Why educational institutions should invest in OOH advertising
Schools, colleges, and universities must continuously battle to find ways to stand out and connect with prospective students and their families, and impactful education advertising is key in this endeavour. Out-of-Home (OOH) advertising, including its digital counterpart (DOOH), has proven to be a powerful tool for enhancing visibility, building trust, and driving engagement. This blog explores the value of OOH for educational institutions, offers insights into creating impactful campaigns, and dissects examples of successful education digital marketing.
Why OOH matters for educational institutions
OOH advertising allows educational institutions to reach audiences in their everyday environments. Its ability to deliver high-visibility, memorable campaigns makes it a vital element of any marketing strategy.
Increasing visibility in local areas
For many schools and universities, the local community is their most important audience. Placing OOH ads in high-traffic locations can help to integrate a school’s brand into the local landscape. Prime locations include:
Bus stops and train stations
Shopping centres
High streets
High-traffic transport routes
Having a presence in these environments ensures your institution remains at the forefront of families’ and prospective students’ minds. Ads can be used to highlight what makes your institution unique, and fosters familiarity and trust.
Boosting student engagement
Education advertising isn’t just about reaching parents, older students and other decision-makers; it’s also a valuable tool for connecting with current students. Engaging OOH campaigns that highlight extracurricular opportunities, campus culture, or student testimonials can inspire students to engage more completely with all of the facilities an institution offers.
Advantages of combining OOH and DOOH advertising
Traditional OOH formats will always be effective - but integrating them with DOOH unlocks even greater potential. Together, they offer flexibility and impact that can make it easier to achieve your campaign’s goals - and reach even higher, next time.
Flexibility with DOOH
One of the best things about DOOH is that it allows for dynamic content that can be updated in real-time. Schools and universities can run campaigns tailored to specific audiences, times of day, or even weather conditions (snow day, anyone?).
For instance, a university might promote open day registration during peak travel hours, when most people are guaranteed to pass their ad, or showcase countdowns to application deadlines that update each day. DOOH screens also support video, offering a richer way to tell stories, and can utilise the same content used in your existing education digital marketing efforts.
Long-term brand awareness with OOH
Traditional OOH formats like billboards and posters provide constant visibility over an extended period. Their static presence ensures your message is seen repeatedly, reinforcing your institution’s brand and values. These formats are especially effective for long-term campaigns aimed at building awareness within a community.
Creating effective outdoor advertising for schools and universities
Here are some things to keep in mind when crafting an OOH campaign focused on education advertising.
Designing for impact
OOH ads need to be able to make an impression, fast. Bold visuals and a clear, memorable message are essential. Use vibrant colours, high-quality images, and fonts that are easily read to ensure your ad stands out, even from a distance. Consider incorporating imagery of current students or campus landmarks to come across in an approachable, personable way.
Choosing strategic locations
Strategic location selection ensures your ads are seen by the people most likely to engage with your message, and guarantees your chances of maximising your campaign’s effectiveness.
Aligning with key milestones and dates
Timing your campaign around important dates in the diary, such as open days, application deadlines, exam results, or back-to-school season, ensures relevance and urgency. For example, promoting a sixth-form open evening shortly after GCSE results are announced can capture the attention of students and parents making immediate decisions.
Examples of how to use OOH campaigns in education
Here are a few examples of how you can use OOH as part of your education advertising:
Driving enrollment with outdoor ads
Why should students choose your school or university over any other? You can use outdoor ads to tell them exactly why! Promote things such as:
Outstanding results
Impressive facilities
Vibrant culture
Student satisfaction
Whether students are more academically-minded, or driven by a need to find the right culture fit, present them with the information they need to make that decision and select your school.
Community engagement initiatives
Schools are community hubs, and a number of community initiatives centre around school pupils, volunteers, and facilities. Summer fayres, sports days and charitable events should be promoted and celebrated, and OOH can give you a canvas with which to do just that.
Evaluating the success of your OOH efforts
While it’s good to be confident in your strategy, don’t just assume that it will work. Gather proof in the form of data.
Monitoring key metrics
Tools like QR codes, unique URLs, and social media engagement can help track the effectiveness of your campaigns. Analysing website traffic during the campaign period or monitoring attendance at events promoted via OOH ads provides indisputable evidence of success.
Using insights for future campaigns
Post-campaign reviews should focus on identifying what resonated with your audience. Were specific locations more effective? Did dynamic content perform better than static ads? Use these insights to refine future campaigns, until your education advertising is as optimised as can be.
OOH education advertising with Clear Channel
Investing in OOH advertising allows educational institutions to connect with their communities, build brand awareness, and inspire action. With a targeted approach that speaks to students and their families on a personal level, you can rise above the digital noise and create ads for your school that truly hit home.
We have experience in helping schools, universities, and learning platforms to craft effective OOH advertising strategies. We want our partners to come top of the class in education advertising - get in touch today to find out more.