Consumer behaviour has changed beyond anything we ever anticipated over the last 20 months. We have adapted so many elements of our day to day living. From hybrid working models to how we shop and consume products, notwithstanding a healthy living trend adapted by many! Throughout the pandemic, we have continuously tracked consumer behaviour from several vantage points and one clear finding has emerged from our vast amount of data; OOH audiences have been omnipresent. Let’s put some data behind this.

Mobility levels are back to pre-pandemic levels

If we look closely at Locomizer mobility data, it is obvious that in the first 6 months of the pandemic mobility hit an all-time low. Driven by fear, most of us stayed at home apart from a daily walk. As restrictions eased, this changed, and people began to come out of the woodwork.

Fast forward to January 2021, when we entered into a similar level of lockdown as March 2020, but mobility figures are not reflective of the behaviour we uncovered during the 1st phase. Obviously, mobility declined but didn’t reflect the same trends as of March 2020 and beyond. Consumers were mobilised, and the volume of shorter journeys taken by car and on foot reflect this. Local audiences became such an important part of Out of Home planning, allowing brands an opportunity to capitalise on reach and frequency to a lesser extent.

The only “restriction” per se was that non-essential retail was closed. Figures show that once this restriction was lifted, mobility grew at a fast pace and continued until the present day, in fact, faster than the first lockdown. The end of April in Northern Ireland and early May in RoI saw an almost 40% increase in mobility, with almost 1 million pedestrian journeys recorded in Dublin city centre on one day alone (Source: Dublintown).

Mobility to the main cities increased too. Coupled with a large proportion of people returning to their physical places of work, consumers have returned to the main cities to socialise and shop too.

Emerging trends in consumer behaviour and how brands can use OOH to engage with consumers

Changing lifestyles have impacted our shopping habits. We have fast become a nation of health-conscious consumers, with almost half buying fresh food regularly, 26% making healthier food choices and 30% consuming less alcohol. 57% of us claim to take regular exercise while 88% walk more often than before the pandemic. This is a trend that is sure to continue with the emergence of so many new health and wellness brands. It’s a real opportunity for brands to use the power of Out of Home to launch a new product or generate awareness for an existing brand.  The use of multi-format classic and digital out of home ensures impact and stand out for any brand.

Our grocery shopping habits have changed somewhat too. Overall, we are doing more grocery shopping which is because of hospitality closing for long periods, but we are more frequent shoppers; 36% of us are shopping 2-3 times per week, ensuring that strategically placed OOH ads in the retail environment are seen many times.

In line with changes to grocery shopping habits, one of the key standouts from the research is the desire and need by consumers for physical bricks and mortar stores and to have that physical shopping experience. Never has going to a store meant so much to consumers. Our research showed a decline in online shopping for Christmas gifts this year, with almost 40% of respondents agreeing that they will be visiting both shopping centres and high street stores. Again, an opportunity for advertisers to target consumers on their journey using clever creative across a mix of multi-format Out of Home.

Research results also point to the fact that spending power is stronger than ever.  A large proportion of our sample claimed to have saved more than ever, but they plan on spending it on big-ticket items in the near future.

So what do we expect for 2022?

In our opinion, the shopper experience will only become stronger. Consumers will continue to visit shopping centres and high street stores in their droves, creating so many opportunities for advertisers using our medium.

The same applies to grocery shopping. While we will be more planned and consistent grocery shoppers, we will most likely shop as frequently as we did previously if not more often if our good habits as a nation of health-conscious consumers continue!

Spending power and new habits created will lend to brands looking to become part of a consumers brand repertoire. Consumers are more attuned to shopping more often, buying premium products and treating themselves will become the norm and part of the weekly grocery shop.

OOH Creativity in 2021: Resurgence and Innovations

2021 has been a year where global and local brands have followed consumers back into the great outdoors. We have studied and adapted to new consumer behaviours, led the way with a smarter approach to planning, and more importantly elated our audiences with true creativity.

Throughout the pandemic, what we have seen is the resurgence of creativity and innovation in our medium. As our audience levels stabilised, brands battled to capture consumer attention beyond the classic billboard. Consumer behaviour online has also excelled how creativity and innovation in OOH can extend into the digital world.

BBC’s launch for Dracula (UK) demonstrated the power OOH can have on social chatter. Known for lurking in the shadows, this special build revealed a silhouette of Dracula himself once dusk had set. The execution generated 40+ content pieces online and +7m views of the time-lapsed video on social media.

Closer to home, Lidl’s nationwide Easter campaign intended to help consumers make Easter an extra special celebration this year. Five bus shelters were filled with mini Easter eggs creating an impactful experience for consumers. As this was executed at a time where some movement restrictions were in place, the campaign was amplified with an AR social activation where consumers could stand at the bus shelter in a virtual world and guess the number of eggs in the shelter. Talon’s 4th Space research showed that brands who used the same content across social and OOH benefited from an increase in campaign effectiveness of 23%. This campaign was a remarkable demonstration of the relationship between OOH & mobile.

We know that creativity in OOH builds brand fame. In a recent study by Talon, 65% of respondents said that they felt brands that executed special techniques were more innovative and exciting. With this insight, it is evident that if our objectives involve building a brand, generating talkability or cutting through a cluttered category, then creative solutions will play an important role in that OOH strategy.

Special techniques can also increase purchase consideration by 35% making innovation a key component of Laya Healthcare’s latest campaign. A 2D illuminated pulsing heart monitor was executed on a Golden Square in Dublin, surprising consumers with this non-traditional use of the OOH space.

In James Hurman and Peter Field’s latest work “Cracking the code to creative effectiveness”, they highlighted that creative commitment was reducing in our Industry and that is something we have seen over the past 5 years in the OOH channel. It is encouraging to see the resurgence of creative appetite and this a trend we predict will continue into 2022.

