An aggregate cross-media performance analysis from Kochava and OAAA found that OOH delivers strong in-person and online impact.
OOH – A Valuable Performance Medium, analyzes device-level data across hundreds of campaigns spanning several media formats (OOH, Broadcast TV, Streaming) and industries including retail, automotive, quick service restaurants, and media and entertainment.
The question at hand was whether OOH delivered incremental, measurable lift, and if so, how much, and why? To find the answer, the research tracked behavior not just immediately after exposure but for days and weeks afterward.
OOH-exposed audiences take 20% more in-person actions (store visits, dealership visits, restaurant visits) and 14% more digital actions (website visits, app downloads, online registrations) compared to similar audiences who weren't exposed to OOH advertising. Compared to Broadcast TV or CTV/Streaming, OOH delivers 2x the incremental lift of in-person actions.
Frequency management is a critical optimization lever for OOOH, especially to boost digital conversions. Higher frequency generates higher action; across verticals, when OOH frequency increased from 1 to 10 exposures, the rate of digital actions among ad viewers saw a 5x increase.
Unlike Broadcast TV, which plateaus, digital actions after OOH exposure shows continuous improvement from repeat ad exposure. Meanwhile, OOH in-person outcomes maintain consistent performance across the frequency range, peaking at 7-9 exposures and reflecting OOH’s ability to capture high-intent audiences right from the start.
Recommendations: This research suggests the importance of prioritizing extended flight durations over short bursts, building frequency through market saturation (multiple placements), leveraging digital retargeting for an amplified effect, and a target of 5-10 exposures for optimal digital conversions and 7-9 exposures for optimal in-person conversion.
Every 7 days, there’s a measurable resurgence in conversion activity, aligning with weekend shopping behavior, weekly planning cycles (“I’ll go this weekend”), and recurring consideration windows. This weekly rhythm is unique to OOH and repeats through at least 4 weeks.
Here is how OOH ad exposure is impacted by this cycle; a 10% in-person conversion was recorded among ad viewers on Day 7 of the cycle (+136% vs. Day 6), a 5% in-person conversion was recorded on Day 14 (+55% vs. Day 13) and so on, with Day 28 still seeing a +47% increase in footfall from Day 27. Alternatively, when it comes to digital conversions, OOH maintains 61% of demand by Day 9 – the slowest decay of any media.
Recommendations: Only 52% of total conversions are captured in the first week of a campaign, meaning that 48% of campaign value is missed if campaign measurements stop at Day 7. Use a 14-21-day attribution window for OOH campaigns as this window captures 85% of total conversions and captures the critical Day 14 and Day 21 resurgence bumps.
In individual large-scale omnichannel QSR analyses, OOH is observed preceding search activity 96% of the time and social media activity 94% of the time, illustrating how last-touch attribution masks OOH’s larger impact.
Recommendations: While search and social are credited as “performance channels,” and OOH has historically been credited with mostly “brand building,” this research shows that OOH should be leveraged as a key driver of lower-funnel QSR actions.
Download the full analysis here.