Out-of-Home Advertising Shines as ‘Human Medium’: OAAA’s Anna Bager
CANNES, France – Anna Bager, president and chief executive of the Out of Home Advertising Association of America, arrived at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity with a reassuring message for advertisers: The public still goes outside.
In an interview with Beet.TV contributor David Kaplan, Bager described out-of-home advertising as the “human medium.” It reaches people during their daily routines through billboards, transit displays, digital screens and other formats that do not require a password or a plea to accept cookies.
“We’re a medium you can’t skip, we’re a medium you can’t block,” Bager said. She added that out-of-home advertising has “very little, if any, fraud.”
That positioning highlights one of the sector’s clearest advantages. Its audience exists in physical places, rather than somewhere inside an algorithm’s mysterious attic.
“Our audiences aren’t going anywhere,” Bager said. “They’re there in real life and they’re human.”
Bager said consumers also tend to regard the medium as useful rather than disruptive. Outdoor displays can carry advertising, hurricane alerts and notices about missing people. In other words, the same screen that promotes a soft drink may later help the public prepare for a storm.
Measurement gets a long-awaited makeover
Kaplan noted that measurement has been a persistent challenge for the industry. Bager acknowledged the problem, though she said it is becoming easier to solve.
“It’s not as hard to measure anymore as it used to be,” she said.
The Out of Home Advertising Association of America is working with Geopath, the industry organization that provides audience measurement, to modernize the system. The groups spent about a year consulting advertisers, agencies and technology companies about what they needed.
That work led to the selection of Ipsos as the pilot partner for a new measurement system. Testing is underway, with a revamped product expected in 2027.
The goal is to improve audience measurement and make out-of-home results easier to compare with other media. The system is also expected to support programmatic transactions, attribution and media mix modeling.
That could help the sector escape its old reputation as the charming but difficult member of the advertising family.
Billboards want a seat at the performance table
Bager said out-of-home advertising should no longer be treated only as a tool for splashy product launches or brand campaigns.
“Advertisers should also think about it as a performance medium,” she said.
Better automation and data can allow buyers to reach audiences across formats and coordinate outdoor placements with television, retail media and digital campaigns. A message might appear near a store, follow a major television push or change according to the location and moment.
Digital out-of-home formats also give advertisers more freedom to update creative work quickly. Bager said that ability can make a campaign more relevant to consumers where they are, which remains a useful concept even after the advertising industry has invented several thousand alternative ways to say it.
Pharma and football offer room for growth
Pharmaceutical advertising represents a major opportunity, according to Bager. Television viewers already encounter a steady stream of drug commercials, often accompanied by disclaimers long enough to develop their own side effects.
Out-of-home formats can extend those campaigns beyond television. Bager said the industry has also found ways to handle disclaimers that previously made pharmaceutical advertising difficult.
Major cultural and sporting events present another promising market. Bager pointed to FIFA matches in the United States, saying inventory had nearly sold out in host locations.
“That’s really where Out of Home hits above its weight, around those types of events,” she said.
The appeal is straightforward. Large events gather people in shared spaces and advertisers tend to follow, preferably with signs large enough to be seen from another postal code.
Cannes becomes the industry’s favorite exhibit
Bager argued that out-of-home advertising belongs within broader media plans, rather than being reserved for occasional stunts. It can build brands, support product launches and drive measurable action.
Cannes Lions itself offered her strongest visual aid.
“Cannes is just one large Out of Home execution, let’s just face it,” Bager said.
She cited the festival’s billboards, signage, activations and branded experiences. Many promoted products unrelated to outdoor advertising while relying heavily on outdoor advertising to get noticed.
For an industry seeking a larger share of media budgets, that is a convenient punchline. Advertising executives may debate the value of out-of-home media inside conference rooms, then step outside and walk directly into the evidence.
You’re watching The Beet.TV Leadership Sessions at Cannes Lions 2026, presented by OAAA. For more videos from this series, please visit this page. You can find all of our coverage from Cannes Lions 2026 here.
