Nielsen launches media currency for Singapore outdoor media

Advertising agencies and advertisers can use it to better measure campaign ROIs.

Nielsen estimates that, based on rate cards, marketers spent US$187.6 million in outdoor advertising in 2011, up 29% compared to 5 years ago. For the first six months of 2012, the outdoor advertising spend in Singapore was US$106.4 million.

Spending is set to grow even more with the launch of its new media currency, Nielsen predicted. The company has already been commissioned by four of Singapore’s leading outdoor media players, Clear Channel Singapore, MediaCorp OOH Media, Moove Media and SMRT, to provide outdoor audience measurement for an initial three-year period.

"This measurement will provide marketers objective insights into the effectiveness of the outdoor media. Nielsen’s Outdoor Study, measures consumers’ exposure to out-of-home marketing and advertising campaigns while they are 'on the go'. The areas that are covered include public spaces, transportation centres, etc," said Nielsen in a release.

Nielsen already provides media “currency” metrics for other media types in Singapore, such as newspapers, magazines and radio.

“Out-Of-Home is an important component in any companies’ total advertising mix. Until recently, the lack of a common set of trusted metrics on the effectiveness of this media posed a challenge to marketers in Singapore as they could not have any visibility into the effectiveness of advertising via this media. We are pleased to be able to work with industry players to provide a solution to this challenge,” said Rebecca Tan, Managing Director, Media Industry Group (Singapore and Malaysia) at Nielsen.

"In addition to giving advertisers more clarity into the return on investment (ROI) for their outdoor campaigns, Nielsen’s outdoor metrics will also enable them to evaluate outdoor media (such as buses and taxis) and other media types using a common set of metrics, such as Reach (how many people saw the advertisement), GRPs (gross rating points), Opportunity To See (OTS) and Time Spent," added Nielsen.

“The ability to talk about an outdoor media buy in the same terms as TV, print and radio will help to increase visibility for this media. More importantly, this measurement system will also provide opportunities for marketers to optimize their advertising spend more effectively across multiple outdoor platforms,” said Tan.