Greetings from London: Out of Home advertising grows, evolves, and challenges old thinking

In early June, the world's Out of Home advertising industry turned its attention to London, when the World Out of Home Organization's annual congress brought together the industry's leading players from around the globe.

The event attracted 807 industry professionals representing 55 different nationalities. Practically all the major Out of Home companies from every continent were represented.

From Outshine, the event was attended by CEO Jani Lepistö and EVP, Strategy and Marketing Markus Grannenfelt.

– One of the most positive observations was that the event wasn't focused on raising one's own company onto a pedestal. The discussions showed a genuine desire to develop the entire industry together, Markus Grannenfelt explains.

"Let's Get Real"

Out of Home advertising is growing stronger than many believe

One of the most talked-about themes at the event was the strong international growth of Out of Home advertising.

The global Out of Home advertising market is worth 54 billion dollars, and digital Out of Home accounts for 25.5 billion dollars of that. The overall market grew approximately 15 percent last year.

At the same time, an interesting contradiction emerged.

Consumers spend about a third of their waking hours in environments where they encounter Out of Home advertising. Yet Out of Home advertising still receives only about 5–6 percent of global media advertising investments.

– Each of us encounters Out of Home advertising daily. It can't be blocked by an adblocker or scrolled past. Yet the media spending directed at it isn't proportional to the actual time people spend in those environments. This sparked a lot of discussion at the event, Grannenfelt says.

Trust is built on visibility

There was also considerable discussion in London about the trustworthiness of marketing.

Many industry players highlighted challenges with social media platforms, such as fraud, bot traffic, and difficulties in verifying advertiser authenticity.

At the same time, research shows that Out of Home advertising is still perceived as an exceptionally trustworthy medium.

– No digital Out of Home advertising is published without us knowing the advertiser and validating the material, Grannenfelt explains as one reason for DOOH's trustworthiness.

– When a brand appears outdoors, it still has a special impact on people's perception. Out of Home advertising signals permanence, credibility, and that this is a real, serious player. This was strongly reflected in international research as well, Jani Lepistö adds.

Artificial intelligence doesn't replace creativity, it multiplies it

If any one technology stood out above the rest at the event, it was artificial intelligence.

However, the discussion wasn't solely about efficiency, but rather about how AI can help create increasingly relevant and dynamic advertising.

– What was most interesting was seeing how AI is being used to scale creative executions. The brand still defines the strategy, tone, and creative concept, but AI is able to produce hundreds of different versions of it for different situations, locations, and target groups, Grannenfelt explains.

One example presented at the event was a travel industry campaign in which AI produced over 700 locally personalized versions of the same campaign.

This development is particularly evident in the possibilities of digital Out of Home advertising to combine data, location, timing, and creative content in ways that weren't possible just a few years ago.

Cities are growing, and Out of Home advertising is growing with them

London's congress also looked strongly toward the future.

According to estimates, by 2050, as many as three-quarters of the world's population will live in urban environments.

As urbanization accelerates, the importance of Out of Home advertising grows.

– People increasingly live and move in cities, use public transportation, and spend time in urban environments. At the same time, digital Out of Home advertising is continuously becoming smarter and more dynamic. These two trends support each other very strongly, Lepistö says.

From the London trip, many new ideas were brought back, but one message stood out above the rest.

Out of Home advertising is not just a growing medium. It is a medium whose role in cities, in marketing, and in people's everyday lives appears to be strengthening year after year.

And that is precisely why the industry's future looks exceptionally promising right now.