By 2020 the number of things connected to the internet is expected to be around 40 billion and less than 20 percent of those will be smartphones, tablets or PCs. The data those things gather aims to make our lives easier or, in the case of a company like Nest, more efficient. And Cisco and Goodby Silverstein have shown the internet of things might also help out outdoor advertising.
One of the major advantages of digital screens is the ability to tailor messages and regularly swap out creative. But this takes customisation to another level by monitoring live traffic data and adjusting the length of messaging based on the traffic speed in the billboard’s immediate vicinity. The faster you go, the less you have to read.
“From a marketing perspective, it’s not just about telling our story, but doing it in a way that shows what we’re talking about,” said Cisco’s CMO Blair Christie told Ad Age. “This is how the connected billboard idea came about; we’re showcasing what connecting the unconnected could mean and telling our story at the same time.”
