Imagining the Future of Out of Home Advertising

Blank advertising horizontal banner poster mockup on modern building with glass facade exterior, trees on the left. Super large billboard, out-of-home OOH media display space.

Out-of-home advertising spending has grown year-over-year since 2020. It’s only likely to grow from there, seeing an estimated $38.41B in spending in 2023 alone. There is no doubt that out-of-home advertising is here to stay. 

For such a tried and true marketing strategy, many marketers are left wondering: what is the future of out of home advertising? There is no one right or wrong answer, but dozens of possibilities exist. Let’s explore a few of them together! 

Augmented Reality

Traditional out-of-home advertising has relied on passive awareness for its campaign content. Think billboards of the mid 20th century through to static products at gas stations and bus stops to follow us. 

Over time, media has gotten more clever, more audience personalized, and more tech centric. Now days, with powerful, portable computers in the palms of nearly every consumer’s  hand, advertisers can leverage this technology by crafting unique, media-centric experiences that rely on an audience member’s phone to power it. 

Consider augmented reality experiences that require merely a scan of a QR code to launch. Rather than installing expensive multimedia displays and extensions, an advertiser can generate an immersive augmented experience that can even travel with the consumer as they leave the ad placement’s location. 

Personalization

While personalization has come under scrutiny in the public eye, the truth is many people would rather ads be tailored to their particular interests. According to McKinsey & Company, consumers don’t just prefer personalization; they demand it. 

With a greater reliance on technology, tracking software, cookies, and retargeting methodologies, out of home advertising experiences don’t have to be one-size-fits-all. Nor do they need to be static, like traditional OOH. 

Digital out of home advertising is smarter. DOOH ads can adapt and display information that is uniquely tailored to an consumer’s interests and buying habits. As any marketer worth their salt knows, targeted advertising is more likely to lead to conversion. 

Precise Data Tracking

If you want to boil down the future of digital out of home advertising trends into a single word, it is this: insights. 

Metrics-focused marketing empowers marketers. Without the insights offered through modern marketing means, advertisers are effectively flying blind. 

But with data insights, effectiveness can be measured, tracked, and optimized. The ability to adjust, tweak, or outright turn off a campaign gives marketers immense freedom to tailor a campaign. 

Ultimately, this is the inherent power of digital out of home advertising trends, when compared with traditional OOH. One of the areas we expect the future of out of home advertising to grow is through data tracking means and the data tracking software made available to marketers like you. 

Expect new SaaS platforms, new aggregation tools, new hooks into website and storefront APIs, and more. All of these more sophisticated technologies are sure to deepen that one critical ingredient: insights. 

Plan for the Future of Out of Home Advertising Strategically 

Consider partnering with a digital out of home advertising trends leader. At AllOver Media, we have helped countless clients devise and optimize their digital out of home advertising campaigns to great effect. See how AllOver Media can help