OOH ads could sway shoppers on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, study says

Dive Brief:

Out-of-home advertising is set to influence shoppers this Black Friday and Cyber Monday, according to a recent Out of Home Advertising Association of America (OAAA) survey shared exclusively with Marketing Dive. Forty-three percent of U.S. adults who plan to shop in person on Black Friday say they'll be on the lookout for ad signage offering discounts and specials.
Thirty-eight percent of those consumers are interested in ad signage offering discounts or specials via QR codes, near-field communication (NFC) sensors or text messages. Interest in contactless promotional offerings increases among higher spenders, per the survey. Among consumers planning to spend at least half their holiday budget on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, 58% report interest in OOH ads featuring QR codes, NFC tags or SMS texts.
OOH appears to be gaining renewed interest from brands and consumers alike, giving marketers an opportunity to drum up awareness among holiday shoppers. The survey was conducted among nearly 1,400 adults in the U.S. between Oct. 19-21.

Dive Insight:

The OOH sector saw declining focus this year as consumers generally spent less time commuting, browsing in malls and doing other in-person activities where they may see traditional media displays. The format appears to be gaining renewed interest from brands and consumers alike as people prepare for the holidays, giving marketing an opportunity to drum up awareness among shoppers. Billboards and other OOH media may resonate with people fatigued by the heightened screen time this year resulting from working remotely and using online platforms to stay connected with family and friends. While the precipitous rise in coronavirus infection rates in recent weeks could dampen results for OOH ads in the near term, the findings still point to how the format could resonate once a vaccine becomes available and people start returning to activities outside of the home.

More than half of Black Friday shopping will take place online, while the remaining 48% is set to occur in stores, the OAAA survey found. Separate research from The Harris Poll reported in October that 68% of U.S. adults feel online burnout and are tuning out digital ads. OOH may have a high propensity to influence these digitally fatigued shoppers as Nielsen found the traditional medium to be more efficient in driving online activation than TV, print, radio or banner ads, the OAAA cites.

Promotional ad signage overall generates highest interest among shoppers of clothing, shoes and electronics, according to the survey. Consumers looking to buy from the categories also report the highest interest in contactless ad offerings, such as NFC sensors, text message or QR codes.

Several brands have incorporated tech like QR codes into their ads or digital experiences to further engage viewers around holidays. Amazon in October printed QR codes on shipping boxes that, when scanned, unlocked a Halloween-themed augmented reality (AR) experience. Constellation Brand's Victoria beer similarly let people bring custom bottle labels to life through QR codes and an AR experience for Day of the Dead.

Though traditionally major shopping events, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are forecast to be less important this year as people purchase holiday gifts earlier and across the entire season. The OAAA found that 68% of respondents plan to spend 10% or less of their total holiday budget on these two days, reinforcing the importance of the entire holiday shopping season.