At the 5th edition of the e4m OOH Conference, marketing leaders came together to discuss how to create impactful OOH campaigns in today’s time. The panel discussion saw participation by Nabendu Bhattacharyya, Founder, ideacafe.agency; Aalap Desai, CCO and Co-Founder, tgthr; Janaki Patel, Senior Category Manager, Havmor; Junaid Shaikh, Managing Director, RoshanSpace Brandcom Private Limited; and Ramanuj Shastry, Co-Founder and Director, Infectious Advertising, sat
Opening the floor, Ramanuj Shastry, Co-Founder and Director, Infectious Advertising, who was the moderator of the event, said, “I belong to a generation when OOH was just outdoors. However, with the digital revolution and technological advancements, it is not the same anymore.” After which, he raised the main question to the panel: What makes an OOH campaign impactful?
Answering the question, Janaki Patel, Senior Category Manager, Havmor, shared, “We evaluate the impact of a campaign based on two or three parameters. For us, the impact is based on how tempted the consumer gets when they see the outdoor ad and how quickly that person is able to satisfy that indulgence. It is a perfect mixture of creative and scientific approaches to measure the impact of what we do. It is about selecting the areas where the distribution is strongest, and also working on creatives that lure consumers quickly to the shop nearby.”
Sharing his vision for an impactful OOH campaign, Junaid Shaikh, Managing Director, RoshanSpace Brandcom Private Limited, who has created 40,000 sq feet of DOOH since the pandemic, noted, “I believe a campaign is impactful if it is unmissable, clutter-free, idea-based, purpose-based, and if it is communicated in all aspects to the end-user. And from a media-owner perspective, it should be aesthetic, have a scientific approach, and most importantly, work out as a canvas for brands where they can tell their stories. It is about creating impactful mediums in the most impactful locations for impactful brands.”
Aalap Desai, CCO and Co-Founder, tgthr, threw light on how the space has evolved a lot over the years, making way for new avenues and opportunities. “In the past few years, things have become interactive, which is very much required. Anything that can have consumers engaged, and they go to the extent of sharing it on social media, is deeply impactful because people are very choosy about posting online. It is basically turning a non-media asset into a media property.”
All the panellists concurred with the fact that design and messaging play a huge role in determining the impact of the campaign. Elucidating it further, Janaki Patel added that design and messaging are the starting points; if you get them right, the rest of the plan falls right into place. The panel also discussed how creatives are no longer part of the outdoor initiatives.
To which, Nabendu Bhattacharyya, Founder, ideacafe.agency, added, “Back in the day, outdoor teams used to sit together with creatives, but now outdoor is part of the media plan. I believe that creative, and technology should come together because there are immense probabilities in this space.”
Bhattacharyya further quoted a UK based study, which highlights that if brands are able to catch the attention of users for over 3 seconds, their sales can increase by around 26%. This showcases the potential the medium holds and how it is not meant for mere copy-pasting of ideas. The panellists also talked about DOOH, which comes with measurement analytics tools and has made the space more colourful, aesthetic, and iconic. It was also noted that the medium, if timed, can lead to storytelling opportunities, wherein multiple billboards in a particular direction can be synchronised.
