US out of home (OOH) ad spending has recovered to pre-pandemic levels, with digital OOH leading the way in growth rates. A new report [download page] from VIOOH in partnership with MTM finds that advertisers and agencies in the US are expecting to boost their spending on both digital and programmatic OOH, with the latter seeing an expected uptick in usage in the coming year.
Some 46% of the US advertising and agency executives surveyed for the report said they intend to plan, place or buy programmatic OOH in the next 12 months, up from 43% who did so in the previous 12 months. That would put programmatic OOH on par with digital OOH, for which 47% are intending to plan, place or buy in the next year, down from 53% who did so in the past year.
Overall, respondents estimated that over the past 18 months, more than half (56%) of campaigns have included programmatic DOOH, up from 47% who said the same last year. Looking ahead, respondents expect 61% of their campaigns to include programmatic DOOH in the next 18 months.
These OOH formats are benefiting from the opportunities they’re providing advertisers. Some 47% believe that digital OOH is among the media developing the most innovative opportunities for advertisers, while 41% said the same about programmatic DOOH. These ranked 3rd and 8th, respectively, among the 14 media types listed.
The media type offering the most innovative opportunities for respondents is social media, per the report, and this channel can go hand in hand with programmatic DOOH campaigns. In fact, social media is the channel that the largest proportions would consider running alongside programmatic DOOH for both performance and brand-led campaigns.
Advertiser and agency executives project increases in their budgets for both digital OOH and programmatic DOOH formats. Some 21% expect to more than double (101-200% increase) their spending on digital OOH in the next 18 months, and a similar share (20%) expect the same for their programmatic DOOH spend. Meanwhile, a further 72% and 73%, respectively, forecast smaller increases in ad investments in these formats.
Among those who are increasing their budget for programmatic digital OOH, the majority are moving from traditional OOH, though half are adding new budgets.
To get the most out of these plans, virtually all expect to invest in building their programmatic DOOH expertise.
For more, download the report here.
About the Data: The results are based on a survey of 200 advertiser (100) and agency (100) executives in the US.
