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blowUP media - Size matters!
Giants helping giants…
T-Mobile, AOL, BMW, London 2012, the Sheikh of Dubai. Berlin,
Manchester, London, Paris, Frankfurt, Madrid, Amsterdam, etc, etc.
Everyone’s seen them – hey, you can’t miss them - the giant posters
adorning the scaffolding of buildings, tens of meters high, tens of
meters wide. No longer a novelty, they remain impressive neverthe-
less.
Matters were different some years back, though, and when blowUP
media, part of German outdoor advertising giant STRÖER, imported
the medium from the States to Europe in the mid-1980s, they faced
an outdoor media market that was dull, static and unsexy. Media
buyers and agencies had computer applications that meticulously
calculated the number of GRPs (Gross Rating Points or the per-
centage of the target audience reached by an advertisement) to
be spread over trusted media such as TV, print and advertising
columns, focussing heavily on the level of media contact – reach
– instead of the qualitative impact. Outdoor advertising suffered
from a serious amount of clutter, with no distinction and next-to-no
positive effect on the advertisers’ brands.
A tough market to enter, therefore. Yet, in untrodden territory, the
rewards can be great, with opportunities for inventive companies
capable of learning and adjusting and willing to take a calculated
risk. blowUP was one of the organisations willing to jump in the
Coolbrands: Martyn in discussion with Ernst Vos
deep end, and since the paddling days of old, they now enjoy 55%
of a hugely lucrative market. This is how they did it…
Location, location, location
To overcome advertisers’ scepticism, blowUP’s first concern was to
ensure the giant poster was accepted as a serious medium. Since
the first giant posters were no bigger than 100 square meters and
mounting techniques were still in the kindergarten stage, this was
blowUP’s first point of focus. At the same time, they addressed an-
other crucial point of developing good relations with real estate
companies and municipalities.
Numerous lobbying visits were made to pave the way. Real estate
companies were happy to join due to the considerable profits to be
made when taking part in a giant poster project, while at the same
time increasing the value of their properties. In blowUP’s business
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model, all three parties involved in a giant poster project – the real
estate owner, the municipality and blowUP itself – divide equally
the profit of any given project, after deducting costs.
Municipalities were also positive towards the new medium, in part
thanks to the money involved, and secondly because this tempo-
rary commercial activity had a positive effect on the looks of their
cities as well as adding a new, metropolitan vibe. All they had to
do in return was to issue rules and regulations, grant permits and
make sure they were observed. Thank you very much.
Partnership | Mission statement ´If your advertising goes unnoticed,
CEO/Managing Director Group: H.L. Leuters, D. Gehring, K. Robert-
son, Werner Döker, Udo Müller; Benelux: Ernst Vos, Wouter van Beek |
Number of employees 110 | Company turnover w55m (2006) | Brand
values international, vibrant, innovation, integrity | Brand promise
In the meantime, the company has perfected the mounting tech-
niques required for the posters, making the posters resemble giant
billiard cloths that can be illuminated at night and simply look
impeccable. Enforcement of the regulations by municipalities over
everything else is academic´ | Target group Top 250 advertisers
time helped mature the medium.
The giant posters are hugely effective. They have been shown to
have a proven recall rate of over 50% and a leverage effect for
other campaign media. They also offer a perfect opportunity to tar-
get specific target groups, such as corporate, students, or advertis-
ers can simply take over an entire city, blanketing it in a particular
slogan or colour, unheard of before their arrival. With three-dimen-
sional printing and the arrival of interactive features such as Blue-
tooth at a poster site, they have truly entered the 21st century.
blowUP media is now the market leader in Europe, and has started
to create its own demand. To develop the medium further, the com-
pany has entered into partnerships with outdoor media specialists.
It has also developed a strategy to maintain and expand its posi-
tion, based on the following points:
• Strict selection of locations - offering only class-A locations
• Selection of clients - serving only top clients
• Highest level of creativity - generating high impact and free
publicity
• Best problem solution ability
• Greatest flexibility and highest speed
• Customer service excellence
• Added value for advertisers through the blowUP European-
network - making blowUP the only competitor that offers a
pan-European campaign to advertisers
• Unsold positions for blowUP Benelux are given to charities
such as War Child and UNICEF for free
Since its foundation seven years ago, the company has enjoyed an
annual growth rate of 35% and has market shares topping 50%
in many European countries. The customer service focus and huge
impact of their medium means client retention levels are very
high.
In general terms, the medium has a market share of 5% of me-
dia market expenditure and, through companies like blowUP, has
become a standard ingredient in almost all major advertising
campaigns. This market share is expected to increase to 7% soon,
with the final objective being 10% in the long run.
blowUP media is determined to further its market leader strategy
and operational excellence, while keeping a keen eye on new trends
and developments such as increased interactivity and the use of
moving images. Keep an eye out for them. As if you have to…