BEAT THE CLUTTER WITH AMBIENT MEDIA ADVERTISING

Traditional OOH media has been around since decades. It is focused on marketing to consumers when they are “on the go” in public places, in transit, etc. OOH advertising formats fall into three main categories: billboards, street furniture and moving media.

Traditional roadside billboards remain the predominant form of OOH advertising. Street furniture is made up of formats such as bus shelters, taxi stands, street lamps, post boxes, benches, telephone booth advertising, etc. Moving media advertising is typically advertising placed on anything which moves, such as buses, autorickshaws and taxis.

While this media offers some advantages like high reach to a mass audience, high frequency, geographic flexibility and low CPT, it is inundated with a number of disadvantages, viz.

• Lack of intense selectivity in target market – you cannot ascertain whether your billboard has successfully drawn your TG.

• Environmental clutter –  it spoils the beauty of the environment

• Creative limitations – it only gives a short message that must make a strong impact on prospective customers to stimulate sales

• Outdoor advertising is very easy to overlook – your TG may easily overlook your advertisement as he/she may be busy in other activities like walking, driving, talking to co-commuters, talking on cell phone, etc.

• High costs for brief exposure – though the CPT is less, the relative cost borne for every minute of exposure is very high as the audience is always on the move when they are exposed to this media.

• Weather conditions – uncontrollable factors like harsh weather that can damage your billboard

• Visibility issue – if the site of your billboard is blocked by a tree or a branch, it will hinder its visibility

• Time insensitive –  billboards, bus shelters, etc. cannot be turned off when not needed

• Limited information – due to limited exposure time, only limited information can be given on this media

Ambient media advertising on the other hand makes good use of ambient spaces in malls, multiplexes, hypermarkets, airports, gyms, etc. to deliver the communication in a comfortable environment. It is almost impossible to overlook the ad. The best advantage is that it catches the attention of the audience and generates interest so that the message stays with them for a long time.

The opportunities to communicate in these avenues are limitless right from branding in parking lots and elevators to washrooms and trolleys. Also, there is no cap on the creativity which can be used. It allows you to think out of the box and appeal to the audience in the most innovative ways possible. It generally enhances the overall look of the space used, without creating clutter. If you want to beat the clutter and stand out from the crowd, ambient media advertising is the best solution!