising. By focusing on local brand affinity, our partners can now craft more strategic and impactful campaigns, with data at its core. This approach not only ensures that the advertising message is relevant to the local audience but also maximizes the return on investment for advertisers.

Here’s why this approach is transformative:

  • Performance-Driven Campaigns: By understanding where brand affinity is strongest, advertisers can ensure their messages resonate deeply with local audiences, leading to higher engagement and ROI. 
  • Strategic Expansion: For brands that are already dominant in specific regions, targeting areas with lower brand affinity can be a strategic move to capture new market segments. 
  • Competitive Conquesting: Knowledge of areas with high affinity to competitors provides an opportunity to deploy targeted campaigns aimed at swaying audiences and increasing market share.

Benefits for Advertisers

  • Smarter, Data-Driven Investments: With insights from our Retail Analytics platform, advertisers can make informed decisions based on consumer shopping behaviors, both nationally and locally. This ensures that investments are not just vast but also strategic.
  • Enhanced Ad Targeting: By understanding where brand affinity is strongest and combining it with foot traffic data and local demographics, campaigns can be crafted that deeply resonate with local audiences. 
  • Optimized Inventory Selection: Our insights consider traffic patterns leading to specific stores, ensuring that the selected inventory is not only relevant but also timely. 
  • Seamless Activation: Our solutions facilitate the seamless activation of DOOH campaigns fueled by mobility patterns, going beyond traditional geotargeting with custom media strategies tailored for each location.

The Bigger Picture

The trends in DOOH are clear: there’s a move towards more personalized, data-driven strategies and overall measurement. Media decisions fueled by local insights, and granular attribution capabilities are just a few of the innovations we’re seeing creating. In conclusion, as we’ll continue to invest and innovate in DOOH, it’s imperative to keep data at the center of our strategies.
DOOH planning isn’t just about reaching more people; it’s about reaching the right consumer with messaging that truly resonates. The future of DOOH lies in harnessing the power of local insights, and with Locala, that future is now.