Cover Story September 2017
result of the hostile nature in which the outdoor industry operate .
Various acts of misconduct and unnecessary taxation still prevail in the sector . Street Urchins ( touts ) still go about collecting money from billboard operators and nothing is done about it .
Excess taxation and regulation from regulatory bodies and the government still hamper the successful growth of the business .
All these have dampened the spirit of many advertisers and OOH operators , preventing them from exploring the endless possibilities and potentials inherent in outdoor advertising industry .
Like any other cities of the world , Left unchecked , the proliferation of outdoor advertising can consume a city . In the early 2000s , advertising grew exponentially in Brazil , and São Paulo began to suffocate under a smog of signage . Finding it difficult to control the number of ads through regulation , the city took the unprecedented step of banning them altogether . In 2007 , Mayor Gilberto Kassab implemented the Clean City Law , labelling outdoor adverts a form of “ visual pollution ”. In a single year , the city removed 15,000 billboards and 300,000 oversized storefront signs .
Much of the impetus to ban advertising in cities has come from municipalities themselves . In 2009 , Chennai , India banned the erection of billboards , and several US states including Vermont , Maine , Hawaii , and Alaska are billboard-free . In 2011 , Paris set out plans to reduce the number of ad hoardings by a third . And earlier this year , Tehran replaced all its 1,500 advertising billboards with art for 10 days .
It ' s not just about cleansing cities of “ visual pollution ” as if it were a sort of surface grime . Billboard advertising is far more intimately entwined with the architecture of cities . While in other media we can , to some extent , choose to consume ads , out of home advertising ( OOH ) has melded itself inextricably into our environment .
Even David Ogilvy , widely considered the father of modern advertising , expressed his disdain for the medium back in 1963 . “ Man is at his vilest when he erects a billboard ,” Ogilvy wrote . “ When I retire from Madison Avenue , I am going to start a secret society of masked vigilantes who will travel around the world on silent motor bicycles , chopping down posters at the dark of the moon .”
Despite the rise of radio , television and internet advertising , the outdoor advertising industry remains stronger than ever
While Ogilvy never did get that motorbike gang together , the UN has recently revved into the debate . Last year , Farida Shaheed , UN Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights , called on member states to be mindful of the influence of commercial advertising and marketing on public space . “ The constant bombardment of our senses intrusively impacts our cultural lives ,” she says . Outdoor advertising bans are a much-needed step to “ re-balance the use of public spaces ”.
The latest and perhaps boldest attempt to unbrand public space comes from Grenoble , France , became the first city in Europe to ban commercial street advertising . The mayor ' s office stated that it was “ taking the choice of freeing public space in Grenoble from advertising to develop areas for public expression ” and replaced 326 advertising signs with community noticeboards and trees .
All this sounds rather bucolic , but despite the billboard ban , Grenoble hasn ' t actually entirely rid itself of advertising ; the city ' s bus and tram stops will continue to be financed by advertising until the contract with JCDecaux runs out in 2019 .
In the UK , cuts to public funding have made some local councils heavily reliant on it . Between 2010 and 2016 , the government cut Islington council ' s funding in half . This enormous cuts have forced the council to seek new revenue – and advertising is an important stream .
Grenoble , for its part , says it can balance its books sans billboards . The Mayor ' s office claims that , although it used to earn £ 470,000 a year from street ads , this was had drop to around £ 105,000 in 2015 because of a slump in advertising rates .
São Paulo , is not exactly an ad-free city any longer . Five years after the Clean City Law , it has begun to gradually reintroduce advertising in a controlled manner . Rather than being plastered haphazardly on billboards , ads have crept more methodically into the city ' s infrastructure . Ads are much more organised now . Some bus stops have interactive panels so you can Google search , see the weather forecast and much more
Though OOH firms are worried , a 2015 media outlook predicted that stricter regulation will be a growing industry challenge , as more blanket bans on billboards are enacted – the movement ultimately does little to rid commercial interests from our public spaces . Billboard ad bans may result in fewer garish signs jostling for “ eyeballs ”
TODAY ' S OUTDOOR BILLBOARD The true test of a new product is how well it holds up after being introduced to the market for the first time . Several prominent forms of advertising have come into the advertising world and created whole new marketplaces without rendering the traditional outdoor billboard obsolete . It ' s a true sign that traditional outdoor billboards are here to stay .
Despite the rise of radio , television and internet advertising , the outdoor advertising industry remains stronger than ever . The modern-day billboard , like the outdoor advertising industry as a whole , are a testament to how simple , sturdy , and flexible marketing solutions can endure despite rapid innovation in marketing campaign strategies and emerging technologies .
The very fact that there is such rapid innovation in the outdoor advertising industry proves that the industry is doing well . There are a growing number of outdoor advertising companies being formed every year . This strong , consistent growth is ramping up competition within the industry and fueling innovations that continue to drive outdoor advertising to new heights of relevancy and effectiveness for those who utilize it .