Less brutal
fourth quarter for out of home
Advertising began picking up in latter 2009
By Toni Fitzgerald
Mar 18, 2010
Like many other media, outdoor saw the ad spending decreases that have battered the category all year ease up in fourth quarter.
Though spending was still down, it was down by a lot less than the previous three quarters of the year.
Out-of-home advertising revenue slipped 7.9 percent in fourth quarter 2009, compared to the same period in 2008, to $1.4 billion, according to data from the Outdoor Advertising Association of America.
That's compared to a 17.2 percent dive in third quarter and a dip of 18 percent during the first half of the year.
The better numbers were spurred by increases in advertising by many top categories, as well as more favorable comparisons to last year. During fourth quarter 2008, outdoor spending fell 15 percent, its worst dip of the year.
"The percent decrease for outdoor media softened from third quarter to fourth quarter," Terrie Brennan, senior vice president of new business development at Nielsen, tells Media Life. "Fifteen of the top 20 product categories advertising in outdoor showed growth from third quarter to fourth quarter."
That helped improve the yearly tallies for out of home slightly. Total revenue slid 15.9 percent from 2008, to $5.4 billion, the second straight year of decline for the category.
For the full year, every single category in the top 10, which account for 80 percent of all outdoor revenue, saw spending decreases, with insurance and real estate seeing the biggest percentage decline at -29.4 percent.
Automotive outdoor spending slid second-most, 28.4 percent, or nearly $101 million, to $253.7 million, ranking ninth in outdoor. For all media, the auto category cut its ad spending 23.4 percent, according to Kantar Media.
Restaurants saw the smallest year-to-year decline, falling only 5 percent, or $24 million. Most other categories saw dips in the low teens, save media and advertising, which slashed spending by 21.7 percent.
As for when advertising will begin to bump up, analysts say that outdoor will lag behind some other categories but it should start later this year.
"[Pricing will firm up] first in television, followed by radio and lastly outdoor (which we believe will be the last to turn positive but is not far behind -- likely Q2)," writes Wells Fargo senior analyst Marci Ryvicker in a research note released yesterday morning.
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