CANNES, France – Anna Bager, president and chief executive of the Out of Home Advertising Association of America, arrived at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity with a reassuring message for advertisers: The public still goes outside.
In an interview with Beet.TV contributor David Kaplan, Bager described out-of-home advertising as the “human medium.” It reaches people during their daily routines through billboards, transit displays, digital screens and other formats that do not require a password or a plea to accept cookies.
“We’re a medium you can’t skip, we’re a medium you can’t block,” Bager said. She added that out-of-home advertising has “very little, if any, fraud.”
That positioning highlights one of the sector’s clearest advantages. Its audience exists in physical places, rather than somewhere inside an algorithm’s mysterious attic.
“Our audiences aren’t going anywhere,” Bager said. “They’re there in real life and they’re human.”
Bager said consumers also tend to regard the medium as useful rather than disruptive. Outdoor displays can carry advertising, hurricane alerts and notices about missing people. In other words, the same screen that promotes a soft drink may later help the public prepare for a storm.
Measurement gets a long-awaited makeover
Kaplan noted that measurement has been a persistent challenge for the industry. Bager acknowledged the problem, though she said it is becoming easier to solve.
“It’s not as hard to measure anymore as it used to be,” she said.
The Out of Home Advertising Association of America is working with Geopath, the industry organization that provides audience measurement, to modernize the system. The groups spent about a year consulting advertisers, agencies and technology companies about what they needed.
That work led to the selection of Ipsos as the pilot partner for a new measurement system. Testing is underway, with a revamped product expected in 2027.
The goal is to improve audience measurement and make out-of-home results easier to compare with other media. The system is also expected to support programmatic transactions, attribution and media mix modeling.
That could help the sector escape its old reputation as the charming but difficult member of the advertising family.
Billboards want a seat at the performance table
Bager said out-of-home advertising should no longer be treated only as a tool for splashy product launches or brand campaigns.
“Advertisers should also think about it as a performance medium,” she said.
Better automation and data can allow buyers to reach audiences across formats and coordinate outdoor placements with television, retail media and digital campaigns. A message might appear near a store, follow a major television push or change according to the location and moment.
Digital out-of-home formats also give advertisers more freedom to update creative work quickly. Bager said that ability can make a campaign more relevant to consumers where they are, which remains a useful concept even after the advertising industry has invented several thousand alternative ways to say it.
Pharma and football offer room for growth
Pharmaceutical advertising represents a major opportunity, according to Bager. Television viewers already encounter a steady stream of drug commercials, often accompanied by disclaimers long enough to develop their own side effects.
Out-of-home formats can extend those campaigns beyond television. Bager said the industry has also found ways to handle disclaimers that previously made pharmaceutical advertising difficult.
Major cultural and sporting events present another promising market. Bager pointed to FIFA matches in the United States, saying inventory had nearly sold out in host locations.
“That’s really where Out of Home hits above its weight, around those types of events,” she said.
The appeal is straightforward. Large events gather people in shared spaces and advertisers tend to follow, preferably with signs large enough to be seen from another postal code.
Cannes becomes the industry’s favorite exhibit
Bager argued that out-of-home advertising belongs within broader media plans, rather than being reserved for occasional stunts. It can build brands, support product launches and drive measurable action.
Cannes Lions itself offered her strongest visual aid.
“Cannes is just one large Out of Home execution, let’s just face it,” Bager said.
She cited the festival’s billboards, signage, activations and branded experiences. Many promoted products unrelated to outdoor advertising while relying heavily on outdoor advertising to get noticed.
For an industry seeking a larger share of media budgets, that is a convenient punchline. Advertising executives may debate the value of out-of-home media inside conference rooms, then step outside and walk directly into the evidence.
You’re watching The Beet.TV Leadership Sessions at Cannes Lions 2026, presented by OAAA. For more videos from this series, please visit this page. You can find all of our coverage from Cannes Lions 2026 here.
