Outdoor (or out-of-home) advertising helps small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) publicise themselves and their offerings. It is effective, has public impact and is seen where it matters: in the streets where potential customers work, shop and socialise.
Outdoor advertising offers Swiss SMEs many opportunities to increase their performance. We must distinguish physical outdoor advertising (OOH, for Out Of Home) from digital outdoor advertising (DOOH, for Digital Out Of Home), which is mainly on advertising screens that allow digital posters or short spots adapted to this medium.
Physical advertising posters
Their presence in public spaces and their imposing size convey competence and credibility, and they can be targeted to specific locations, which makes them extremely cost-effective.
The most frequently used poster formats for SMEs are the F12 wide format and the F200 city format, as well as the popular small format F4. A display period (also known as posting period) of 7, 14 or 21 days can be chosen. The poster advertising’s affordable price structure makes it suitable for local, regional and national businesses alike. Posters can even be used for business-to-business (B2B) campaigns thanks to the possibility of high-precision targeting.
However, outdoor advertising also has certain constraints. To be effective, people must be able to read the conveyed message quickly and from a distance. Therefore, it is essential to use announcements that are both simple and impactful. One should use few words and simple images to convey the message clearly.
APG|SGA, one of the largest advertising companies in Switzerland, has created three tutorials on how to design this advertising medium. The research institute, Swiss Poster Research Plus, has also developed the SPR+ Expert tool, which makes it possible to estimate the costs and effectiveness of an outdoor (OOH) or digital (DOOH) advertising campaign. Companies can now determine the number of areas, the target area and the duration of their campaigns according to pre-established factors validated by researchers.
The Swiss outdoor advertising providers, represented by the Outdoor Advertising Switzerland Association (AWS), are available to advise SMEs. The most important of them offer SMEs user-friendly direct booking platforms: AWS Outdoor Advertising Switzerland - members
Digital outdoor advertising
Digital advertising spaces in portrait or landscape format are the perfect complement to traditional posters. This type of advertising is referred to as "Digital Out-Of-Home" (DOOH). It offers SMEs a platform for relaying moving-image content to the public and capturing attention.
DOOH has the same advantages as poster advertising: high-traffic locations, a sophisticated medium, large advertising spaces and a presence in public areas that enhances a company’s image and trust among customers. In addition, digital screens offer a raft of new possibilities that are of great benefit to SMEs.
One of the biggest advantages is the highly flexible duration of campaigns, with digital screens able to be booked for as little as one day. This means, for example, that customers can be targeted on a particular day of the week, enticing them to make specific purchases.
It is also possible to tailor the subjects and messaging, for instance by changing the message depending on the time of day. So an advert for coffee might say "Hey, wake up!" early in the morning and "Treat yourself to a little break" around lunchtime. Content can also be adapted to the day of the week, e.g. using a countdown.
By linking the digital poster inventory to programmatic booking platforms, ads can also be played in response to specific triggers such as weather or temperature. This focuses the advertising on particularly relevant moments.
Furthermore, digital advertising is a great way to build awareness and trust and enhance a company’s image. Achieving such goals requires extensive reach and contacts, which a 14-day campaign, for example, can deliver.
Transport advertising
In Switzerland, millions of people use public transport such as buses, trams or trains every day, especially in urban centres. Transport advertising enables SMEs to cover specific regions. This is particularly useful for local and regional businesses that want to raise their profile in certain areas. A distinction is made between interior and exterior advertising, i.e. advertising located on the inside and outside of the vehicle respectively.
Interior advertising
The benefits of interior advertising include commuter attention and the all-important repetition effect. Therefore, it is highly probable that passengers who regularly use public transport will see the same advertising several times and will absorb its message.
Common interior formats in buses and trams include hanging displays with or without dispensers and transparent window decals. Some transport companies also offer digital advertising on TrafficMediaScreens. The display duration for analogue interior formats is generally similar to that of poster advertising, while the booking options for screens often match those of DOOH.
In trains, the advertising formats are called RailPoster and RailPosterMidi. These are modelled on F12 and F200 posters and can therefore be ideally combined with these formats. RailPosters can be booked for specific urban railway areas or nationally on all long-distance services.
Exterior advertising
Exterior advertising on buses, trams and trains is a perfect way to raise a company’s profile. Switzerland’s public transport network has an excellent reputation, and advertisers benefit from this reputable environment and positive image. Exterior advertising spaces are big, highly visible and seen by a large number of people, including pedestrians, motorists and other road users.
SMEs benefit from mobile reach and continuous presence. Ads on public transport vehicles travel through multiple regions and so reach a wide range of people within the given catchment area. And with vehicles out and about every day from early morning till late at night, SMEs get to present their messages continuously.
The best-known formats are rear ads and roof strips, with the other option being the full wrap.
For exterior advertising, a display period of four weeks to a whole year is recommended. It may also be possible to book multiple vehicles, depending on area, objectives and availability. If the company has clean vehicles, it may be worthwhile to use this mobile display surface for marketing purposes. This is a relatively cheap solution.
Conclusion
Whether it is offered in the form of advertising posters or digitally, outdoor/out-of-home advertising has a prolonged impact that hardly any other medium can now match. It is present in the physical world and captures the attention of consumers, not only publicising SMEs and their offerings but also keeping them fresh in people’s minds with each posting.
