Proving Out of Home Works:
Insights from Wave 1
of OOHMAA’s 24-Month Study 

WHAT DOES ‘GOOD’ OUT OF HOME LOOK LIKE? 

It’s a question we hear time and time again from advertisers and agencies looking to understand the real impact of their Out of Home campaigns. While Out of Home is well known for building mass reach and brand impact, in today’s data-driven marketing world, brands want more than just impressions; they want proof. They need to know if their campaigns are working, why, and how to optimise them. 

That’s why OOHMAA has launched a 24-month research study, moving beyond perceptions to provide real, data-backed insights into how Out of Home delivers results. This isn’t just about proving effectiveness; it’s about defining what success looks like, what works and why. By tracking real campaigns over multiple waves, we aim to equip advertisers with a clear roadmap for maximising brand impact through Out of Home. 

WHY THIS STUDY MATTERS

With marketing budgets under increasing pressure, the focus on efficiency and effectiveness has never been greater. Global marketing experts, including Peter Field and System1, consistently highlight the importance of brand-building for long-term success. Yet, in an era of short-term performance metrics, many brands struggle to justify investment in awareness-driven media like Out of Home. 

OOHMAA’s 24-month study directly addresses this challenge. By tracking campaign performance over 12 waves, this research will measure key effectiveness metrics and uncover valuable learnings. Partnering with FiftyFive5, the study follows the ‘Drive’ framework, evaluating awareness, consideration, brand perception, and action, providing a clear picture of how Out of Home influences each outcome. 

ABOUT THE STUDY 

Every two months, four Out of Home campaigns are selected across different categories, formats, and objectives. Some operate as stand-alone Out of Home campaigns, while others are part of a broader media mix. This allows us to explore different strategies and provide advertisers with practical case studies. 

For objectivity, all campaigns remain anonymous. Instead, they are categorised using a range of filters, ensuring insights focus on strategic learnings rather than specific creative or campaign executions. The first wave, conducted in Q4 2024, examined campaigns from grocery, FMCG, QSR, and telco brands, using both digital and classic formats. The goal is to track performance while identifying patterns and best practices that brands and agencies can apply. 

What we are measuring 

The study will share findings over the course of 24 months on: 

  • Total campaign recall and brand attribution to understand visibility and recognition. 

  • Creative effectiveness, including attention, engagement, and emotional response. 

  • Brand impact, covering awareness, positivity, relevance, purchase intent, and purchase behaviour. 

  • Out of Home campaign elements, such as format mix, media weight, time in market, and geographic spread. 

  • Other media channels used will allow us to examine how Out of Home interacts with other media channels, assessing the optimal mix and investment levels to maximise ROI, enhance brand impact, and uncover the media multiplier effect, ensuring advertisers can make data-driven decisions for more effective campaigns. 

Over time, these data points will be compiled into a rich dataset, building industry-wide benchmarks that help advertisers optimise their Out of Home campaigns. 

WAVE 1 LEARNINGS: EARLY TRENDS EMERGING 

While it’s still early days, and hard to share specifics without longitudinal data, some interesting insights have already surfaced from the first wave: 

1. The Power of Consistency 

Campaigns using long-established brand codes performed strongly in recall and brand attribution. In contrast, a bold, creatively striking campaign that introduced new brand codes struggled to drive immediate brand recognition—suggesting that audiences take time to connect new visual identities with a brand. Meanwhile, a more traditional execution, though creatively simple, delivered strong results. 

Recommendation: Stick to recognisable brand codes for fast brand recognition in Out of Home. If evolving them, accept that it takes time— more than one campaign is required to see results. 

2. Balancing Brand & Promotional Messaging 

In this wave, brand messaging received a lower share of total campaign spend, with a heavier focus on price and deals—likely due to the study running in the Q4 retail period. Despite this, brand-led creatives still performed well, reinforcing the importance of long-term brand investment alongside short-term sales activations. 

Recommendation: Don’t neglect brand-building, even during peak retail periods. Maintaining a strong brand foundation ensures that future retail campaigns start from a higher base, amplifying their impact. This is the Long and Short of it in action—it’s not about choosing between the two but leveraging both for sustained success. 

3. Emotional Engagement Drives Results 

Emotion matters in Out of Home. This study showed that emotional engagement correlates directly with consideration—an important indicator of future sales. However, if a campaign is emotive but poorly branded, those positive gains don’t translate to the brand. 

Recommendation: Ask yourself: Does this creative spark a strong emotion? Whether it’s excitement, warmth, or even surprise, emotional campaigns are memorable. But make sure those emotions link back to the brand. 

4. Creative Clarity Matters 

While attention-grabbing creative is crucial, more conceptually complex campaigns struggled to translate engagement into higher brand consideration or positive sentiment. Simplicity and clarity remain vital in Out of Home, ensuring that messages are quickly understood in high-traffic environments. 

Recommendation: Less is more, and consider the high frequencies traditionally delivered through Out of Home. It is not a one-hit conversation.

WHAT’S NEXT? 

As the study progresses, we’ll continue tracking trends, refining our benchmarks, and delivering valuable insights to advertisers. The ultimate goal is to equip brands with the knowledge they need to maximise the impact of Out of Home - ensuring their campaigns not only capture attention but also drive meaningful brand and sales outcomes. 

With Wave 2 now underway, we’re expanding our study to include the Alcohol and Travel categories, building on the insights uncovered so far. OOHMAA remains dedicated to demonstrating the true power of Out of Home, and we’re excited to share how the findings evolve. Stay tuned as we continue shaping New Zealand’s most comprehensive Out of Home effectiveness study!