Why DSP usability is key to programmatic Digital Out of Home

Article by Remi Roques, GM Broadsign APAC.

It’s no secret that the introduction of digital technology has transformed the outdoor media industry. For the last decade, Out-of-Home (OOH) media has been on a global growth streak, fast on track to becoming one of the strongest performing sectors within the advertising space.

The speed of revolution is not slowing down. We now have programmatic Digital Out-of-Home (pDOOH) ad tech that takes everything that makes Digital OOH great and automates it, all while adding extra layers of data streams, flexible campaign messaging, and audience targeting and retargeting.

In simple terms, pDOOH is the automated buying, selling, and delivery of Outdoor advertising. The process begins with the advertiser, who uses a Demand Side Platform (DSP) to connect to an online ad exchange, inputting their targeting and audience requirements. Using a Supply Side Platform (SSP), the publishers can offer their inventory to a range of buyers on the open exchange. Advertisers can bid for that inventory, often in real-time transactions, using the DSP.

There are many different types of DSP offerings including regional, open, business accounts, omni-channel, online, TV, and more. A quick internet search will show you that there is a breadth of DSPs currently available on the market – and that’s exactly the way it should be. As best practice, the industry should encourage the development of as many different types of DSPs as possible to ensure that there will always be a solution that meets the needs of each particular advertiser.

Where you can run into trouble is with a specific DSP itself. If a DSP is not built to purpose, or is too complicated to use, then it’s not actually helpful to anyone – advertisers, or publishers. This is true both for online advertising, where programmatic first arose, and in the world of pDOOH. In short, the usability of the DSP is key.

Partnering with a DSP allows advertisers to extend their campaign reach by tapping into Digital OOH (DOOH) with the same ease as they would with traditional online advertising. Through the DSP, the advertiser can book multiple screens across a range of publishers via one central point of access while also having the ability to augment their social, mobile, and online campaigns.

Clients can choose between a self-serve system, or managed services to best suit their needs. There are no creative deadlines, and advertisers can be active in the market within minutes. Campaign tracking has full overview and flexibility so the advertiser can make changes in real time, stop or start at any time, track spend, and monitor ad plays and audience impressions using the real-time dashboard.

Broadsign has built its  own DSP called Campsite, designed specifically for DOOH. Created with the intention of demonstrating a center of excellence, Campsite works by combining usability with complete SSP integration for better agency experience.

Campsite works across a number of different environments that provide  targeted audience solutions, including large format outdoor billboards, street furniture, restaurants, office towers, health clinics, shopping malls, and more. With full control over real-time campaign management, advertisers can make changes to their campaigns at any time while making use of Campsite’s mobile data and geotargeting tools to find the screens that best reach their target  audience.

Campsite is no ordinary or generic DSP. Number one in Canadian and US markets, the Campsite solution will soon be available in the APAC region, starting with Australia.

One of the great features about programmatic buying platforms, or DSPs, is that it opens up the playing field to smaller companies who may not have been able to purchase OOH media before. As an example, Campsite was able to deliver amazing results to a microbrewery client with a $200 budget who achieved a 12.8% increase in foot traffic.

Get in touch today to learn  more about the Broadsign DSP offering, and build your own success story.