Interactivity in Outdoor Advertising

27Sep07

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The lightbulb on the billboard lights up when pedestrians walk underneath it. By BBDO, London.

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A ground level billboard which passers-by can walk or run on the enclosed treadmill. For every kilometer run, Nike will donate a certain amount to UNICEF. By BBDO, Argentina.
(This is in line with the Nike10K run held in Buenos Aires, Argentina. For a glimpse at the scale of the event, see video.)

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Built-in on the wall of the 02’s flagship store in London, real-time sms messages are being captured in LED word bubbles. By IDEO.
This advertising tactic was in line with the O2 ad campaign, integrating seamlessly with the commercial:

What do all these advertising tactics have in common?

All of them have an element of interactivity, which is crucial in seeking relevance with the targeted audiences and engaging them directly in a physical space.

While online media have stepped up in leveraging interactivity through the perceived platform of Web2.0, traditional media like outdoor and print can also employ the same characteristics that are common to Web2.0, such as its interactive and user-driven qualities. This will, in turn, create a blend between a virtual concept and the physical space, of which the use of physical space will bring targeted consumers even closer beyond the abilities of virtual space.

Which reminds me.. one of the major local shopping centres as well as the Dhoby Ghaut SMRT station used to have one of these interactive projected screens but they had disappear for some reason or another.

See how these projected screens work:

They have interactive properties for sure, but the interactions were pointless and have little relevance to the product for a meaningful connection with its audience. For example, for the juice ad at 00:19, perhaps it could be better if a game was involved where passers-by can “knock” a carton of juice such that the contents pour out to fill a glass. With more glasses filled, benefits such as as dietary fibre and relevant nutrients displayed on the projected screen will rise appropriately. People may stop and play with it while blocking other commuters but that’s okay, you will want people to stop and interact with the ad as much as possible. Inject an element of fun, and more people would stop at the ad, more people will also be curious about the ad, which is great awareness for the brand. Great potential in the technology but ideas weren’t carried all the way to exploit the potential deliverables.

Filed under: Branding, Interactive, Marketing, Media Channels, Web2.0   |  2 Comments