A strategic recipe for maximising ROI

The panel discussion on What's the RoI that OOH must deliver to advertiser?’, anchored by Lekshumanan Annamalai, Co-Founder, Coral Media, with Murugan S, CEO, Southern Health Foods, Ranjit Kumar M, Head - Marketing, Digital and E-Commerce, Air India Express, and Himanshu Mehta, Director - Growth Marketing, Beepkart as the discussants, threw light on how to measure RoI from OOH advertising in isolation versus its integration with other media channels.

S Murugan contributed a strategic perspective by emphasising the importance of assessing audience engagement with a specific campaign. He underscored the need to gauge not only whether the audience is talking about the campaign but also the sentiment of those conversations, distinguishing between positive and negative feedback. In navigating the unique landscape of OOH, Murugan highlighted the critical role of strategic creativity, pointing out that with fewer elements, OOH campaigns must possess the capacity to communicate more effectively.

Adding to this, Himanshu Mehta offered valuable insights by emphasising the necessity for clear and specific creatives to avoid visual clutter, ensuring that the audience receives the intended message seamlessly. Murugan further advocated for advertisers to discern the distinct purpose of each media channel, including print, digital, and OOH, and to optimise their reach accordingly.

Ranjith Kumar M shared a practical perspective on the success of OOH campaigns by prioritising regional requirements. He highlighted the positive impact of incorporating vernacular language, local culture, and festivities into advertising endeavours. This approach, termed hyper-local advertising, emerged as a key factor in enhancing audience engagement and campaign effectiveness.

Murugan delved into the intricacies of micro-targeting. He advocated for a keen observation of local populations and the strategic utilisation of residential associations and real estate media, particularly emphasising the effectiveness of such campaigns when centered around a compelling "call to action". Ranjit shared a practical example of utilising promo codes in a residential area focused campaign, providing a tangible method for tracking ROI.

Despite acknowledging the potential of real estate media to reach consumers in smaller towns, Murugan cautioned about its lower overall effectiveness. Himanshu highlighted that print holds the highest effective reach in tier 2 and tier 3 cities, closely followed by OOH. Ranjit supported this perspective, emphasising the immediate ROI and expansive reach offered by print.

In essence, the comprehensive and enlightening discussion emphasised the importance of understanding the unique attributes of each media type, with a particular emphasis on regional nuances and cultural alignment for heightened audience engagement and campaign success.