Testing the Malleability of OOH Media in a Transitional Digital World.
For years outdoor media has remained solid yet stagnant. Time may change but the reliability of a forty-foot poster has rarely been questioned. Without realising it, we are subject to ads in our outdoor life hundreds of times a week. They have become part of our daily commute, local environment and city architecture. But, as we journey further into the digital age, we are no longer accustomed to taking in our surroundings. Instead, we are increasingly more concerned with the world at our fingertips. Since the growth of digital media, outdoor media must work harder to gain the attention of the average consumer. Today billboards must compete with their immediate surroundings, alongside online traffic.
In today’s society, outdoor media is striving to be brighter, bolder and smarter than ever. Traditional billboard sites are being replaced by digital screens on a weekly basis. These screens offer the opportunity for more impressions, many creatives and a mix of ads every minute. So what is the latest step in the plight of OOH (out-of-home) media? Meet the iWalker by GOMO…
The iWalker is a wearable digital communication tool that moves with your audience. The device acts as a harness supporting a large screen above the head of the wearer. It also has speakers pumping music of the companies’ choice to the surrounding crowds. The device is eye-catching and attention-seeking. Used in the right location it represents a hybrid of events based promotion and outdoor media.
The selling point of the iWalker is, at present, the spectacle of it. The device catches the attention and not the eye of crowds, and in return, the device absorbs the data of the crowds. When presented with a scene, the iWalker analyses the situation and obtains data from the surroundings. It has the capacity to do several things, for example, viewer counting. The iWalker can detect all faces in the scene so the number of impressions is reliable and not estimated. It also tracks faces – monitoring how long a face remains in the scene – thus deducing dwell time and attention time. The device can then classify the gender and age of an individual. This means that the post-campaign analytics are tested and reliable thus improving the ROI.
Will the iWalker will prove to be another fad of the media world? Or will it will be as influential as the billboard was? Regardless of opinion, it is pushing the boundaries of outdoor media and offering movement to a static world.
by Louise Barber
