Meanwhile, digital out-of-home has rebounded steadily since dipping during the pandemic. U.S. investment in the sector is anticipated to reach $2.94 billion in 2023, according to Statista.
The efficiencies of programmatic
While bidding programmatically on subway panels doesn’t necessarily open up buyers to more inventory or a more targeted audience, it can put an ad buyer’s budget to work more efficiently.
“[If a brand campaign] has $15,000 for one week on digital screens, it’s going to be a lot more tricky to do manually,” said Brian Rappaport, CEO of out-of-home agency Quan Media Group, which has worked with Casper, Skims and Away. “[With programmatic], they’re going to help make those dollars work as hard as they possibly can.”
Plus, programmatic provides more flexibility than upfront deals for brands new to transit advertising, Rappaport said.
“A lot of brands are a lot more reactionary and don’t want as many restrictions having to cancel things,” he said.
Programmatic makes it easier for brands to purchase inventory, as they can see all their digital media buys in one spot, said Geoff Litwer, vp of programmatic and display media at Tinuiti.
“We look at that as a major enhancement or upgrade to make [the MTA] available programmatically,” Litwer said. “It’s the workflow automation. It’s the unification of reporting.”
Buying programmatically can be more expensive because of the introduction of tech fees.
When to go direct
Despite the potential value gained from buying programmatically, some of the most popular kinds of transit advertising are when a brand takes over an entire subway station, Rappaport said, a kind of inventory that wouldn’t make sense to buy programmatically.
