Millennials, Gen-Z, and Experiential Advertising in Schools

Experiential

The rise to demographic prominence of millennials and the members of Gen Z has caused a shift in today’s advertising landscape. Advertisers everywhere are looking for new tactics and strategies capable of reaching these seemingly elusive generations. Experiential advertising has seen some success in catching their attention, but to make a more meaningful impact these isolated campaigns need to expand their reach. Experiential campaigns are just beginning to move into schools, but it’s not entirely clear what makes these demonstrations so effective. This post will examine what elements of experiential are so appealing to younger audiences, and how the movement into schools can be navigated efficiently, and responsibly.

Advertising In Schools: What does the current system look like?

Advertising in schools is not a new concept. Advertising is already very prevalent on college campuses, but recently some marketers attentions’ have shifted towards advertising in primary, middle, and high schools instead. With districts nationwide struggling to make up for budget cuts, schools everywhere are turning to the private sector and selling advertising rights in return for additional funding.

Advertisements provide additional ways to support students, they offset tax increases and help to avoid cutting programs,” says Dr. W. David Bowman, of Pennsbury School District.

Advertisements that are currently being placed in schools must follow a relatively strict set of rules. Ads can only be placed in certain areas that are designated by the school, they must contain at least some form of broad educational messaging, and they must never seep into the actual classrooms, as students would have no way to filter out these ads during their mandatory class time. Although advertising in schools is legal, effective, and regulated, many parents still question the ethicality of the practice. So before placing any physical advertisements, it is essential to carefully consider their concerns.

Millennials and Gen Z: Why Do Younger Generations Like Experiential?

Millennials and the members of Gen Z are different. They interact with technology very differentlyDefinitions than the generations that preceded them (Baby Boomers & Gen X), and as a result, their interactions with advertising are very different as well. Members of these generations have been said to be able to interpret and ignore traditional forms of media at speeds 20-50% faster than other generations. So impacting them in a way that is impossible for them to ignore is crucial.

That’s where experiential comes in. It is often suggested that the single most important factor to focus on when creating an advertisement to impress these younger generations is authenticity. They live in a world so dominated by virtual elements, that they crave authentic experience and social connection. In fact, 72% of millennials stated that they would choose an experience over a material item of equal value. Experiential advertising is all about letting users interact directly with a brand by “immersing them in an experience in a fun, memorable way.” This interactivity fulfills these younger generations’ inherent need to have real-life experiences. Additionally, the versatility of experiential allows them to share their experience with their peers over social media, which is a component of the format that they often find very appealing.

Experiential In Schools: What makes educational experiential campaigns successful?

Schools are filled with members of these younger generations who are known to react well to experiential campaigns, which makes them the ideal place to reach this young, captive audience. Using proper strategies and messaging is imperative to avoiding pushback, so here are a few ideas successful campaigns implement when facilitating educational/experiential alliances:

Focus on Positive, Educational Messaging: As stated earlier, delivering an authentic campaign is absolutely pivotal to ensuring success. A truly impactful campaign will avoid messaging that is based simply on selling, as it may come across as being cold or insincere. Instead, it is more effective to focus on spreading an educational message or delivering actual value to students. Students will perceive it as more authentic, and ultimately have a better response to it.

Incorporate Technology & Link Campaign to Social Media: millennials and the members of Gen Z love social media. If an experiential campaign is linked to social media there’s a high probability that these young individuals will be inclined to share their unique experience with the rest of their social network. That will further the overall enjoyability of the campaign, and spread the desired message to a much wider audience.

Give Back to the Users: Giving something directly to students, like a free pack of pencils or branded erasers, furthers the perceived authenticity of a campaign. Students will feel more inclined to support and advocate for a brand if they feel as though the brand is an advocate for them.

Contests and Sweepstakes: Members of these younger generations are used to instant gratification. Making a contest or sweepstakes a component of your experiential campaign will tap into that desire to feel satisfied immediately.

The future of experiential in the education system is promising, yet somewhat uncertain. The audience is there, but it’s possible that ethical limitations could hinder its eventual impact. However, if campaigns are well-designed, and created with students’ best interests in mind, the relationship between education and experiential has the potential to become a powerful player in the present day advertising landscape.


