Merge OOH and experiential if you want maximum impact
Opinion
Many brands still separate OOH and experiential budgets and agencies. It’s time to combine these channels to maximise creativity, leverage data and drive real return on investment.
Experiential marketing and creative OOH have transformed the way brands connect with people in public spaces.
Immersive hubs like Outernet in central London, tech-forward pop-ups like Future Stores on Oxford Street and digital OOH (DOOH) screens across malls and high streets aren’t just media slots anymore — they’re brand experience hubs.
Today, audiences can interact, linger and engage with brands at scale. From special-build installations and augmented reality-enabled bus shelters to 3D animations at Piccadilly Lights, these spaces are blurring the line between OOH and experiential.
Yet many brands still separate OOH and experiential budgets, agencies and even teams. By keeping these channels apart, they’re missing the chance to merge them into something far more impactful.
It’s time to rethink this approach and combine these channels to maximise creativity, leverage data and drive real return on investment.
The case for a combined strategy
Blending OOH with experiential isn’t just clever — it’s transformative.
OOH offers brands the broad reach they need, while experiential provides direct engagement. Together, they create powerful, shareable moments that amplify brand impact.
For example, McVitie’s recent launch of Jaffa Cakes cola bottle flavour with Grand Visual featured an interactive billboard in Brixton, where passers-by pulled levers to receive samples.
The campaign went viral, showcasing how combined OOH and experiential can captivate audiences and generate social buzz.
Blurring the line between ‘communication’ and ‘experience’
Experiential traditionally leans on direct interaction, but OOH is evolving beyond just broadcasting messages; it’s creating immersive touchpoints.
Imagine a photo booth activation at Westfield. Instead of competing with other activations in the space, merging the experience with DOOH screens would take it to another level.
Screens could drive footfall to the site and photos taken could appear across displays throughout the mall. This turns a simple set-up into a multisensory journey that leaves a lasting impression.
The ROI advantage
The financial case for merging OOH with experiential is strong. Today’s OOH sites are equipped with built-in tech — cameras, gesture controls, QR tracking — so experiential campaigns can tap into this infrastructure without additional cost. This approach reduces the burden on experiential budgets while improving data capture, efficiency and measurement.
Beyond tech efficiencies, a combined approach enables precise, data-driven targeting.
OOH agencies bring invaluable audience insights — like Route metrics and behavioural analysis — that allow brands to track how audiences move through cities, placing activations exactly where they’ll have the greatest impact at the right time.
Advanced screens equipped with cameras can even go further, capturing not only the number of interactions but also breaking down audience demographics and, crucially, assessing emotional responses to the experience.
For marketers, this data is pure gold: it ensures every marketing pound is invested in high-impact locations and provides clear proof points that the activation achieved its intended results.
Why now?
Brands that start integrating OOH and experiential will set the pace in 2025. As more companies realise that a joined-up approach unlocks creativity, optimises resources and enhances audience engagement, the market will shift in favour of integrated campaigns.
Event spaces are levelling up with immersive capabilities and OOH is becoming more interactive — it’s clear the two are converging and brands that lean in to this will reap the rewards.
So merging OOH and experiential isn’t just a smart use of resources; it’s the future of public brand interaction. Brands that embrace this convergence today will not only capture attention, they’ll shape the way audiences engage with brands in years to come.
Jay Young is managing director at Grand Visual