Guaranteed vs. Programmatic advertising on digital billboards

If you’re reading this, you’re probably trying to make sense of how to approach advertising on digital billboards – or, more specifically, DOOH (Digital Out of Home).

Among the many options that you’ll have, there’s none more crucial than choosing between direct and programmatic spots. These will have different definitions depending on who you’re talking to. Some may call it programmatic vs traditional. Some may invent their own lingo to make it stand out. The core of it, however, is the same.

What Is Direct Advertising on Digital Billboards?

A direct spot (or campaign) is a campaign that is part of a billboard’s rotation. In other words, direct advertising directly connects with a digital billboard as a kind of dedicated ad for which you buy space. 

You could consider it comparable to monthly rent. The advertisers there usually buy in large volumes, so it makes sense for them to secure their spots on key screens. These advertisers represent, on average, 50% of the advertising space available on digital out of home. The rest is usually distributed as spots for NGOs, self-advertising for the landlords (or other stakeholders), or public interest messages.

Other advertisers can get in on this space as well. The minimum is usually around 1 day (24 hours), and pricing varies from screen to screen, but you can usually expect budgets between $5,000 and $50,000, maybe even more during key events.

If you’re launching something at an important date (Christmas, New Year’s Eve, 4th of July, etc.) and need to be 100% sure your space is locked, then you should consider a direct spot. The downside is the high cost and minimum. 

If you want your ads to play for a guaranteed window, ideally for long-lasting campaigns, direct advertising is often the way to go. You can gain a competitive edge and sustain it with these campaigns. You can also benefit more from these campaigns if you have a good relationship with ad vendors.

The process of direct advertising is manual, unlike programmatic advertising. When booking ad space, you’ll need to connect with billboard owners, book the ad, negotiate rates, and schedule your campaign for a particular time. 

If you’re looking to book this kind of campaign, all you need to do is reach out via email or live chat and our team will assist you. 

What Is Programmatic Advertising for Billboards?

A programmatic spot (or campaign) is a campaign that is scheduled automatically and is not part of the normal rotation. It entails providing a platform with campaign details and goals, which the platform can then factor into media buying using a combination of AI and machine learning for real-time bidding. Additionally, it can hyper-target your audiences with automated ads. When you schedule a campaign with Blindspot, our software automatically syncs it up with each individual screen’s system in order to run at the exact hours and frequency you select. 

We see availability in real-time, so we’re able to tell you if a screen is sold out or not responding. What our tech does is fill in whatever is not already bought out via direct campaigns in using a programmatic approach.

Our proprietary solution ensures that if there’s ad space available programmatically, you’re the one who gets it. Pricing can range from as low as $2 per hour with 10pph-plays per hour (yes, really!) to several hundred dollars per hour for spectacular spots. Some landlords may set specific minimums for spectacular units. We don’t enforce any artificial minimums ourselves. Minimum ad spend requirements must be fully utilized within 3 months of the campaign start date. Unused plays will not carry over beyond this period.

Most campaigns run smoothly, but on the off-chance some of the estimated maximum plays are missed, we offer you the opportunity to reschedule them. This makes our platform ideal for small, recurring campaigns or for testing out this powerful advertising channel. When used strategically, it’s the smartest way to buy space on digital billboards.

One of the unique advantages of programmatic vs. direct advertising is the ability to integrate with other channels. In addition to billboards, programmatic buying works with all types of digital ads, including connected TV, pay-per-click, and other online ads to cover all bases.

If you’re looking to schedule this type of campaign, all you need to do is hop on the Blindspot platform and choose your locations and dates. Easy as that.

And that’s it. You now know the key difference between direct and programmatic campaigns. If you have any questions, you can always reach out via email or live chat.

Direct vs. Programmatic Advertising: Key Differences

When considering direct vs. programmatic methods for buying digital billboard space, there are a few main differences to keep in mind:

 

• Manual vs. automated: While direct advertising uses manual negotiations for ad space, programmatic digital OOH entails automated transactions based on campaign info, location, and other targeting factors.
• Flexibility: Direct advertising uses static scheduling to place ads in advance, whereas digital OOH programmatic ads use dynamic and real-time buying to allow for more efficient changes to ad campaigns.
• Cost: When you purchase direct advertising, you’ll usually pay a flat rate, while programmatic runs on performance-based bidding.
• Efficiency: Direct advertising deals with traditional workflows, as it involves traditionally buying ad space, with programmatic digital OOH using data-driven decision-making.

