Are brands still focused on their out of home marketing campaigns now that online advertising is given more attention? Yes, is the answer- and it seems that these are becoming more innovative than ever before.

We were recently intrigued by one of the latest outdoor marketing campaigns from online luxury retail giant, Net-a-porter. From the beginning of this week until the final week in August, the company will be displaying their global sales as they happen, at Canary Wharf’s Ocean Outdoors Screen. This is an extension of the brand’s “Live” feature on their website, which charts the current number of online shoppers, their locations, and which items they have added to their shopping bags. Although a very simple concept, it taps into our deepest desires and curiosity when it comes to what our fellow shoppers are purchasing, from where, and when. Developed by PSI and Havas Media International in association with Liveposter, this out-of-home campaign fuses Net-a-porter’s digital presence with offline, adding exposure for the company and its products. Immediately, we were struck with the fact that this will surely speak to female shoppers everywhere, presenting them with an array of “must have” items, and fueling a drive to shop!

In recent times, one of the most clever and innovative outdoor campaigns we’ve seen is from British Airways and their “The Magic of Flying” initiative, late last year. In conjunction with OgilvyOne, the airline featured two billboards underneath the flight path to Heathrow- one in Chiswick, and one in Piccadilly Circus. The displays featured a child, who, each time a plane flew overhead, would point in its direction. Next to this, viewers would be able to see the details of exactly which flight had passed by, with words reading, “Look, it’s flight BA475 from Barcelona”, for example.

While static outdoor campaigns such as Net-a-porter’s can be effective in their simplicity, we’re seeing brands more eager to create interactive ones which draw upon some form of mobile or digital involvement. In fact, the popularity in fusing out of home with digital is probably responsible for an increase in ad spend in this area- latest figures exceed 1 billion for this year alone. Earlier this year for instance, Nokia engaged fans with a great outdoor campaign, displayed at London’s Westfield shopping centre. The mobile company displayed tweets from its Twitter account on the big screen with accompanying images of notable landmarks. Viewers were then asked to use their smartphones to tweet their guesses with the chance of winning a Lumia 1020 camera. McDonald’s are another who have encouraged participation through their out of home campaigns. Back in March, the company created “Little Piccadilly” at Piccadilly Circus, which implored users to generate their own content to be displayed onscreen. Through a specially created microsite, LittlePicca.com, users were able to create a cartoon character and send it to the screen in hopes of getting it featured. It’s clear that whether brands choose non-interactive methods or feature a call-to-action, out of home campaigns are still relied upon for aiding exposure, awareness, and driving sales.

Do you find outdoor marketing campaigns to be effective? And do you think they successfully boost a brand’s image as well as driving sales? We’d love to hear your thoughts as always, so please tweet to us @PracticeDigital, and share your comments on our Facebook page.