Industry experts say hyperlocal content will gain more prominence as people are mostly confined to their homes and are venturing out only in the neighbourhood After three months of lockdown, the nation is finally in the unlocking stage, which is indeed a big relief for the Out of Home (OOH) ecosystem. In the post lockdown environment, according to industry experts, hyperlocal content will gain more prominence as people are mostly confined to their homes and are venturing out only in the neighbourhood. Hyperlocal content has the ability to target a niche audience in a specific geographical location be it a particular neighbourhood, supermarket, local recreational park, and so on. These OOH inventories have the ability to impact consumers on a personal level. Hyperlocal OOH content can curate personalised creatives based on the locality to make it more appealing. This will instill a sense of brand recall in the mind of the consumer. These customised creatives will help brands revive their businesses and provide them with an impactful ROI, say experts. According to Atul Shrivastava, CEO, Laqshya Media Group, in the present circumstances, hyperlocal content has garnered great importance. “People want to know what is happening around them. OOH is one of the two media (along with digital) best suited for hyperlocal content. OOH as a medium allows the advertiser brand to customise campaigns locally to deliver messages relevant to that area, instead of splashing one campaign over large areas like conventional mass media. Post COVID, brands will try to reserve cash. So, detailed planning and hyperlocal campaigns that ride with supply chains and retail restoration will be definitely beneficial for the brands in relation to cost and ROI,” shares Shrivastava. Anjum Tanwar, Vice President, Brandscope, says in the ‘attention economy’ era, brands tend to go above and beyond making an impact on the consumer’s mind. “While advertising to the masses may seem to be the logical plan towards building brand awareness, it is important to prioritise your local consumers as well. There was a time we only considered inserts, banners and small print ads to gain visibility.But today we are talking about precise location targeting through sharply defined marketing techniques called hyperlocal marketing," remarked Tanwar. As marketers now have access to abundant data regarding the purchasing behaviour of consumers, brands are leveraging geo-location and contextual information to target consumers in the right place at the right time. Tanwar commented, “Hyperlocal OOH advertising aims to do just this by moving away from traditional mass-market adverts to highly specific, geographically restricted ads. Using locally relevant information such as a local event, traffic or weather can be extremely powerful in connecting with a community or a neighbourhood.” “Digitally native brands are increasingly investing in OOH. By tapping into location data, AI and Machine Learning, marketers can now spot patterns that lead to a better understanding of the consumer’s mindset, and where, when, and how to reach them most effectively. Out-of-home advertising has proven once again that not only can it capture the attention of the masses but also those of local communities and towns. This makes it a powerful branding tool for hyperlocal advertising," stated Tanwar. Upinder Singh, Project Director, Edge1 Outdoor Media Management Software, shares, “Many people are no longer heading to work, and are taking to their neighborhoods just as often, if not more. So, this is a crucial time for brands to stay active in the public space. Audience movements may have shrunk, which is for the best, but people are still active and perhaps, more engaged than ever. Now more than ever, brands have a chance to show solidarity with their local audiences and reach them on a more personal, communal, and united front.” Singh adds, “As this becomes the new normal for OOH, brands should focus on impactful encounters in hyperlocal areas and neighbourhoods that align brand objectives with business outcomes. Because local brands generally have more budget limitations than the bigger players in the market, they must invest their advertising budgets more strategically, focusing solely on the most effective channels. For many local brands, this means investing in hyperlocal media to get immediately in front of a local, relevant audience.”