GroupM, WPP’s media investment group, announced the findings of the Sightline Global Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) survey on perceptions of digital out-of-home advertising.
The study revealed that half of global audiences who have seen DOOH ads got encouraged to make a purchase ‘there and then.’ The study, which was commissioned on behalf of Xaxis and Kinetic, also found that two-thirds of respondents said DOOH ads had encouraged them to search for more information online. The results also revealed that DOOH campaigns are regarded by consumers worldwide as innovative, impactful, and strong drivers of action, suggesting they can play an important and unique role in advertisers media strategies.
The global Sightline survey was conducted by research specialist Kantar on behalf of Xaxis and Kinetic to discover more about how consumers in global markets perceive digital outdoor ads and provide new insights into the role they might play in advertisers’ media plans. It surveyed the views of 11,000 people in 11 major global markets on a variety of different advertising channels, including DOOH, to assess how this fast-growing advertising medium is perceived compared with other on and offline formats. Among its findings, DOOH campaigns look to be powerful drivers of direct action by consumers.
DOOH ads also performed strongly against attributes more associated with brand-focused campaigns. Respondents who saw or heard each ad format in the last month were asked which attributes applied to the format. Those who saw DOOH ads in the last month were most likely to say DOOH was the most innovative format (28%) and they were second only to cinema-goers in terms of associating the format with having the most ‘creative’ ads. Perhaps surprisingly, the same number of respondents seeing TV, radio and DOOH ads (37%) cited the channel as featuring ads that were ‘entertaining’.
The findings also suggest that DOOH advertising has become an established, welcome element of the consumer experience as two-thirds of those seeing DOOH ads agreed said they ‘become part of the location’ and 63% that it made their journeys more interesting. Other findings of the survey included that more than three-quarters (77%) of those seeing DOOH ads believed DOOH ads were quite or very informative and 50% that they connect them with their favorite social media channels.
Akama Davies, global practice lead for digital OOH at Xaxis, said, “Receptiveness to DOOH ads is clearly strong among consumers everywhere, as seen through their positive attitude towards its quality and innovation. As a non-interruptive channel, the survey findings seem to endorse our view that DOOH offers advertisers a unique opportunity to engage their audiences with high-impact but highly relevant messages in spaces where those messages are welcomed by consumers. It offers a large creative canvas but also gives ad buyers the precision planning and agility of digital, programmatic media, as well as a powerful location-based element that drives a multitude of actions. The survey findings also validate our view that DOOH does not replace existing forms of ad media but adds its own unique value for marketers.”
Dennis Kuperus, Global Head of Innovation and Partnerships at Kinetic commented, “It’s exciting to see how consumers recognize and respond to the potential for creativity and innovation in DOOH. We have long considered it to be a channel ripe for tools and formats that create engaging experiences and drive impact for brands. AI, virtual reality, interactivity, immersive and responsive experiences in DOOH all create unique offline and blended opportunities, especially when used within an omnichannel approach. Interactive elements like the QR code allow brands to drive consumers directly to a website, a purchase or more information, making them invaluable as lower-funnel options for conversions and brand impact – off and online.”
