If you’re an agency pro or digital marketer who’s OOH-curious (yes, we’re making that a thing), you’re not alone. Every week, we chat with smart marketers who are intrigued by the power of out-of-home ads but aren’t quite sure where to start. They’re not always sure what counts as OOH: Is it just billboards? Does anyone actually look at them? How much do they cost? Can I actually measure performance?
Let’s demystify things, one burning question at a time.
1. “What even counts as OOH these days?”
Glad you asked. OOH (out-of-home) advertising is no longer the highway billboard featuring personal injury attorneys. Today’s OOH toolbox is digital, massive, and modern. Here’s what’s in it:
- Billboards: Still the rock stars of the OOH world, whether static or digital.
Transit ads: Buses, subways, taxis, rideshares…if it moves, it can be branded and is great for targeting urban buyers. - Street furniture: Bus shelters, kiosks, benches – yes, your brand can live there too, offering excellent dwell time to see a client’s branding.
- Place-based media: Think screens in gyms, malls, airports, and even elevators.
- Mobile billboards: Trucks wrapped with your message, cruising through your target market. Highly visible, especially in swarms of more than one.
- Street teams: Typically considered a PR or field marketing execution, sampling and brand activation on the ground is part of the OOH arsenal. Bonus: With digital OOH and programmatic buying, you can even swap out creatives based on weather, time of day, or big events.
2. “How much does a billboard actually cost?”
Like any good marketing answer, it depends.
The main factors that go into the cost of an out-of-home advertising campaign:
– Location: Tier One cities like San Francisco and New York City command a higher cost due to their population density. However, secondary cities may be a more impactful and cost-effective plan, which is what our team assesses using data to make suggestions.
-Duration: There are pricing discounts for longer commitments for a six-month engagement versus a shorter one-month flight
-Format: Production costs need to be factored into static placements, where digital is more flexible.
-Timing: Holiday shopping for DTC brands is a prime time with limited inventory, just like some major conferences use top placements quickly for B2B brands. The combination of what availability is left and how much lead time is given to secure it can factor into the cost of an OOH campaign.
Want Times Square at rush hour? That’s a premium. Want a rural highway in Idaho? Less so. The good news is that there are options for almost every budget, and technology is making it easier to buy smarter. We broke this down in detail in a previous blog post.
3. “How should marketers budget for OOH advertising?”
OOH shouldn’t be a budget black hole. Smart marketers start with clear goals, such as brand awareness, local activations, launching a product, and work backward from there.
A few rules of thumb:
- Start with 5 to 15% of your overall marketing budget for OOH that complements your digital media spends.
- Layer in creative production, ad space, and if you’re going digital, data or targeting costs.
- Don’t forget to factor in measurement (yes, you can measure – more on that below).
Here’s a deeper dive on OOH budgeting
4. “How do I measure the effectiveness of an OOH campaign?”
Gone are the days of gut-checks and finger-crossing. Modern OOH comes with real metrics:
- Impressions and estimated reach.
- Organic search lift from those who search for your brand after seeing ads.
- QR codes and custom URLs to track on-the-ground engagement.
- Geo-lift studies to measure the impact in exposed areas.
- Mobile retargeting to follow up with people who saw your ad IRL.
OOH is no longer the “offline” channel you can’t quantify: it’s trackable, targetable, and plays nice with your digital stack.
5. “What are the best practices for creative in OOH advertising?”
Planning and executing a successful OOH campaign is key to getting in front of the right audiences. Making sure the creative stands out and aligns with other branding is as important.
Think big. Think bold. And please, keep it simple.
- 7 words or less on billboards. That’s it. Transit ads with more dwell time provide a different canvas to tell a deeper story.
- Huge fonts, high contrast.A single strong image.
- A clear CTA if it fits (QR codes work wonders on mobile ads, not on billboards. It is actually illegal).
People are moving, driving, walking, zoning out: your creative has maybe 3 seconds to do its thing, which is why planning for enough brand impressions in a campaign is vital to make it count. More creative tips here.
6. “How do I choose the right locations for my OOH ads?”
This is where things get fun and strategic.
- Target neighborhoods or zip codes where your audience lives, works, or plays using demographic data sources
- Match your message to the vibe of the area.
- High-traffic intersections, event zones, and near competitors = gold.
- Want to hit Gen Z? Maybe post up outside college campuses and trendy cafes. B2B SaaS? Try commuter routes to business districts.
Our advice? Don’t just go for visibility, go for relevance.
7. “What is programmatic OOH, and how does it work?”
Programmatic OOH = buying ad space using real-time data + automation. It’s like Google Ads, but for the physical world.
You can:
- Target specific audiences or behaviors.
- Automate your buys across multiple screens and formats.
- Optimize on the fly based on performance, weather, or even live sports scores.
It’s the future of OOH, and it’s happening now.
8. “How can I integrate OOH with my digital campaigns?”
Absolutely. OOH isn’t a silo: it’s a secret weapon for omnichannel marketing.
- Use it to drive people to a landing page, then retarget them online.
- Reinforce your digital message in the real world.
- Create cross-platform brand moments (think: Instagrammable billboards + influencer content).
When online and offline work together, your brand wins both the screen and the street.
9. “What are common mistakes to avoid in OOH advertising?”
We’ve seen it all. Please don’t do these:
- Cramming too much text. It’s not a whitepaper.
- Choosing the wrong location. Even a great ad falls flat in the wrong spot.
- Ignoring measurement. You won’t know what worked (or didn’t).
- Forgetting the CTA. Give people a reason to engage.
10. “Alright, I’m in. How do I get started?”
To embark on an OOH campaign:
- Set Clear Objectives: Define what you aim to achieve.
- Understand Your Audience: Research demographics and behaviors.
- Choose the Right Formats and Locations: Align with your audience’s habits.
- Develop Compelling Creative: Craft messages that resonate.
- Partner with Experienced Vendors: Leverage their expertise for planning and execution.
- Monitor and Optimize: Use data to assess performance and make adjustments.
Final Thought: OOH is where creativity meets strategic impact. It stops people mid-scroll, mid-commute, mid-latte. If you’re looking for attention in the age of distraction, there’s never been a better time to take your brand’s message to the streets.