99Acres.com looks to rebuild OOH presence

Most
of the online service providers find the OOH medium to be the best
platform for communication strategy since their target audience is
always on the go for personal or professional reasons. As such, real
estate business goes well with the OOH medium as most of house hunting
and site visits happen in the outdoors. Says Sumeet, “OOH medium plays a
significant role for local marketing campaigns. This medium very well
supports the 360 degree campaigns which include other medium
communication platforms and also it performs effectively for call to
action motive campaigns. However, it lacks the potential as a
stand-alone medium.

There’s more to the copy

Limited
site space, short duration to interact with the audience, competition
and the general clutter in the outdoor space are a few points that 99
acres.com considers while creating the OOH copy. The brand engages
different creative agencies for different works so that each one can do
their work in a unique way.

Sumeet says, “From the creative point
of view, we always try to catch the eyeballs. The creative must capture
the attention of frequently moving crowd on the roads. Also, we put
efforts to make the creative clutter-breaking since other competitor
brands are available on the OOH space as well. We endeavour to standout
without getting encumbered.

Everywhere but not anywhere

Well,
for a real estate brand, each location is essential but it is important
to go with a plan. Therefore, the brand has categorized different sets
of locations to target their prospect clients. As Sumeet explains:

•  
 The brand selects sites near few construction projects because
audience visits such places so it is essential to be visible.
•  
 Next preferred locations for the brand are upcoming residential
colonies like Noida, Noida Extension, Noida Expressway and Gurgaon.
•  
 Also, the brand considers arterial roads, hotspot hubs like commercial
places and their entries and exits, malls, theatre and retail markets
crucial from the branding perspective since people in large numbers
visit such locations.

Execution is the challenge

Even
if the planning goes well, the execution part can be a challenge.
Sumeet explains that it becomes difficult to get all identified sites at
the same time to roll out a campaign at one go. “Another big issue is
the impact of bad weather on the prints — sites gets ragged and
re-prints cost a huge amount.

Constant checks

To
ensure the monitoring of campaign sites, brands deploy their own staff
other than the monitoring support offered by the media owner and agency.
“We do get timely reports from our OOH specialist agency. However we
have our internal team and huge sales team employees who are out
constantly for meetings so they also keep updating with the sites
conditions, says Sumeet.

Where other dot-com brands have made
constant appearances on outdoor, 99Acres.com has a calibrated approach
to the medium. Sumeet confirms that OOH will be an integral part of the
brand’s communications plan.