Through collaboration, smarter thinking and our entrepreneurial spirit, we look forward to working with our partners and clients to bring ground-breaking creative solutions to the market next year.

Maximizing Christmas Engagement and Connection

Christmas is a key time for media, not least Out of Home. It’s the perfect platform to influence consumers on their journeys as they prepare for a busy time of the year and an opportunity to reach target audiences en masse. Our Locomizer mobility data has tracked audiences across the year and has demonstrated that audiences are stronger than ever. Christmas will bring an extension of these audiences.

Consumer sentiment has changed significantly since the start of the pandemic. We’ve seen so many emerging trends through our Insights pieces with Christmas being no exception. These trends give us the learnings to plan and buy Out of Home most efficiently and effectively, by demonstrating where key target audiences are, what their mindset is at certain stages of the consumer journey and how to reach these audiences through OOH.

Based on a national sample of 250 respondents, we sought to find out where and how consumers will be shopping this year, how strong their spending power will be and, what will be different from 2020.

Back to the High Streets

Returning to the physical shopping experience is going to be key in the run-up to Christmas this year and a trend we’ve seen since non-essential retail reopened. Our research shows a 13% decline in those planning to do their Christmas shopping online.

Of those who plan on visiting a brick-and-mortar store

Spending Power Is Key

Spending power is one of the key trends emerging from this piece as over 1/3 of respondents agreed that they will be spending more this Christmas. A 13% increase versus 2020. This varies across categories – groceries and buying gifts.

OOH provides the perfect opportunity to influence those long shopping lists as well as reach consumers in close proximity to retail stores.

2020 vs 2021: Where’s the difference

Finally, for our last section, we focused on the experience of Christmas and how respondents plan on spending their Christmas this year. Not surprisingly, the re-occurring theme is family & friends.

There’s no denying the trends emerging have been consistent. Over the last two years, people have gone through so much and this year they look forward to Christmas and being surrounded by friends and family again.

OOH is a powerful medium in reaching audiences on the move. Through continuous investment by our media partners and the growth in DOOH, it will continue to strengthen. By developing the right campaign approach, great creative and harnessing customer insights you can help bring your brand to life. We here at Talon Ireland look forward to Christmas and beyond to see what OOH has in store!

Small, Mighty, and Future-Ready: Our Talon Journey

We are a small family unit of 26. We are imaginative, innovative, and have amazing team synergy. Sustainability and using our platform for good is one of our core values. Together we challenge, never settle. We are passionate about everything that we do and hold our relationships with clients in the highest regard.

We joined the Talon Group this year and with that, our mission has evolved. We look forward to embedding the “Smarter as Standard” approach in everything that we do.

We’ve had an amazing journey getting to where we are today, and we are excited to see what the future brings as part of the Talon Group.

Our door is always open for a chat and a good cup of coffee so do reach out to us, we’d love to hear from you !

Talon Outdoor, the UK’s leading independent Out of Home (OOH) media specialist, has further strengthened its international operations and capabilities with the acquisition of Poster Plan Limited (previously trading as Kinetic Ireland), one of Ireland’s leading OOH specialists.

This strategic acquisition continues to build Talon’s global reach, extending its leading-edge automation, data, resources and culture into new markets. As UK market leader, Talon has brought growth to OOH through its digital engagement, smart planning and proprietary technology that embraces a wider integration of data and behavioural planning capability. Talon has won numerous awards for its creativity, planning and people values, whilst bringing its expertise and technology to global markets, including the US and Germany.

Poster Plan was established in 1990 by co-founders Simon Durham and Carol Hogan and operates offices in both Dublin and Belfast.  The business delivers full OOH planning and buying capabilities, focusing on dynamic and data-led solutions for a wide range of agencies and clients.

The acquisition of Poster Plan follows the recent appointment of Andrew Sinclair as Managing Director. Andrew will lead the business with Aoife Hudson, Deputy Managing Director. Both Simon Durham and Carol Hogan will remain with the business.

Talon’s Group CEO Barry Cupples says:

“Having worked closely with Poster Plan for a number of years to deliver OOH campaigns for Talon’s clients in Ireland, this strategic acquisition was a natural next step. We are excited about the prospects for supporting the continued opportunity to drive the renaissance of OOH, by adding Talon’s service and solutions culture to Poster Plan’s deep customer relationships and strong reputation. We are delighted to be partnering with Group M in a new long-term relationship to support their clients and teams in delivering better outcomes.”

Speaking about the transaction, Andrew Sinclair said:

“This acquisition by Talon is a ringing endorsement of the strength of Poster Plan’s offering in the Irish marketplace, which provides an exciting platform for future investment in our people, product offering and position within this market. We look forward to enhancing our offering to our clients with benefits of  Talon’s industry-leading products, tools and technology.”

Simon Durham, Co-Founder of Poster Plan said:

“Today marks an exciting new chapter in our OOH journey and we are delighted to have completed the sale of the business to the Talon Group. Having been Talon’s exclusive partner in Ireland for some time, we have first-hand experience of their dynamism, forward-thinking and overall ambitions for showcasing the power of OOH.

Arriving at this point wouldn’t have been possible without the unwavering support of WPP/GroupM and their clients, and I would like to personally thank them for all their support in making this deal possible. We look forward to continuing that close working relationship with all Group M agencies and their clients.”

Poster Plan will continue to be the exclusive provider of OOH planning and buying services to GroupM’s client base in Ireland. Bill Kinlay, CEO of GroupM Ireland commented:

“Talon entering the Irish market represents an important and progressive step as they bring their experience and expertise to bear here. GroupM is looking forward to continuing the excellent relationship that we have had with Poster Plan for over 20 years, and to building on this with Talon going forward.”