Integrating TV and outdoor advertising is at the cutting edge of modern marketing. The integration of multiple platforms takes advantage of the plethora of different ways of engaging with audiences in today’s ever-evolving marketing environment.

The top two most influential advertising platforms are television and out-of-home (OOH). That is, the ads we watch on the box at home, and the ads we encounter out and about at bus shelters, roadsides and on the street. Each have their own particular strengths and weaknesses, and it is the dynamic integration of the two mediums that successful campaigns must seek to achieve.

Benefits of TV advertising

Demographic targeting

With TV you can use demographic targeting to advertise during specific programmes or channels that appeal to certain demographics. With the right amount of exposure, you can guarantee that your message will be seen by the majority of viewers.

Prestige

TV spots confer authority and legitimacy to your brand, and can give small or medium businesses the edge on their rivals. They have the effect of making your brand look bigger than it perhaps is. And that’s no bad thing.

ROI

Despite much hot debate, over time return on investment for TV advertising still trumps most other ad mediums.

Limitations of TV advertising

Cost

TV ads can certainly be expensive for small businesses. Given that building brand recognition is a long-game, it may not be wise to put all your eggs in the basket of TV advertising just yet.

Divergence

TV is no longer the only show in town. Despite the dominance of TV, crucial demographics are peeling away, with under-30s increasingly relying on mobile content. Shockingly, many don’t own TVs at all!

Intrusion

TV ads are some of the more intrusive forms of messaging, and consumers will often leave their TV sets during ad brakes, or surf other channels, rather than watch commercials (we’ve all done it. Those of us with TVs, that is).

Benefits of OOH

Proximity

OOH lets you message your audience close to the point of purchase. Studies consistently show that this has a big impact on purchasing decisions. Today’s poster has more recency and impact than yesterday’s TV ad.

Distraction

Unlike the potentially intrusive nature of TV ads, consumers are actively looking for distractions when they are out and about. Many hours are lost waiting at red lights, bus stops, and crowded tube stations; not to mention time spent in transit on buses, trains, and taxis. These are all areas where outdoor advertising is most effective.

Broad appeal

OOH gives you an opportunity to relate to consumers at practically every stage of their lives when out and about. As you are targeting the broad sweep of commuters and high street shoppers, you can guarantee your message will reach a wide and diverse audience.

Limitations of OOH

Brevity

Unlike TV spots, OOH ads lack the ability to tell an immersive story about a product, relying on very short messages -and easily digestible images- to get through to an often-distracted and always busy audience.

Monomedia

Despite some high-profile exceptions, the majority of OOH adverts are static, and most can’t rely on moving images and sound in the way that TV advertising can. Whilst this can often be an advantage, there are clear limitations to a campaign that does not make use of TV as part of an integrated strategy.

Targeting

With TV, marketers can get a pretty accurate idea of audience demographics. This is much harder for OOH. After all, most people spend plenty of time outside of their homes, regardless of their demographic. Outdoor can run the risk of casting the net too wide.

Integrating TV and Outdoor advertising

After a quick survey of the benefits and limitations of TV and outdoor, it should become apparent how the effective integration of both mediums can enhance your campaigns.

Firstly, TV and Outdoor represent the top two most influential platforms respectively. TV ads instantly convey the kind of brand authority that only the goggle-box can bestow. And the best spots make expert use of visual and audio hooks to worm their way into their audiences’ consciousness.

Outdoor ads can then serve to keep brand awareness fresh. The vast majority of 15-24 year olds see an outdoor advertisement every week, and 70% of adults can recall an ad seen in the previous month, with most claiming that they are open to influence from the platform.

Whilst TV is adept at targeting specific demographics, it is not rooted geographically. Meanwhile, outdoor ads can literally be placed outside a retail outlet, in a cinema foyer, or at a transit station, providing laser-precision location targeting.

Cases in point

There are so many ways to successfully combine TV and outdoor, but here a few examples to get your creative juices flowing:

Toyota Yaris

Toyota’s ‘Treat It With Respect’ TV ad tells the story of a woman getting her own back on a friend who disrespected her car during a spray-tanning session. This comic narrative makes the most of the visual storytelling powers of TV, whilst outdoor posters work as a visual call-back to the advert, showing the two friends entering the Yaris outside the classy ‘tanning boutique’ from the story, whilst the vehicle’s owner smirks at her orange-skinned friend. This visual snapshot only makes total sense to audiences familiar with the TV spot, although it contains enough visual imagery and micro-narratives to work as a standalone poster. This is a subtle yet effective use of integrated TV and outdoor campaigns.

John Lewis

Whilst John Lewis’ latest edition of their now iconic festive ad spot is being inculcated into our collective consciousness, the upmarket retailers have teamed up with Lego to recreate Lego block scenes from their Christmas ads from the last 10 years. The scenes will be displayed in John Lewis’ flagship Oxford store. Whilst bouncing Buster the dog still reverberates in the mind of John Lewis’ audience, these in-store delights provide an effective nudge at point of sale, whilst also drawing attention to the retailers Christmas as legacy.

Debenhams

Not to be outdone, Debenhams’s have turned their flagship store into ‘the Found It Gift Factory‘, to back up their TV spot featuring celebrity guest voices from Jennifer Saunders, Billy Piper and Ewan McGregor. The TV ad takes advantage of celebrity cache, as luxury gift selections speak seductively to the audience; whilst the in-store display makes use of the physicality of the out-of-home space.

There is of course no right or wrong way to integrate TV and outdoor, and a savvy campaign will always seek to stay ahead of the curve and keep things fresh. At Bubble our online outdoor advertising market place helps take care of the logistics of outdoor advertising, leaving you more time to develop your marketing strategy. Get in touch with us today to find out how you can make use of our services to take your campaigns to the next level.