OOH, aah, ouch!

The outdoors are calling…Where are you? That's not a campaign advertising a liquor brand, but if the outdoor advertising industry constituents were to think of a campaign for promoting themselves among clients and agencies, this may well be their train of thought.

For long relegated to the last topic of discussion in most media meetings, outdoor advertising is beginning to demand its pound of respect from the advertising community. Associations are being formed to uphold the interests of the industry and bigger international players have entered the Indian arena.

With mass media led advertising being considered increasingly less effective in the past few years, marketers are looking for innovative media alternatives. The outdoor advertising industry is hoping that this disillusionment with popular mass media translates into better business for them. In India, the total advertising spend is estimated at Rs 115 billion. Of this, print garners 46 per cent, TV 41 per cent, Out Of Home (OOH) has 7 per cent while radio and cinema have 2 and 3 per cent share respectively. There are various issues plaguing the Indian outdoor advertising industry, which need to be addressed: widespread corruption, bureaucracy, lack of unity as an industry, absence of measurables related to evaluating outdoor advertising.

The list goes on… The Outdoor Advertising Convention (OAC) held in Mumbai recently highlighted the seriousness of intent of the industry as a whole to come together for consolidation and better growth prospects.

The Great Outdoors:

A perspective

Till date, outdoor is viewed as a reminder or support medium, which complements a TV or print campaign. Studies have shown that the use of TV and outdoors together works well to deliver the message effectively. Sony Entertainment Television (SET) used this to good effect for its show, 'Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin' and the recently concluded 'Indian Idol'. Tarun Katial, EVP and Business head, SET, elaborates, "When we were launching 'Jassi…' we had a 360-degree approach towards promoting the show, largely through the use of TV and outdoor. We used the two mediums to achieve sampling, build brand equity, fuel hype and curiosity around the show as well as drive higher ad revenues. The outdoor campaign was perfectly timed to coincide with what was happening on air, starting from the launch where we created hype about Jassi the character by not revealing who she was; then to introducing the character; and finally to her final makeover. Outdoor was a big part of the show's success. We used the same model for promoting 'Indian Idol' as well."

Instances of outdoor advertising being a stand alone medium for brand building is rare. Internationally, The Economist's long running creative campaign has relied solely on outdoors in the brand building process. According to reports, The Economist increased its circulation by almost 3 per cent in 2001 inspite of being outspent by both the Financial Times as well as The Times. Ad awareness for their campaign was reported to be 40 per cent compared to Financial Times' 31 per cent.

Examples of outstanding use of outdoors exist in India, too. "O&M's Hutch campaign would be a great example of outdoor being the sole medium for the brand building process," notes R. Balakrishnan, aka Balki, Executive Creative Director, Lowe, adding, "They have been excellent in terms of the consistency of their communication. Our Hoodibaba campaign was also one, which heavily banked on outdoor. It was probably the first time the client (Bajaj) used the medium so extensively."

Agrees Abhijit Awasti, Senior Creative Director, O&M, "Hutch was a classic example of a brand using the outdoors alone in the first few years of its launch. It's only in the last three years or so that they have started using TV. Amul in Mumbai is another example of brand building through outdoor hoardings. In my observation, it is tough to do something very emotional with the outdoor medium though. One of the campaigns that I really liked was McCann's outdoor for Big Babol. It was very innovative. DNA's campaign has also relied solely on outdoor hoardings."

Harit Nagpal, Chief Marketing Officer, Hutch, believes that the need of the hour is to develop innovations in choice of media, execution style and location, "Today, a client expects a scientific media plan, hand picked locations, uncluttered visuals and quality printing and all this at the lowest possible cost from its outdoor agency. At the same time, they also expect tracking and constant monitoring of the outdoor property. What a client expects is a one stop solution shop for all their outdoor needs."

To read the entire story, grab your copy of Impact Advertising and Weekly magazine issue dated June 20-26, 2005