Out-of-home media has long been valued for its ability to reach audiences in real-time. But as the channel evolves, expectations around measurement, accountability and proof of performance have only increased.
PlaceBased Media, knows this well. The Minneapolis-based agency operates a large-scale network of digital and static displays that reach at-risk populations with health-related messaging where critical healthcare decisions are made.
For this edition of AAM Media Matters, we spoke with Cody Cagnina, PlaceBased Media’s managing director, about the growing demand for accountability in out-of-home media, how audits strengthen internal operations and why independent verification is essential to building client trust.
Reaching Audiences Where It Matters Most
PlaceBased Media’s network spans more than 500,000 locations including clinics, pharmacies, grocery and convenience stores and other retail environments. Media delivery and accountability are essential to every campaign, something that is seen throughout healthcare marketing.
“The stakes are much higher because we’re working on life-changing initiatives,” Cagnina said. “It’s more important than just impression counts on a spreadsheet. We need to make sure we’re reaching people in these environments.”
How Verified Data Strengthens Credibility
Cagnina said the company achieves accountability through independent audits. A recent audit revealed one campaign exceeded expectations with a 113% delivery rate. The fact that this result was verified by AAM had an even greater impact.
“Having a verified number from a third party is huge,” Cagnina said. “It gives us so much more credibility when we’re going to a major brand or organization, and it genuinely differentiates us from competitors.”
Cagnina noted that as digital channels provide greater transparency, expectations from advertisers are rising in out-of-home media.
“As investment in digital increases, we’re seeing higher expectations for providing real-time data and metrics that are also independently verified,” Cagnina said.
Cagnina believes one of the biggest challenges in out-of-home media is the lack of standardization across the industry.
“Lots of different media companies rely on different data and methodologies, so that lack of standardization is a big part of the trust gap,” he said.
He also noted that compliance is an important part of accountability.
“Knowing a screen exists at a location is a lot different than knowing a screen is running the correct media. It’s very important to audit these locations and know you’re really delivering on campaign promises.”
The Value of Third-Party Audits
Beyond external credibility, the audit process also helped PlaceBased Media strengthen its internal processes.
“It forced us to examine our operations and data infrastructure and address gaps in our auditing and compliance processes,” he said.
For organizations considering an audit, Cagnina emphasizes the value of not only the audit results, but what can be learned during the process.
“I think most media companies want everything to be perfect before they take the leap, but going through the audit helped expose gaps and gave us insight into how to improve our processes, which was extremely valuable.”
