TSW’s OOH partner, Talon Outdoor, reviews the rise of branded content opportunities
Since the dawn of the digital era, content advertising has been bubbling under, but in recent years it has soared. We are at the beginning of an evolution of how digital advertisers operate, pulling back from more generic broadcast messaging and shifting towards more organic, engaging and relevant content.
Brands are changing the way in which they communicate and transmit their messages. They want to not only talk to their consumers, they want to build a relationship with them. Branded content offers this, allowing people to personally connect (and converse) with a brand in exchange for something useful and meaningful for them. It offers the opportunity to drive information, relevance and a more personal, dynamic and engaging connection with people.
Talon have extensively researched the value of context and content in OOH, proving that it drives an incremental effect across awareness, consideration, behavioural change and perception shifts. For example, Time Out’s usage of XTPs on the London Underground to promote local and relevant content towards the end of the week drove a 45% increase in website traffic.
Other recent examples of great OOH content initiatives include the English Cricket Board delivering live updates and social media feeds during Test Matches, the British Fashion Council streaming London Fashion Week catwalks on digital screens, and Cadbury’s playfully providing real-time Wimbledon scores alongside promoting their limited edition Strawberries and Crème chocolate bar.
Making our OOH infrastructure more useful elevates the commercial value of the medium, improves the communications we experience as we move around and keeps people personally connected in their busy lives. And as clients generate smarter ideas content becomes more compelling, using the landscape of OOH to foster informative, relevant, personal, dynamic and engaging connections with people.