Kinetic’s Future of OOH Report: What type of OOH interaction is best?
The key to unlocking successful mass-market poster-to-mobile campaigns will depend largely on the mechanism used to exchange data.
Systems that can deliver data instantly as consumers pass or touch their handset to a surface could become viable in low-dwell time but accessible locations. Others that require a deliberate pause or a more time consuming action only have a future in high-dwell time locations.
Of course, interactive poster campaigns are already common. QR codes – a visual matrix barcode readable by camera phones which deliver a text message, URL or other data – have been used in static Out of Home campaigns in the UK as well as other media and on product packaging.
QR codes
Most mobile handset brands also offer users QR code reader apps to download for free.
While so far QR codes use in the UK has not matched levels in countries such as Japan, awareness and understanding of this technology is rising fast, as smartphone usage accelerates and we become more familiar with interactive technologies.
- 44% say they have seen a QR code image before
- 13% are not sure
- 43% are sure they have not
- only 39% think they know what to do with it
- 37% of people think QR codes could be useful to them
- 35% are still not sure
Kinetic’s recent research indicates that nearly half of us have seen a QR code in situ and that 12% have actually used one – 20% among 18-24s. Most of these have been used on a product and in a media context (both 41%).
Things people would like to get from QR codes:
- Get more information on the brand or product (49%)
- Get a voucher for the brand (49%)
- Take you to the website of the brand (42%)
- Get access to exclusive content (26%)
- Get directions to the shop or company (20%)
- View a video or make the advert interactive (12%)
Bluetooth
Bluetooth, the proprietary open wireless technology standard, for exchanging data over short distances has also been used in a number of interactive poster campaigns, but again the technology requires consumers to have activated their Bluetooth signal and actively participate, and, unlike text messaging, proactively using Bluetooth to receive data, has not become a commonplace activity.
Texting
In contrast, posters carrying a promotional mobile phone text number have been used in a large number of campaigns and are an established part of the landscape. With consumers in the UK sending 11 million text messages an hour (Mobile Data Association), it’s easy to see why texting has become the default choice for poster campaigns carrying a direct response mechanism.
While UK consumers use text messaging in vast numbers, it’s likely that it will continue to be used in conjunction with static posters. However, other established and newer technologies offer the prospect of far richer and more seamless poster-to-mobile interaction.
Mobile transmitter nodes
The installation of mobile transmitter nodes for specific mobile operators into posters would enable mobile brands to reach subscribers with offers relevant to the visual creative being delivered. Mobile signals could also be used by mobile brand operators to identify their customers when they approach a site and selectively target consumers with promotions.
Wi-Fi
Meanwhile, the growth of Wi-Fi in public spaces raises the prospect of web-based interaction. As technology costs fall, the prospect of Wi-Fi hot spots being installed in sites with high dwell times such as bus stops, at train stations or airports, seems logical.
Using a Wi-Fi enabled poster as a gateway sign-posting the opportunity to access exclusive content, a new App or a money-off promotion for a nearby retailer could create a hugely lucrative connection between the Out of Home sector and online revenues.
Recent research suggests that the volume of traffic to websites from mobile devices increased from 0.002% in September 2009 to 8.09% in January 2011, and iPhone traffic accounts for 4.5% of all UK website traffic (Source: Tecmark).
4G
The arrival of 4G smartphones, the successor to third generation of cellular wireless standards that drives most handsets currently in use, promises to transform the experience of the mobile web by delivering broadband to handsets. 4G therefore opens up the capacity for delivering richer interactive communications to smart-phone users and will significantly speed up the transfer of data and improve the user experience.
For the full report, click here.