Out-of-Home Innovations in India in the Recent Past

Abstract

Introduction: The last two decades have witnessed the changing landscape of business policies and consumer behavior caused by rapid technological advances. In particular, consumers in the major cities spend almost half the day outside the home and on-the-go so that the marketer has a complex task in creating a consolidated campaign to reach out to the consumer at an increasing number of touch-points. In addition, with a cluttered television market and growing fragmentation, marketers must seek options in the out-of-home space to improve competitiveness and constantly innovate. However technological improvements have permitted the execution of imaginative ideations like never before and this has allowed marketers to be more innovative in their communication to break through the clutter. However, the out-of-home industry itself has only in the past few years begun to get established and organized and it is yet plagued by a large number or regulatory and fragmentation issues. This research sought to evaluate the extent of evolution of the out-of-home industry through an in-depth understanding of its viability and future potential for marketers which a focus on innovations in the past few years. Methodology: The methodology adopted was intended to create a balance between primary and secondary research without focusing too much on one. Primary research included interviews that were conducted amongst various industry experts, marketing professions and representative consumers. Secondary research on the other side involved a qualitative analysis done with the help of articles from online outdoor advertising forums, newspaper and through reports and case studies to substantiate the primary data. Five campaigns were selected of which there were three outdoor campaigns – Volkswagen’s Vento launch campaign, Tata Docomo’s Do the New campaign and Coca-Cola’s CWG campaign; and two multimedia campaigns – Pepsi Max’s launch campaign and Reebok’s Reezig campaign. These campaigns were selected on the basis of the extensive appreciation and accolades they received in the industry for their innovative work. They were also chosen keeping in mind the potential to draw key universal elements and learnings which can be applied to other campaigns by marketers. Key Findings: Firstly, the research suggests that the out-of-home medium has become a very strong brand-building medium and not just a reminder medium for a variety of brands across product categories. Secondly, it has emerged from the selected case studies that innovative advertising in the outdoor space has led to successful and measurable results which if assessed in more detail would prove high efficacy of advertising through use of innovations. Thirdly, while there is a large potential for the industry in terms of growth and maturity, the retail and merchandising segment is still not being effectively utilized due to a multitude of reasons – most important being the lack of a unified body and experts who can carry it forward. Moreover, with the secrecy surrounding spends by companies on this segment, transparent policies and activities are yet to emerge. Fourthly, the technological progressions in the form of LED, lenticulars and high-impact graphics are now giving marketers the freedom to execute out-of-the box ideas to attract consumers and deliver high recall. However, the cost-effectiveness though very high for campaign specific advertising, still remains debatable when it comes to being used on a large scale. Fifthly, the focus on research-based software and metrics for efficacy though growing slowly but surely is an important trend that will help bring more credibility and stability to the out-of-home medium. Finally, with systemic change still a distant dream and regulatory apathy still a reality, efforts by authorities and industry professionals on self-regulation seem to be boding good news for the viability of the medium.