When we think of outdoor advertising, probably first in mind are coming billboards in areas with the heaviest traffic in cities or those along the Republican road network. This form of communication has its potential and is much more than a simple poster, as long as it is used effectively. It has a long history, and nowadays, it keeps developing and becoming more innovative, offering users more and more surprising functions.
This format dates back to thousands of years before the new era, when in ancient Egypt laws were carved into large stone plates to keep everyone informed of new information. This, itself, shows how effective this tool is, thanks to its popularity and its ease of reaching a wide audience.
Coming back to the present, we can see how far this form of informing has come and how much more engaging and innovative it has become. What should be noted is that outdoor advertising is not limited only to billboards. Advertising is a great tool to tie together all the channels of the media mix, to add value to the product visualization and leave a longlasting impression at the consumer’s memory.
An effective way to bind new technologies to traditional outdoor advertising formats is urban posters containing QR codes. With their help, consumers have the opportunity to get more detailed information about a product by scanning the code from the physical posters with a phone. This example of communication is a perfect mix between outdoor advertising, which is not wordy, and digital sources, which give access to a lot of information.
This approach is also familiar in the Bulgarian market. Suitable formats for such a message are public transport stops and city lights, which are usually located in a pedestrian area or where people wait at one place for more than a few minutes. This way they have time not only to familiarize themselves with the campaign, but also to access it directly through their phone by scanning the code.
Below we can see how Panasonic uses an innovative method of communication in an intriguing and creative way:
Another example of such innovation is the interactive 3D led billboards, which interweave the content of outdoor advertising with compelling experience. One of the brands that gave its users in Tokyo this interactive show is Nike:
An innovation, which gained popularity during the recent months, is a new method of scanning stickers in the public environment. This time, completely tied to social networks, but with the potential to be used by larger companies in the future. The sticker device is called „Tap’n’add” and gives the opportunity to create a hyperlink to social media profiles.
Without a doubt, the future of out-of-home advertising is bright and successfully adapting to the new age. Digitalization in advertising is a fact, but physical advertising always goes hand in hand with everything modern, bringing balance and creating an experience on a whole new level.