If you’re interested in starting a successful experiential campaign of your own visit DOmedia, host to the largest database of OOH vendors in the US, to learn more!

 


What Factors Determine OOH Advertising Rates?

WFDOOHAR

We all know that billboard prices can vary widely, but what actually causes some billboards to be more expensive than others? There are lots of different variables that can impact OOH pricing. This post will explain what those variables are and why they matter. 

Location

An old real-estate adage states that the three things that impact property value the most are “LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION.” The same goes for billboard prices. Although there are other factors that contribute to the final price of a billboard, location is certainly one of the most influential. Billboards placed in large markets tend to cost a lot more than billboards placed in smaller, more rural ones. For example, billboards in urban metropolises like New York City or San Francisco will cost considerably more than billboards in smaller markets, such as St. Louis, MO or Wichita, KS.

Format

The actual size and format of a billboard, or ad, will also be hugely influential when determining its final price. OOH advertisements generally grow more expensive as the format grows bigger. For example, a bulletin will cost more than a poster, a poster will cost more than a jr. poster, and a jr. poster will probably cost more than small format advertisements such as kiosks or benches. Additionally, it should be noted that digital formats are usually more expensive their traditional counterparts.

Circulation & Impressions

Circulation and the number of impressions that a billboard will make are two more variables used to determine the final price of a billboard. Circulation, or the amount of people who will physically pass by the board, is important because it accounts for the total amount of people that could potentially be impacted by a billboard.

Impressions, or the number of people who actually see the billboard, can impact pricing as well. Expect to pay more for ‘boards that are seen by more people.  Any factors that enhance, or limit, a billboards ability to make impressions are sure to impact the overall price of the billboard.

Demographics

Demographics refer to the type of people who will pass by a specific board, usually broken down by gender, income, age, and even education level. Advertising to a target population that possesses high buying power or considerable influence will cost more than advertising to a population that does not. For example, you’ll pay more for an ad placed in a location comprised largely of wealthy baby boomers and millennials than an ad placed in a low-income area with a high percentage of elderly individuals.

Design & Installation*

Although design and installation costs won’t vary much from location to location, factoring in the costs of these two steps into your budget is pivotal. These two steps can make a sizable impact on your overall budget so you must plan on buying a board at a reasonable price that allows for these steps to be properly executed.

Now that you know the main variables that contribute to the pricing of a billboard, hopefully, you can better understand what you are buying and ultimately plan and deliver stronger, more effective OOH campaigns.


If you want to plan a powerful out-of-home campaign think about visiting DOmedia, the host of the largest database of OOH vendors in the US, to get started today!

 


What Does Reach Mean in Advertising?

PlzReachVertThe concept of reach is simple, but there are certainly elements of it that are easy to confuse or misunderstand. This post will attempt to give you a concrete understanding of this important advertising concept by providing a solid definition of the word, as well as defining similar words and concepts that are often associated with reach.

The definition of reach is as follows:

REACH: the total number of people in a target audience’s population that are exposed to an advertisement and notice it at least once during a set period of time.

Reach can be stated as a defined figure (such as 25,000 individuals), but is often expressed as a percentage of households reached in a target area, or among a target audience’s population.

For new brands and products, reach should be an incredibly high priority. High reach allows companies to get their name and products into more consumers’ minds as they attempt to gain market share. Additionally, brands and products that are nearing the end of their useful life should attempt to achieve high reach, as they are in similar need of quality exposure among target audiences.

In addition to describing reach, it may also be beneficial to define a variety of words with similar (but different) meanings. A few of these terms and a brief description of each are listed below:

FREQUENCY: The number of times the average individual sees a particular advertising stimulus

EXPOSURE: The number of people that see, or visually receive an advertising message

Hopefully, this post has equipped you with an understanding of these concepts that will allow you to go forth and “reach” your full OOH advertising potential.


Interested in increasing your reach? Visit DOmedia, the host of the largest database of OOH vendors in the US, and start planning your next OOH campaign today!

 


What is OOH Doing Right?

