MANILA, FEBRUARY 11, 2013 – Philippine outdoor advertising authority Bing Kimpo is set to join an impressive lineup of speakers from all over the world at the Digital Signage Expo 2013, taking place February 26 to March 1 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. He will be sharing insights on "Obstacles and Opportunities: An Overview of Emerging Asian DOOH Markets".
Kimpo is a founding director of the Outdoor Media Advocacy Group – composed of out-of-home media industry operators which aim to reform the outdoor advertising industry and champion OOH as a vehicle for public service. He is the chief executive officer of consultancy Bing Kimpo Media | Communications, servicing clients in the Philippines and abroad.
He shares: "I’ve been attending the regional Digital Signage World Asia conferences over the last few years. But this is my first time to attend Digital Signage Expo, which is much, much larger in terms of attendance and coverage. The opportunity to learn more about OOH from a global perspective, and to then distill it for Philippine application is one truly exciting prospect."
adobo spoke to Kimpo about the present and future state of digital outdoor advertising – an old media currently enjoying growth brought about by the digital revolution.
Currently, what are the biggest trends/innovations in digital signage in Asia? In the Philippines?
KIMPO: The trend that we are seeing most here in the Philippines, reflective of the global industry, is the increasing number of digital display screens. In Metro Manila, screens have begun to sprout everywhere: on EDSA, in buses, in retail establishments, etc.
OOH operators have now also begun to invest in large-format outdoor screens in San Fernando, Santa Rosa, Cebu, Bacolod and Davao. All airports and seaports nationwide have screens in them as well.
What are the main challenges facing the industry at the moment? Opportunities?
KIMPO: The main challenge lies in truly understanding and delivering on the potential for Digital Out-Of-Home. Beyond video display and motion graphics, DOOH holds potential time- and place-based interactivity, particularly in tandem with mobile.
Zooming out, the challenge – and opportunity – lies in being able to rethink the role of OOH in our media and marketing plans, particularly now that it is increasing enabled by technology.
What should we expect from the digital signage and DOOH market in 2013?
KIMPO: The OOH operators have taken the first step by rolling out inventory. As they do so, I expect a lot of experimentation by advertisers to take place.
The elections should also be a factor in a couple of ways: 1) some brands may look into rising above the clutter by more aggressively toying with DOOH; or 2) candidate campaigns may themselves prove the validity of DOOH, just as they did transit advertising in 2010.
What will it take to grow the industry further?
KIMPO: Education is the first, all-too-important step.
We have to understand what DOOH can do for us and integrate this right at the start of the planning process, assigning it its own deliverables, and allowing it to work with the rest of media. We have to understand OOH better, because most likely, as we are reading this post, we are doing so in an out-of-home environment.
How do you measure success in DOOH?
KIMPO: Like anything else, advertising via DOOH should be measured against the deliverable set for it during the planning stage.
Enabled by tech, OOH can now deliver so much: from awareness, to interaction, to transaction. Is the advertising objective just about knowing that a certain product or service exists? Or is it about pointing the audience toward the direction of the establishment that offers it? Or is it about encouraging visitors to share with friends that they have arrived at that particular spot at a particular time? Or is it about inviting the audience to download a media file, or SMS a code?
What do you need for DOOH to do and deliver? That’s what you measure its success against.
