What Is Outdoor Advertising & Why It Matters

Outdoor, or out of home, advertising includes any type of marketing done outdoors to grab people’s attention. The most popular format is billboard advertising, but there are a range of other options, many of which now boast digital components.

Of course, the nuances of outdoor advertising expand the definition of this format to include a whole bunch of things you may never have even considered:

• Experiential advertising, such as the famous “Carrie” in the coffee shop prank
• Cars branded with advertiser logos and imagery
• Ads in bus shelters or on bus benches
• Promotions in movie theaters before you watch your film

The list goes on and on. These days, you can find an exhaustive number of examples of outdoor ads, which brings us to part two of our opening question.

What is Outdoor Advertising?

Outdoor Advertising covers just about everything advertising related you find outside the home.

Some may quibble over whether mobile/phone advertising is also outdoor advertising — after all, most people use their phones outside their house — but the accepted definition of outdoor advertising puts more focus on the medium than the device used to deliver it.

So, stickers advertising “Despicable Me” on bananas would be considered outdoor advertising. But an ad that pops up on your mobile device while you surf ESPN.com in line at the grocery store would not.

Outdoor ads often rely on their surroundings to help make a point. Ads are tailored to the format to make a bigger impact. For instance, a billboard for a movie that you see on the side of the road will be different than an advertisement for the same film on the side of a bus.

Outdoor is arguably the most creative canvas for advertising because the most successful ads reflect the imagination. Outdoor advertising is about seeing things in a new way and helping your audience to see that, too. It means a banana is no longer just a piece of fruit but suddenly the perfect vehicle to promote banana-colored minions from a kids’ cartoon.

Why is Outdoor Advertising Important?

There are so many answers to that question, each of which we’ll explore in depth. But the key takeaway is this. We spend a great deal of our lives outside our homes. Advertisers increasingly fighting to stand out amidst the clog of ads on analog and digital devices need a less-cluttered environment to deliver their message. Enter outdoor advertising.

The Top Forms of Outdoor Advertising

You could easily spend hours listing all the forms of outdoor advertising and still miss a few, as nearly anything can serve as a platform for ads. According to the Outdoor Advertising Association of America, these are the top categories:

• Billboards: Including traditional bulletin billboards, digital billboards, mobile billboards, and more.
• Wallscapes: The largest form of outdoor advertising, attached to expansive building walls.
• Transit: Bus, train, subway, taxicab, and other vehicle-based ads.
• Street Furniture: Ads on bus shelters, kiosks, benches, parking garages, street poles, bathrooms, and more.
• Beach Advertising: Ads on trash cans, floating billboards, beach balls, and airplane banner tows.
• Guerilla Advertising: Creative, attention-grabbing campaigns that fall outside traditional formats.
• Rail Advertising: Ads on trains, train platforms, and train interiors.
• Shopping Mall Advertising: Includes any ad displayed within a mall environment.
• Wild Posting®: A style of outdoor advertising that involves placing posters side-by-side on buildings.
• Taxi Advertising: Ads placed on, inside, or wrapped around taxicabs.
• Cinema Advertising: Commercials shown before films and other ads displayed around movie theaters.
• Aerial Advertising: Airplane banners, skywriting, skytyping, drones, and more.
• Mural Advertising: Hand-painted ads on walls, often referred to as hand-painted billboards.
• Airport Advertising: Includes Backlit Dioramas, Spectaculars, Mini Spectaculars, Banners, and Digital Video Screens.
• Other: Ads that don’t fit into other categories, such as ambient or guerilla campaigns.

Digital Advertising and Outdoor Advertising

Digital technology has revolutionized outdoor advertising, transforming traditional billboards and posters into dynamic, interactive, and highly engaging marketing tools. By incorporating social media elements into an outdoor advertising campaign, brands can amplify their visibility online and extend their reach well beyond physical spaces. For instance, a recent Coachella-Lady Gaga promotion executed by DASH TWO effectively bridged outdoor displays with a powerful digital presence, driving significant engagement from both in-person and online audiences.

Examples of Digital Outdoor Advertising Techniques

Digital outdoor advertising offers a variety of creative options to engage modern consumers. Some innovative approaches include:

• Bluetooth-Based Interactions: Billboards equipped with Bluetooth capabilities can ping passing mobile devices with personalized marketing messages, notifications, or discounts, creating a more direct line of communication with the audience.
• QR Code Integrations: These allow passersby to scan a code quickly and access a brand’s website, exclusive offers, or marketing campaigns instantly—an easy and fast way to boost traffic and conversions.
• Interactive Games: Some digital displays enable users to interact directly with the ad, playing branded games or participating in fun contests designed to raise brand awareness while delivering a memorable experience.

The Growing Impact of Digital Outdoor Advertising

Digital advertising in the out-of-home (OOH) industry is growing faster than any other segment, thanks to its ability to combine the strengths of physical media with the interactivity and analytics of digital technology. Marketers can track engagement metrics, adjust ad content in real time, and offer hyper-targeted campaigns based on data insights. Additionally, with advancements like augmented reality (AR) and artificial intelligence (AI), the future of digital outdoor advertising promises even more exciting opportunities for engagement and personalization.

In a world driven by connectivity and real-time content, the fusion of digital and outdoor advertising provides brands with an unparalleled way to capture attention, create meaningful interactions, and maximize campaign impact.