How to Measure DOOH (Digital-Out-of-Home) Campaign Success

Key metrics and effective strategies for analyzing the impact of Digital Out-of-Home advertising

Measuring the effectiveness of Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) has often been seen as challenging due to its unique parameters and the traditionally based nature of out-of-home advertising. However, with the rise of digital and programmatic technology, marketers now have access to tools and insights that measure Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), using advanced location data and analytics in a similar capacity as other digital channels.

Enabled through enhanced data and analytics, marketers can now measure DOOH campaigns based on several KPIs or metrics, including (but not limited to) impressions, audience concentration, footfall traffic to a specific location, offline to online sales, in-store visits, and online engagement or sales lift. 

Key Highlights:

• Measuring the performance of OOH campaigns has been a challenge because of the fragmentation of the ecosystem and the traditional nature of the channel. 

• Programmatic technology empowers marketers with tools that use advanced location and audience data and analytics to measure effectiveness and preferred KPIs. 

• Customizable KPIs can measure campaign effectiveness across the entire funnel, from Brand Lift at the top of the funnel to Sales Lift at the bottom.

Sales Lift

Sales lift studies measure the increase in sales driven by the DOOH campaign exposure against a control number. These studies analyze the effectiveness of advertising by linking consumer exposure to the DOOH ads with subsequent offline sales behavior. By examining the uplift in sales in regions or groups exposed to the campaign versus those not exposed, marketers can directly attribute sales growth to the advertising efforts. This provides a clear view of how DOOH measurements link exposure to offline sales. 

Sales lift studies also include measuring other metrics, such as sales rate by market, penetration, or dollars per trip.

Offline to Online Conversion

Unlike traditional OOH, brands launching DOOH campaigns can measure digital KPIs, including:

Online Conversions

Online sales lift measures the percentage of visitors who complete the desired action online, usually making a purchase, but can also include requesting a demo, completing a form, or downloading a file. It is a key indicator of a campaign’s effectiveness in achieving its goals, and it shows how well it converts traffic into leads or customers online. 

In-app (IAP) conversions are also a type of online conversion in DOOH since it is connected via a QR code. IAP metrics measure the effectiveness of a monetization strategy within a mobile app. This group of metrics may include conversion rates and average revenue per user (ARPU), which assesses the revenue generated per active unit. 

It can be quite challenging to measure offline to online conversions from exposure to a DOOH ad, however not impossible with the right partner.

Request a demo today to see how Perion can optimize your campaigns.

Foot Traffic

Foot traffic (also known as footfall traffic) measures the number of visits to a specific point-of-interest (POI) or location such as a physical store as a result of a DOOH campaign. One advantage of DOOH is that advertisers can leverage dynamic creatives to attract customers to the closest store location. 

Some use cases that can benefit from Foot Traffic studies: 

Drive intent and action: Use location-based targeting to encourage consumers to visit physical stores after seeing DOOH ads. 

Generate Foot Traffic: Display relevant messages that create urgency or offer promotions tied to nearby stores. 

Use big events: You can drive people to your locations around big promotions and store events.

Example Case Studies from Perion 

Bakers Delight: “The Perfect DOOH Recipe”. This programmatic Digital Out‑of‑Home (DOOH) campaign targeted audiences near bakery locations using proximity-based triggers and real-time dynamic creatives.

The campaign resulted in a significant uplift in footfall due to precision targeting around store locations. It also leveraged DOOH’s immediacy and location context to drive in-store visits in real time.

Tecate & Perion Case Study. Perion partnered with Tecate, a leading light beer brand, to execute a programmatic digital-out-of‑home campaign. The goal was to build brand presence and drive foot traffic using location‑aware messaging and dynamic content tailored to context. It combined dynamic creatives with location intelligence to trigger ads during high‑engagement moments.

The campaign resulted in an increase in ad recall, brand preference and brand recognition. 

Brand Lift

Brand studies measure awareness and consideration, making them a valuable top-of-the-funnel metric.

Brand lift studies are critical in measuring a campaign’s impact on consumer awareness, consideration, interest, ad recal,l and intent, making them a valuable top-of-the-funnel metric. These studies provide insights into how a target audience perceives a brand after exposure to specific campaigns. 

Brand studies are especially suitable for specific campaign types. For example, a branding or rebranding campaign can gauge shifts in brand recognition or perception. 

