How many consumers respond to out-of-home marketing? AudienceSCAN, powered by AdMall, reports it’s about 27%. And a new report points to the power of the format when marketers run joint OOH and social campaigns.

What is the paradox of social media marketing?

There's a reason the OOH advertising influence increases in conjunction with a social media campaign. And it's all about the paradox of social media. The latest PosterScope and OceanOutdoor research digs into how out-of-home advertising can influence social media engagement with respect to marketers. The Point of Social report was commissioned by out-of-home operators and included 1,000 consumers between the ages of 18 and 65.

The intent of the report was to compare how consumers engage with social media when they’re at home versus when they’re away from home. The findings show that consumers use social media less when they are out and about, exactly when analysts encourage marketers to make posts. Analysts state that consumer engagement with posts is “11% lower during the day.” 

This fact should concern your accounts and prompt them to change strategies. Sprout Social reports that the highest engagement with a social ad takes place within one to three hours after posting. Analysts also have opinions about the best days of the week and time of day to post.

Sprout Social data suggests that marketers should post on Tuesdays and Wednesdays between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. to generate the most engagement. In their research, they counted reactions, comments, shares, and clicks as engagement. Sprout Social analysts also report that Sunday is a social dead zone, perhaps because consumers make the conscious decision to unplug.

How do consumers use social media at home?

In-home social media use is often about passing time. And these passive use time periods coincide with time spent alone — time when users engage with xsocial posts. They are more likely to comment, share and click. Because of this increased engagement, your accounts may want to consider scheduling posts to go live in the early evening.

How do consumers use social media away from home?

Social media use during the day is “outcome driven.” Users are seeking specific content such as getting “inspiration for things to do.” They may be out with friends, coworkers or family members. They don’t have time to slow down and comment on a post. And they may not notice your accounts' posts and ads.

How out-of-home marketing supports social media

However, out-of-home marketing can boost engagement with social media. In particular, consumers under age 35 show more “dwell time” with social ads if they’ve first seen an OOH ad. Researchers measured this effect through eye-tracking studies. The dwell time is all about how long they focus on an ad.

Beyond dwell time, consumers also demonstrated brand memorability. Their brand recollection is the result of seeing both OOH and then social ads.

Finally, researchers noted increased sales and market share when marketers implemented ad campaigns that included both OOH and social media.

How to Target Accounts with Local OOH Pitches

If you’re selling OOH advertising, you can pitch your accounts on supporting their social ads with a campaign on billboards or transit furniture. You likely know that 65% of the OOH ad spend is done by local marketers. That spending amounted to $6.2B in 2025.

As you review which accounts are most promising for your out-of-home marketing pitch, the Outdoor Advertising Association of America points to:

• Local services/amusements
• Retail
• Media
• Public transportation/hotels/resorts
• Government
• Restaurants

Consumers are checking out messages by the local burger place on a billboard as they drive by. They notice the place-based ad in the mall that touts a holiday deal being offered by the local jeweler.

The local services category holds promise too. These accounts range from health care services such as hospitals to legal services to HVAC service providers.

For many younger consumers, the next step after an OOH exposure may be to check out the establishment on social media. Your accounts should be supporting their OOH placements with social media messages and ads.

Which consumers comprise the OOH audience?

AudienceSCAN reports that 27% of U.S. adults took action after seeing an OOH ad in the last month. One of the most popular actions (43%) is to click an online ad.

Which audiences tend to be most active in responding to OOH ads? AudienceSCAN has the answer. Home shoppers, whether it’s a primary or second home, are a strong category. In addition, powersports equipment shoppers report a higher-than-average response rate. And in-store medical clinic patients over-index for their response to OOH ads.

AudienceSCAN data shows that several other types of businesses can benefit from targeting consumers who respond to OOH advertising. For example, 23% of these adults plan to take up a new hobby this year. That detail will interest your retail craft and hobby accounts.

Around 20% will learn a new career skill, which means they might sign up for a course at a local college. And 17% are thinking about getting a new pet.

How to position advertising for seasonality

Remind your accounts to invest in out-of-home marketing, along with social media posts, when they have the highest need to generate more revenue. The OAAA reports that for restaurants, the highest ad spend is in January. This month may coincide with when these establishments want to attract consumers who splurged over the holidays or who don’t want to venture outside in bad weather. With a subscription to AdMall, you can see the peak business months for around 400 verticals.

Conclusion

Marketers must be active in multiple channels to be noticed. When they combine out-of-home marketing with social media posts, they can capture more business.

Image by Gianfranco Marotta on Pexels.