Marketing Briefing: As socializing returns, marketers will ‘adopt a hybrid model’ adding OOH, pop-ups back to the mix

By Kristina Monllos

Marketers are starting to tweak their media plans — interest in out-of-home placements, as well as experiential pop-ups, are starting to crop up, for example — to account for people’s changing behavior as vaccinations ramp up in the United States.

That’s not to say marketers’ appetite for virtual events and live audio (a la apps Clubhouse and Twitter Spaces, etc.) has petered out altogether. On the contrary, marketers and media buyers say marketers will take a hybrid approach over the next few months as other marketing methods that had dipped (i.e. out-of-home and experiential) due to the pandemic make a comeback, along with new live and audio options.

“Humans crave the company of others, and after this long hiatus, everyone is anxious to jump back into normalcy,” said Kristy Gomez, director of communications planning at Chemistry. “But the smart move is to adopt a hybrid model — a mix of [in real life] and virtual events to cultivate the new audience share they’ve gained virtually, be safe and responsible in how they encourage the public to ‘re-enter’ in-person activities and be ready with something impressive when the public can engage with brands again.”

Even if marketers return to the tactics they used pre-pandemic, they aren’t likely to approach them the same way. When it comes to out-of-home, for example, the focus may be on areas where people may gather socially rather than on mass transit commuting as people aren’t yet going back to offices but are beginning to socialize in person and out of the house, explained Sarah Greenfield, executive director of strategy at creative boutique Episode Four.

“We’re already seeing a return to OOH and most of the major OOH vendors reporting above pre-pandemic levels,” noted Billy Long, evp of OOH practice, Publicis Media Exchange. “We’re also seeing more focus on short-term buys and a bit of hesitancy to commit to longer lead times given potential uncertainty toward the back half of the year. Digital also continues to have a growing presence as more marketers enjoy the flexibility and ability to upgrade inventory, turn on/off as needed.”

As for live audio and virtual events, marketers and agency execs expect the use of both to continue in a hybrid fashion as events slowly return this fall. Allowing for a virtual option will no longer be a replacement or “substitute,” noted Michelle Millar, vp group director of media and activation at Hanson Dodge, but another way for marketers to connect with people.

Taking a hybrid approach in getting back to pre-Covid marketing tactics as well as maintaining those added during the pandemic will likely be common.

“While the desire to reconnect [in real life] is going to influence the way the public moves this summer, people spent over a year becoming accustomed to virtual events and live audio platforms as alternative means of connection and communication,” said Gomez. “This opened up a world of experiences that many wouldn’t have tuned into before.”