Product launch studies measure how well a new product enters consumer awareness. Competitive awareness campaigns assess a brand’s standing relative to competitors, and loyalty programs measure how campaigns influence ongoing customer engagement and retention. These studies help marketers optimize future strategies based on data-driven insights. 

Examples of Successful DOOH Campaign Measurements

Measuring DOOH campaigns is as critical to their success as to their execution.

Here are some examples of DOOH campaigns that excelled by combining expert targeting and measurement techniques.

Lululemon

Source: Perion

Lululemon aimed to boost brand awareness and drive in-store traffic in Germany. They ran multiple programmatic Digital-Out-of-Home (DOOH) campaigns throughout the year to achieve this. Partnering with Zenith and Hivestack, Lululemon used Brand Lift and Footfall Studies to measure campaign effectiveness. These studies focused on key brand metrics, including awareness, consideration, and favorability, helping Lululemon understand the impact of their campaigns on consumer behavior. 

One key campaign promoted Lululemon’s shorts using “Custom Audience” targeting females aged 18-34 in health-conscious environments such as gyms and transit stations. Another campaign focused on performance leggings, targeting marathon routes in Munich and Berlin to engage participants and spectators. 

The results were impressive. For the “performance leggings” campaign, there was a 640% increase in brand image and a 208% increase in interest. The “shorts” campaign saw a 314% boost in foot traffic and 4296 modeled incremental walk-ins. Lululemon continues to optimize its DOOH strategies year-round with Hivestack, driving substantial brand growth and in-store sales.

Fiji Airways

Source: Perion

Fiji Airways, recognized as the “Best Airline in Australia and the Pacific” sought to increase brand awareness and loyalty across multiple global markets. Using programmatic digital-out-of-home (DOOH) advertising, the airline effectively targeted key audiences, including young families and affluent travelers. The campaign ran in markets such as Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Japan, Canada, and the U.S. By leveraging demographic and behavioral data and dayparting to display ads during peak times, Fiji Airways ensured maximum relevance and engagement. 

The agile campaign allowed the airline to adapt creatives across markets in a single day, while also integrating omnichannel retargeting to reinforce its message. Fiji Airways also leveraged measurement techniques such as a Brand Lift study to evaluate the campaign results.

The results exceeded expectations, delivering 79 million global impressions – 40% more than anticipated. The Brand Lift Study in China revealed that 77% of respondents recalled outdoor and elevator ads, with 97% associated with Fiji Airways. Furthermore, 76% reported an improved impression of the airline, and 77% expressed an increased intention to fly with them in the future. Retargeting efforts also reduced the cost per acquisition by 300%.

Leverage Programmatic DOOH with Perion

Source: Perion

Enhance your brand’s visibility and engage with your audience at key moments throughout their journey. By utilizing programmatic technology, you gain access to advanced audience targeting, real-time campaign optimization, and flexible ad placements across premium digital screens globally. Our full-funnel measurement solutions, powered by machine learning, allow advertisers to analyze real-time signals, and determine the most effective ad for the audience. 

With Perion’s cutting-edge platform, you can seamlessly integrate DOOH into your omnichannel strategy for measurable impact. 

Contact the experts at Perion today to learn how programmatic DOOH can transform your advertising efforts.

FAQs

How are DOOH impressions calculated?

DOOH impressions are typically calculated by estimating the potential number of people in proximity to a DOOH screen at a specific time or period of time. Enhanced through predictive and behavioral data audience concentration numbers can be forecasted prior to a campaign and 3rd party data such as traffic data, location data, and anonymized mobile location data can provide more accurate calculations. Unlike other digital channels that are one-to-one audience numbers, DOOH is a one-to-many channel.

How to calculate CPM in DOOH?

To calculate CPM (Cost per Mile) for DOOH, we divide the total cost of the ad campaign by the number of impressions (in thousands). The formula is: 

CPM = (Total Cost x1000

Impressions)

What is the best metric to measure DOOH performance?

There is no one perfect approach to DOOH measurement, but a flexible approach that allows marketers and buyers to customize a campaign with their own KPIs – ranging across the entire funnel from awareness to conversion. With the advent of innovative technology and integrated data, OOH is no longer seen as an awareness channel, but also a performance medium for marketers.

How effective is DOOH?

DOOH is a highly effective medium – unmissable, unskippable and centred around the audience journey outside of the home, perfect for delivering targeted messages in real-time, especially when combined with programmatic techniques.