In this episode of Beyond the Billboard, Greg Wise and Charlie Riley sit down with James Heller, founder and CEO of Wrapify, to explore one of the most innovative shifts in out-of-home advertising: turning rideshare and delivery vehicles into powerful, data-backed mobile billboards.
James breaks down how moving ads can reach people where other formats fall short and why marketers looking to cut through digital fatigue should start paying closer attention.
Watch the full episode below.
From Cloud Marketing to Out-of-Home Reinvention
Before founding Wrapify, James was a digital marketer at large tech companies. But he always had an interest in OOH.
“I was a marketing director for a data center cloud provider,” James said. “I went on to running global digital marketing for a cloud division of a Fortune 50 Ingram Micro. And I was always fascinated by out of home… but it was really hard to measure.”
That challenge stuck with him. When the gig economy took off, he saw a chance to do something different: use those moving vehicles to scale OOH campaigns with better targeting and stronger analytics.
Digital Costs Are Rising. Mobile OOH Is the Answer
Brands are feeling the pressure of inflated digital costs. And it is not just about CPMs.
“We’re seeing CPMs in the north of the 20 to 30 dollar range,” James said. “Some clients have CPMs north of 50. There’s a law of diminishing returns with pure play performance digital as your main strategy.”
Mobile OOH sidesteps crowded feeds and oversaturated channels. It puts your brand in the real world, in front of people who are actually living their lives—not just scrolling past.
OOH Attribution Is Not a Mystery Anymore
One reason marketers hesitate on OOH is the myth that it cannot be measured. But James says the tools exist—and Wrapify bakes them in.
“You want to be able to build an exposed versus control group,” he said. “There are several amazing platforms that do that out of the box. Wrapify has it. You get attribution when you buy Wrapify.”
It is now possible to connect OOH exposure to real outcomes like web traffic, conversions, and even offline actions like store visits.
Budget Matters More Than You Think
James is upfront about what it takes to make mobile OOH work. It is not a channel you can test with pocket change.
“If they have a bad experience with not enough budget, they’re gonna go, ‘This channel doesn’t work,’” he said. “We’ll tell them, that’s just not enough. You should go invest those dollars in other channels.”
OOH needs proper flight time and density to be effective. Done right, it drives results. Underfunded, it gets written off unfairly.
Reach Where Traditional OOH Can’t Go
One of the biggest strengths of moving ads is their flexibility. You are not stuck with a few billboard locations.
“We’re able to target neighborhoods where families with kids live,” James said. “These are the pockets of the market where we could deploy out of home, where there is no out of home, and we can measure that exposure back to butts in seats.”
Brands can now use OOH strategically—covering gaps, aligning with key moments, and surrounding events with contextually relevant ads.
It Feels Fresh. That’s a Good Thing
Mobile OOH is still unexpected in a lot of places. That unfamiliarity works in its favor.
“It creates a ton of recall because of the nascency,” James said. “And when you look at what you could spend on a conference—like being a lanyard sponsor or wrapping a staircase to a part of the venue nobody goes to—the same amount of money could basically own what’s going on outside the event.”
This is not a gimmick. It is a more effective way to show up at the right time and place.
Final Thoughts: Drive Real Reach With Mobile OOH
James Heller and the team at Wrapify are proving that OOH can be smart, flexible, and performance-driven. When done right, moving ads give marketers the reach of traditional media with the insights of digital.
“Out of home made Meta 30 percent more performing,” James said, citing a Facebook study. “It’s obvious to me. Brands that are over-indexed on digital need to be looking at this.”
OOH is not just brand awareness anymore. It is measurable, targeted, and ready to be part of any high-performing media mix.
🎧 Listen to episode 6 of Beyond the Billboard to learn more about how Wrapify is changing the rules of out-of-home and why your next campaign might need to hit the road.