New Hope for Outdoor Media
Future of Outdoor Q1 Revenues Tech Adoption The Hurdles
It is known that this media is the least affected by the market’s regression, especially in Lebanon. It is believed that outdoor, specifically 4X3 panels, is a media that sells and gives immediate feedback. The local clients like to see their products displayed on billboards and large format, because for them it is a measurable medium.
The year started on a slow note and January revenues were average as expected. Most clients did not set their budgets till mid or end of February but all in all it was not a bad start for a year that was expected to be very difficult and challenging. Let us hope we will be able to maintain the same throughout the year.
We have so many creative talents in Lebanon but are still shy on creative digital outdoor ideas due to different factors, mainly budget cuts and some of the strict guidelines imposed in certain regions. July/august 2016
The decrease in the popularity of outdoor media is mainly due to clutter, not to mention the increasing use of digital. The main issue we are facing is pricing. Due to budget cuts, different media are becoming very competitive in light of last-minute deals, which are surpassing planned budgets and yearly deals. The clients are trying to benefit from this fact and most bookings are made at the last minute.
The resurgence of outdoor media is common during elections as that media has the highest reach and is the most cost effective in such cases compared to print and TV. The target is the masses and digital is not a serious competitor. Again I wouldn’t say rules were certainly broken during electoral period, but they were definitely changed. Every supplier tried to make the most out of this period driving higher demand. For that reason, we had to find a way to accommodate as best we can.
The Merits for Political Campaigning Reach vs. Impact
Digital media cannot replace outdoor or any other traditional medium but it certainly affected some more than others. You also cannot replace an outdoor campaign with a social media campaign, as they can complement each other. The real estate sector is the one that was most affected driving many clients to shift their budgets completely to digital. However, we witnessed a strong come back to traditional media for the same brands afterword. Though digital is more measurable than outdoor, nonetheless, the former does not always match the increase in sales. In other words, it all depends on the client’s needs and objectives.