DomediaNewYearSay hello to 2018! The new year is here and we at DOmedia feel it’s the perfect time to examine exactly what the OOH industry is doing right. The beginning of any new year is a great time for reflection, so this post will detail some of the impressive OOH achievements witnessed in 2017, as well as a few exciting things that the industry can look forward to as it transitions into 2018.

…and the Golden Globe goes to…The OOH industry!

Not really. The Golden Globe award for Best Motion Picture actually went to Three Billboards Outside of Ebbing, Missouri. This award-winning film focuses on the journey of a single mom who rents space on 3 billboards in her town in an effort to draw attention to the unsolved murder of her daughter. Although this film was created to entertain and enlighten, this small town drama did more than that and managed to draw big attention to the effectiveness of OOH advertising.

Charity through OOH

OOH advertising formats were used frequently throughout the past year to aid the efforts of a wide variety of charitable causes. Any charity campaign should be considered admirable, but the charity campaigns used to raise awareness for the massive disaster relief efforts that followed Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma this year were especially notable. These campaigns made a difference in a time of intense need and further demonstrated how effective OOH advertising can truly be.

OAAA + Neilsen Reports

At the tail end of the calendar year, the OAAA announced the results of two Nielsen reports that provided insights on some important facets of OOH advertising. The first report focused on the value of poster advertisements. This study found that young adults notice posters at an incredibly high rate, and that “over half of all consumers agree that posters stand-out more than ads seen in newspapers, online, on mobile devices.”

Then the second study found that OOH advertising generates more online activations than TV, radio, print, and online banner ads when indexed against spend. Both of these reports demonstrate that OOH advertising continues to perform regardless of trends and that the industry itself is one that is destined to achieve growth.

 


History of Digital Advertising Displays

1796 | Munich, GermanyLa Gatine historique et monumentale. ... Ouvrage accompagné d'eaux-fortes et de lithographies représentant les monuments de ce pays, dessinés d'après nature et gravés par M. E. Sardoux

A man named Alois Senefelder invents a revolutionary printing process that utilizes the immiscibility (inability to mix) of oil and water to create an image. This process is dubbed lithography, and it dramatically changes the way images are produced and reproduced. The invention of this process eventually leads to the printing of the first illustrated poster and unknowingly serves as the initial genesis of the OOH industry.

1835 | New York City, United StatesRingling Brothers Ad

Jared W. Bell, a young printmaker hailing from Brooklyn, NY, produces a series of 5o ft2 ads to be used as promotional tools for the Ringling Bros. “The Great Wallace” circus shows. These prints bridge the gap between print and promotion, and mark the first documented use of conventional “billboard advertising.”

2005 → Presentdigital

Fast forward 170 years to the installation of the first digital billboard in 2005. It is at this moment that the OOH industry encounters one of its most profound innovations to date. The advent of digital billboards allows billboard companies to display numerous ads at a single location, and effectively changes the way consumers interact with OOH advertisements.

The first digital billboards to be introduced were far from the digital LED billboards of today. These first digital pioneers were often only partially digital, in an effort to save on cost, and sported low-resolution displays, offering only 34-millimeter pixel pitch. Present day digital billboards are technological works of art. They are capable of displaying images at high resolutions and can do so while being incredibly energy efficient. 

Additionally, a wide variety of digital innovations have been made since these displays became commonplace in the OOH industry. For example:

QR CodesDOmediaQR

QR codes, or quick response codes, are visual representations of encoded data that, when scanned, can display desired information or send users directly to specified online locations. Although QR codes were invented in 1994 for use in the Japanese automobile industry, their popularization didn’t really occur until the rise of smartphones. Now that virtually everyone has a QR code scanner sitting in their pocket all advertisers have to do is place a QR code within their artwork and wait for results to follow.

Interactive Media Walls

When first introduced, digital displays tended to be passive, delivering one message or ad to anyone that encountered it. However, the introduction of interactive media walls has allowed advertisers to offer more individual experiences to consumers. Through the use of monitor and projection based displays, advertisers can create memorable advertisements that allow users to select and interact with the specific offerings that interest them.


Since it’s very origins the out-of-home industry has constantly been evolving. Now DOmedia, the host to the largest database of OOH vendors in the US, is trying to push the industry forward by changing the way out-of-home media is bought and sold. Check out this link or scan the QR code above to check DOmedia out!