Srikanth Ramachandran is the Founder and Group CEO of Moving Walls Group, an adtech and enterprise SaaS leader for the OOH media industry.
About half of the world’s population will be going to vote in 2024, which has been termed by some as “the election year.” The media continues to play a pivotal role in politics. However, one of the biggest influences now seems to come from online platforms, where candidates can engage with voters, disseminate their messages and influence public opinion.
With the ability to reach millions instantly, social media allows candidates to directly connect with voters. This enables them to tailor their messaging and target specific demographics. I believe the digitization of out-of-home media is creating similar hyperlocal targeting opportunities in the real world.
Being the founder of a company that specializes in the OOH media space, media in the real world has fascinated me. While election advertising often relies on real-world media such as traditional posters, from my observations, many have not yet explored digital screens in the real world, which I believe presents an innovation opportunity.
Every touchpoint is an opportunity to influence.
The 2016 U.S. presidential election was an election during which social media played a major role. Candidates used platforms like X (formerly Twitter), Facebook and Instagram to directly connect with voters and disseminate campaign messages. Billions are spent on political advertising, with the 2020 U.S. presidential election spending reaching about $14 billion. The 2024 general elections in India, the largest democracy in the world, have also seen higher advertising spending.
In the intricate dance of campaigning for an election, campaigns often adopt hyperlocal strategies to target voters in every nook and cranny of a constituency. From bustling city centers to remote rural areas, campaigns employ age-old hyperlocal marketing techniques, such as plastering posters and flags, to capture the attention of potential voters. I’ve found this tends to intensify closer to voting day. In the 2000 U.S. presidential election, the state of Florida witnessed a historic recount that ultimately decided the outcome of George W. Bush being declared the winner. The margin of victory was so narrow that every vote truly mattered.
The physical world has gone digital.
In an era marked by digital transformation, even the physical world has undergone a digital evolution. The digitization of the real world has changed the landscape of advertising, with digital screens now ubiquitous in various public spaces. This is the face of modern digital out-of-home advertising. From airports and train stations to shopping malls and roadside billboards, these digital displays have become an integral part of the urban environment, capturing the attention of passersby and commuters alike.
Moreover, advertising screens have found their way into other settings, such as taxis and gas pumps, which can provide exposure to targeted messaging throughout the day. These screens can allow for content changes based on predefined business rules or real-time signals such as weather conditions, foot traffic and traffic congestion. I am also seeing moving media like LED trucks that traverse specific routes to influence audiences with advertising messages. In my experience, these are typically more popular for events and local businesses to drive footfall to their stores.
Audiences can be primed using digital signage.
In the 2015 con artist movie Focus, there’s a pivotal scene where the protagonist, Nicky, executes a brilliant scheme to manipulate a rival gambler, Liyuan. Nicky strategically places the number 55 in various locations that Liyuan moves through to get to a football game. As the game unfolds, Nicky ensures that the number continues to appear throughout the environment, reinforcing its significance in Liyuan’s mind. Through this psychological manipulation, Nicky creates a subconscious association between the number 55 and success. Eventually, when placing the bet, which represents the climax of the movie, Liyuan selects the player wearing jersey No. 55 as his pick. Another key character, Jess, whom Nicky had taken under his wing throughout the film, is able to guess this and win their bet.
While this example comes from a film, I believe it shows how the physical world can influence our thoughts and moods. Digital signage is a canvas for communication between the physical world and audiences. Digital screens are now present everywhere, and it is up to political campaign strategists to understand how voters navigate these spaces and how to reach them with messages at the right moments.
By devising location and time-sensitive messages, campaigns on digital signage can better ensure relevance and resonance across diverse demographics. Furthermore, supporters play a pivotal role in amplifying the campaign’s message, rallying behind their candidate through grassroots efforts and digital advocacy on nearby digital signage. This further extends the reach and influence of a campaign.
That said, there are some nuances to consider that can affect your results with digital OOH advertising. While mobile and desktop advertising is 1-to-1 media, digital OOH is a 1-to-many media, which means it requires a different personalization and content strategy. Content could be personalized based on location, moments that revolve around certain times of day, environmental factors like traffic or weather, and/or events like a flight landing from New York. Similar to social media advertising, depending on the OOH media format and location, the content duration can also be tweaked to deliver the message within seven to 20 seconds. Digital OOH screens vary in sizes and shapes, so the content has to be repurposed to multiple screen formats as well.
In summary, digital OOH advertising can be treated similarly to other digital screens for planning and booking the media. However, the content strategy has to take in some nuances to deliver an effective advertising campaign.
In the quest to reach and influence voters, the integration of digital screens may provide an edge that is less competitive and saturated than online platforms. When this form of advertising is leveraged effectively, it could help build a sustained presence beyond just having static posters and billboards.
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