Out-of-home advertising, once limited to simple posters and billboards, has undergone a massive digital transformation. From mall kiosks to sports stadiums, digital displays are an excellent way to capture attention in a medium with endless potential for creative design.
Let’s face it: few media channels can boast a 2025 glow-up quite like out-of-home. The format that once meant little more than billboards and bus stops has quietly – and now not so quietly – evolved into one of the most dynamic, data-driven parts of the media mix. And, according to Olivia Oshry of the Out of Home Advertising Association of America (OAAA), the numbers back it up.
“We just hit $9bn in revenue for the first time ever,” she tells The Drum. “We’re one of the oldest advertising mediums and we’re still growing.”
That growth, Oshry argues, isn’t just down to habit or nostalgia – it’s driven by performance. At Possible in Miami, the OAAA dropped its latest research in partnership with The Harris Poll, showing just how action-oriented the channel really is. “86% of adults take action after seeing a sit-down restaurant out-of-home ad. One in three people apply after seeing a job recruitment ad. It’s amazing, right?”
Retail media’s cousin
Out-of-home’s resurgence isn’t happening in isolation. As Oshry points out, it’s increasingly aligned with retail media – another of the industry’s favorite new toys. “I don’t want to say retail media and out-of-home are the same, but they are deeply connected,” she says. “What happens inside the store and what happens outside the store – connecting those pieces is where brands are seeing real success.”
She references CVS, a retailer proud of its in-store screens – the kind of digital site that feels more Times Square than toothpaste aisle. It’s a reminder that the definition of out-of-home has expanded far beyond 48-sheets. “It’s almost reductive to say ‘out-of-home is everything,’ but in a way it is. Billboards, transit, airports, street furniture, stadium signage – even The Sphere. It’s anything outside the home.”
Digital transformation, billboard-style
Of course, the digital layer is what’s really powering the boom. “Digital now makes up a third of out-of-home,” says Oshry, adding that programmatic specifically jumped from 15% of spend in 2023 to 24% this year. “That’s a huge leap. If I were a betting woman, I’d say that number’s only going up.
And as other channels face rising concerns around fraud, privacy and content moderation, out-of-home is coming off squeaky clean. “Those issues don’t plague our industry in the same way,” she says. “If you’re a brand trying to reallocate spend, you start looking at channels where you know your message will land – literally.”
Not just brand awareness – performance too
Traditionally, out-of-home’s pitch to marketers has been about scale and visibility. But as Oshry points out, its performance credentials are now just as strong. “We know the medium drives engagement. We know it drives awareness – that’s almost a given. But we also know it drives action.”
The OAAA’s new report looks at categories from job recruitment and real estate to personal care and CPG. “For personal care products, 83% of people took action after seeing an out-of-home ad,” she says. “That’s huge. If I were promoting a product, I’d want to be in this space.”
Big tech meets big posters
Another stat she’s keen to highlight: out-of-home outpaced every other traditional media channel in 2024, including radio, magazines, cable TV and newspapers.
“Apple was our biggest spender last year. But 65% of our industry is still driven by local, so whether you’re one of the biggest brands in the world or a local business, out-of-home works – particularly with all this tech and innovation layered on top.”
This article was written by Gordon Young from The Drum and was legally licensed through the DiveMarketplace by Industry Dive. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.
