OOH Gets an ‘A’ With Back-to-School Shoppers

Back-to-school and college shopping means big business for retailers. It ranks second only to the winter holidays with a total combined spend (college and high school) expected to reach $83.6 billion. According to Deloitte50% of school related annual spending happens during B2S. Reaching shoppers at the right time and place is critical to seasonal success.

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Undecided Shoppers

While many people plan in advance where to shop, a full one-fifth are still “undecided.” That means they haven’t decided whether they will be shopping online or a specific in-store preference. It’s a huge opportunity for retailers to influence those buyers before they make up their minds. This group spends about $549 on average per person. Retailers who present compelling offers earlier in the summer can gain a major chunk of the market before their competitors do.

Earlier Is Better

Retailers that attract shoppers to their stores earlier this summer may earn a greater portion of back-to-school sales. Not only can they capture the “undecideds”, Deloitte’s survey indicates that 60 percent of shoppers hitting stores before August are likely to spend an average of $532, 16 percent higher than the remaining 40 of parents who start shopping in August or later ($458).  In total, 71% of expected B2S spend happens during an eight-week shopping window between early July and late August.

OOH Is An Effective Option

Out-of-home products like convenience store, transit, outdoor and indoor offer a proven method to reach young consumers and their parents. Influence buying decisions where it counts — near point-of-sale. Add directional messaging to point consumers to products they need to purchase, right in the areas where they live and work.

There is still time to get your brand or service in front of millions of shoppers in 2018! Download our overview to learn more about back-to-school spending, the effectiveness of OOH advertising for retailers, and see examples of our work.