Follow the money dep't: Local tops OOH spending

December 3, 2010 by Dave Haynes

1,2,3 - SQUINT!!!

The Outdoor Advertising Association of America (OAAA) says ad spend went up 7% in Q3 of this year (when compared with Q3 2009), and that adds up to $1.44 billion.

The biggest chunk of money goes to the curiously-dubbed “Miscellaneous amusements and services” category, which cranks about $239 million, or 16.6%. That’s up 7.6% over last year.

I asked the OAAA what on Earth that category was all about (it sounds like pinball machines and carnival rides), but was told it was the Kantar Media research way of saying local. This would of course be because local advertising is such a confusing term <picture me with eyes crossed>.

Anyway,  ads for local businesses like car dealers and foreclosure experts and bail bondsmen all, apparently, add up to a big  number nationally in the U.S.

Reports the OAAA (via MarketingCharts):

The media and financial segments helped drive the increase. The financial category spending on OOH grew by a third compared to the same period a year ago, from $81.9 million to $109.2 million. The category also grew from eighth place to fifth place in terms of total quarterly revenue.

Meanwhile, the media/advertising segment grew 11.3%, from about $133 million to about $148 million, retaining its second place position.

Three categories in the top 10 declined in year-over-year quarterly revenue: Communications (-11%, from 119.6 million to $106.4 million), insurance and real estate (-8.7%, from $91.3 million to $83.4 million), and public transportation, hotels and resorts (-6.8%, from $114.2 million to $106.4 million).

In terms of total quarterly revenue, communications fell from third to seventh place, insurance/real estate fell from seventh to eighth place, and public transportation/hotels/resorts fell from fourth to sixth place.

The report doesn’t expressly say whether or not digital billboards are part of the count.