The end of year Posterwatch report by PML Group indicates that the out of home (OOH) sector grew by six per cent in 2014, representing the best performance for the medium since 2007. The report lists finance as the medium’s top performing category for the year. It increased its display value by 34 per cent, driven mainly by bank and insurance campaigns. AIB and its EBS building society subsidiary were the most active banks on outdoor. Insurance companies were also well represented in the category by brands such as Zurich, Laya Healthcare and Aviva. The top three categories for the year are completed by telecoms and tourism and travel.
Although the final quarter of the year was the quietest in 2014, the growth achieved in the first half of the year in particular was strong enough to deliver six per cent growth rate by end of year. When it comes to individual advertisers, Mondeléz, Diageo and McDonald’s made up the top three in terms of display value. The confectionery category as a whole was up by over 15 per cent with the Mondeléz display value up by 22 per cent on 2013. It is the first time since 2008 that Diageo has not been the top ooh advertiser for a calendar year. As a category, beer and cider was in eight position and represented only 5.5 per cent of spend.
A changing feature of the OOH sector over the past five years is the growing relevance of digital formats. Digital OOH formats, such as dPods in shopping malls, represented 8.4 per cent of all display value. The figure in 2013 was 5.1 per cent. Commenting on the report, Colum Harmon, marketing director, PML Group said out of home made a comeback last year. “We’re back in growth again, which is a great start,” Harmon told Marketing.ie . “Technology is changing the medium in many ways. Our challenge now is to fully realise the opportunities this offers. There’s a lot to be positive about for out of home.”