 

Advantages of Programmatic DOOH Advertising

When considering programmatic vs. direct advertising, here are some benefits of programmatic strategies:

• Flexibility: you can set your ads to run at high traffic hours instead of 24/7, which enhances performance and ad spend.
• Contextual creative: you can set your campaign to run multiple creatives and use triggers to change creatives more easily for a dynamic contextual ad with superior performance.
• Lower minimums: allows you to run cost–effective ads for shorter periods of time.
• Real–time reporting: can help you measure and supervise the performance of your campaign at any time, allowing you to optimize your next DOOH campaigns.
• Superior targeting: You can hyper-target digital OOH programmatic ads, reaching audiences based on numerous factors, including demographics, location, or weather.
• Scalability: Run anywhere from small campaigns in one location to large campaigns across several locations.

Cons of programmatic:

• No guarantee slot: if a screen gets sold out via a direct contract, the programmatic ad doesn’t play. 

However, should this happen, you get credited 105% of your campaign budget, so you don’t lose money; you actually make money! 

More specifically, what this means is that we will be offering you bonus credits that you can use in a new campaign as compensation for the campaign that you will have paid for and have not played. And not to mention that the extra credits that you will be compensated for will allow you to run your next ad a little longer, complimentary on us! 

So it’s important to rest assured that we got you covered, should this occur when using Blindspot.

Advantages of Direct Advertising on Digital Billboards

Considering direct vs. programmatic media buying? Here are some benefits of direct ads:

• Guaranteed buys for at least one week: you lock in the slot.
• Gets you more plays as you are part of the rotation.
• Long-term campaigns benefit from cheaper cost per play.
• More control over ad placement and scheduling
• Builds lasting relationships with media owners to take full advantage of custom campaigns
• Ideal for niche and local campaigns targeting highly specific audiences

Cons of direct:

• Higher minimums: your campaign has to run for longer periods of time.
• Weekly minimums, sometimes monthly: your campaign has to run for at least one week/month.
• No real–time reporting: there is no way to know if you are efficiently spending your ad budget OR measuring the performance of your campaign.
• No flexibility, running 24/7: you are not able to set your campaign to only run at peak hours when traffic is high in the desired location, which leads to nonoptimal ad spend and hurts your bottom line.
• No contextual creative: since you must plan and submit your campaign creatives ahead of time, you are not able to set triggers for changing creatives based on local weather or events.

When to Use Direct vs. Programmatic Advertising

As you choose between programmatic vs. direct ads, consider when it’s best to use each type of advertising.

 

Generally, direct advertising works best when you want long-term placements and hyper-local campaigns targeting a particular audience. For instance, you might want Las Vegas billboards in specific neighborhoods where it will last for months.

 

Meanwhile, you would use programmatic advertising for real-time campaign monitoring, broader reach, and more scalability based on changing campaign requirements. An example here could include temporary space on multiple Los Angeles billboards in the metropolitan area, along with other major cities.

 

If you want to maximize success, consider combining both strategies. For hyper-local targeting in specific areas, use direct ads, while programmatic ads could help you reach more people elsewhere with billboards and through other digital ads.

The Role of Programmatic in Digital OOH’s Future

The DOOH industry is seeing an increased use of programmatic technology to help optimize the media buying process.

 

For example, today, we have AI-driven optimization and machine learning to help optimize campaigns. Meanwhile, integration with mobile data is allowing for even more effective targeting.

 

Want to get the most from programmatic advertising? The Blindspot platform keeps it all simple, allowing you to create effective data-driven programmatic digital billboard campaigns. Create an account with us and get started in under five minutes. We’ll help you develop your next strategy with a budget recommendation, ensuring you start your campaign off the right way.

FAQs: Direct vs. Programmatic Advertising

Can advertisers use a hybrid approach, direct and programmatic, for digital billboards?

Yes, advertisers can blend direct and programmatic advertising, using direct ads for some billboards and programmatic ads for others. Direct ads would work best for targeting audiences in specific areas for guaranteed placement, while programmatic ads would offer some scalability.

What role does real-time data play in programmatic billboard advertising?

Using impressions, mobile data, and other real-time data collection, it’s possible to gauge performance and make changes to campaigns for improved results.

How do advertisers negotiate placements in direct billboard advertising?

Advertisers work with media owners to determine the best placements based on their existing budget and campaign requirements, with the ability to negotiate a rate that works for them.

Which industries benefit most from programmatic digital billboard campaigns?

Many industries can reap the benefits of programmatic vs. direct ads, including:

 

• Food and beverage
• Travel
• Retail
• Entertainment
• Automotive
• Real Estate
• Healthcare

How does programmatic advertising work on digital billboards?

Programmatic billboard ads work using a platform that buys billboards and other digital media based on campaign data and targeting. The platform allows advertisers to bid on placements, allowing for immediate changes to campaigns over time.

How much does a billboard cost?

How much does a billboard cost, exactly? The answer to this will depend on several factors, including the location and size of the billboard, whether you use programmatic or direct advertising, and the length of your ad campaigns.