Although Q3 of 2016 turned out to be a disappointment, Out of Home’s (OOH) recent impressive performance has resulted in a 7% growth rate so far in 2016, according to OOH agency PML Group.
The specialist Outdoor company has just produced its third quarterly market review for the current year. The report indicates that a flat Q3 was more than off-set by a vibrant first half of 2016.
Retail is the biggest spending category on OOH for 2016 to date. The bulk of this category spend has come from the supermarket/convenience store sector. This specific sub-category has increased its display value by 94% on the same period in 2015. Campaigns visible on-street across Q3 includes Centra’s ‘Live Every Day’, Tesco’s F&F clothing range and Lidl GAA activity.
The Finance category remains one of the largest investors in OOH media in Ireland. This includes the banking and insurance industries. Both these sub-categories were highly visible in Q3 and throughout 2016. The health insurance market was shaken up with the launch of Irish Life Health and the new brand featured on OOH in cycle 19. Both Laya and Vhi also appeared on Outdoor formats during Q3.
Films have increased their investment on the medium by more than 15%. Movies that have made a mark on OOH in Q3 include Ghostbusters, The BFG and Finding Dory. They are also the second highest spending category on Digital OOH (DOOH), behind only the Health & Hygiene sector. This would include cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and toiletries. Spend on DOOH in 2016 is up by more than 30%.
Formats that have proven popular among advertisers in 2016 include backlit 48 Sheet and 96 Sheet panels, bus T-Sides and Supersides and Digital OOH screens such as dPod, iVision and Green Screen.
According to Colum Harmon, marketing director PML Group: “Q3 was a slight disappointment after a very healthy six months for the medium. However, it held its own compared to last year and overall this year has been good. More new digital opportunities and further enhancement of the ‘classic’ OOH product was noteworthy in the quarter also. Things looks set for a strong end of year.”
