Remi du Preez | Managing Director | Polygon | mail me |
As fans take the action beyond the stands, Digital Out-Of-Home (DOOH) gives brands a way to become part of the game-day experience.
We all love the vibe of game day – everyone in their team jerseys, bars and restaurants pumping, the braai sizzling, the socials going off. Everybody is in a good mood and discussing tactics like they’re Rassie’s best friend. By the time the players walk on the field, the game has already been going on for hours.
Following fans beyond the stadium
For marketers, everything that happens around the match is becoming just as important as what happens inside the stadium. Sport has always had a remarkable ability to bring people together, arms flung across shoulders as we cheer Cheslin across the try line. What has changed is our ability to reach those fans throughout the day. That journey runs from the build-up with friends to the walk to the stadium, the fan zone and the post-match celebrations or commiserations.
Big games also change the way people move, with fans using public transport or walking further. For marketers, those movements create even more ways to reach people beyond the stadium. The opportunity, then, is to follow the fans rather than simply surround the venue. Out-of-home (OOH) has always played a role in sports marketing, but the growth of digital screens has given brands far more flexibility in how they use it.
Instead of one message sitting in one place, a campaign can evolve wherever people are. It can build anticipation before kick-off and react to the action as it happens. DOOH is rewriting the rules by allowing brands to move beyond static sports advertising. It gives marketers a more flexible way to follow fans throughout their game-day journey.
Turning live action into brand engagement
DOOH is particularly useful here. It opens up exciting opportunities for brands who want to tap into the buzz around sport without the major price tag of a traditional sponsorship. The technology now allows creatives to change in near real time. As a result, the message people see can reflect what is actually happening on the field.
During game-day activations we have conducted, for example, it takes approximately 30 seconds after a goal or try for the updated score to appear across our network. The score can then reach audiences in any location across South Africa.
DOOH also gives brands the chance to tell a story across the day. The message someone sees on their way to watch the game can be different from the one they see after a goal. It can also differ again after the final whistle. That makes DOOH less of a backdrop to the event and more of a live part of the fan adventure.
It can also complement broadcast rather than compete with it. While television commands attention during the match, DOOH keeps the conversation going. Together, they give brands a presence across far more of the day.
Planning DOOH as part of the experience
Making that work requires marketers to think about game day as one experience. Sports marketing is still fragmented, with media, activations and broadcast often handled by separate teams or agencies. As a result, DOOH can end up being treated as another media buy rather than a way to connect with fans.
Bringing DOOH into the planning earlier gives brands more scope to use changing creative and event-related messaging as the action unfolds. Polygon’s Urban Takeovers puts that approach into practice. It uses DOOH across areas that become busy around major events rather than concentrating activity around a single venue.
By tapping into thousands of digital screens across malls, forecourts, lifestyle venues and roadways, brands can build a city-wide presence around hotspots. This approach allows them to engage fans wherever the wider event experience takes them. DOOH is rewriting the rules because it allows marketers to think beyond the stadium itself. Instead, brands can connect multiple locations and moments into one continuous game-day experience.
Extending the opportunity beyond major matches
The opportunity also goes beyond the biggest matches. Whether an event is national or hyper-local, centred on sport, music or culture, it draws an audience with a common interest in a particular place for a limited period.
With so much sport competing for fans’ attention, brands will need to experiment with new ways to engage them and build loyalty. Wherever people come together around something they care about, DOOH can give marketers a dynamic way to reach them.
Ultimately, DOOH is rewriting the rules of sports and event marketing. It gives brands the flexibility to respond to live moments, follow audiences and remain part of the conversation throughout the day.
