Can Billboards Rise Above the AI Slop? Outfront’s Hackett Bets on Trust
As AI-generated content, bots, and autoplaying video crowd the screens in people’s pockets, some in out-of-home advertising think the scarcity of verifiably human attention could make the humble billboard a more valuable buy.
Out-of-home sellers argue that seeing a brand in the physical world builds a layer of trust that helps search, social, and CTV campaigns work harder. The sector is now trying to back up that claim with research and digital-style buying and measurement.
“Out of home has had an incredible transformation over the last few years, moving into the digital space,” said Jeff Hackett, svp, head of digital strategy, Outfront Media, in this video interview with Beet.TV. He said the change covered both screens and how Outfront tries to “meet the needs of digital buyers today.”
Measurable is not the same as effective
David Kaplan, contributor, Beet.TV, asked whether marketers over-invest in digital media because it is easy to buy and measure. In response, Hackett recalled an old co-worker’s saying: “Just because you can measure something doesn’t mean you should.”
“I understand, having spent over 25 years in digital media specifically, how easy it is to activate, to target, to measure,” he said. “But… what we’re seeing now is a lot of those digital environments are becoming harder to navigate as a user.”
Hackett cited ads that pop over content and video that “autoplays with volume on.” He said out-of-home lets marketers “get back to creating those lasting impacts.” Emarketer forecasts that U.S. out-of-home ad spending will exceed $11 billion in 2026, with digital out-of-home at nearly $4.8 billion.
Trust before reach
“For a long time, we thought reach was the ultimate KPI… we now know that you have to do better than just reach people,” Hackett said. “You have to reach them in an environment where you’re creating trust and credibility for the brand.”
Outfront commissioned Kantar to test that idea. When out-of-home ran alongside online or TV, 74% of consumers rated the brand as trustworthy and credible, according to the Kantar study. The question for buyers is whether that trust converts into sales or stays as goodwill.
“If you build that foundation, that physical layer of media in the real world, and then reach consumers on their digital devices, on their CTV apps, on their social media apps, the impact is that much greater,” Hackett said.
Unskippable, and not bots
Hackett said real-world media “gives marketers a chance to rise above the AI slop.” AI can help with productivity, he said, but it also “can introduce some doubt… on whether that video they’re watching or that post that they’re seeing… was even created or written by a human.”
“We’re not serving ads to bots. That’s not a thing yet,” he said. “Ironically, some of our fastest growing categories this year include AI because even the AI software companies and tech companies realize they’ve got to reach people in those memorable, unskippable, trustworthy moments.”
Hackett, about six months into the role, said clients are holding Outfront accountable for outcomes and for how it works with other channels. “Beyond things like MMM, which are all really important… how can we get search back to the performance that it used to drive or get social back to the interest and the followers that it used to build for brands?”
As AI-generated content, bots, and autoplaying video crowd the screens in people’s pockets, some in out-of-home advertising think the scarcity of verifiably human attention could make the humble billboard a more valuable buy.
Out-of-home sellers argue that seeing a brand in the physical world builds a layer of trust that helps search, social, and CTV campaigns work harder. The sector is now trying to back up that claim with research and digital-style buying and measurement.
“Out of home has had an incredible transformation over the last few years, moving into the digital space,” said Jeff Hackett, svp, head of digital strategy, Outfront Media, in this video interview with Beet.TV. He said the change covered both screens and how Outfront tries to “meet the needs of digital buyers today.”
Measurable is not the same as effective
David Kaplan, contributor, Beet.TV, asked whether marketers over-invest in digital media because it is easy to buy and measure. In response, Hackett recalled an old co-worker’s saying: “Just because you can measure something doesn’t mean you should.”
“I understand, having spent over 25 years in digital media specifically, how easy it is to activate, to target, to measure,” he said. “But… what we’re seeing now is a lot of those digital environments are becoming harder to navigate as a user.”
Hackett cited ads that pop over content and video that “autoplays with volume on.” He said out-of-home lets marketers “get back to creating those lasting impacts.” Emarketer forecasts that U.S. out-of-home ad spending will exceed $11 billion in 2026, with digital out-of-home at nearly $4.8 billion.
Trust before reach
“For a long time, we thought reach was the ultimate KPI… we now know that you have to do better than just reach people,” Hackett said. “You have to reach them in an environment where you’re creating trust and credibility for the brand.”
Outfront commissioned Kantar to test that idea. When out-of-home ran alongside online or TV, 74% of consumers rated the brand as trustworthy and credible, according to the Kantar study. The question for buyers is whether that trust converts into sales or stays as goodwill.
“If you build that foundation, that physical layer of media in the real world, and then reach consumers on their digital devices, on their CTV apps, on their social media apps, the impact is that much greater,” Hackett said.
Unskippable, and not bots
Hackett said real-world media “gives marketers a chance to rise above the AI slop.” AI can help with productivity, he said, but it also “can introduce some doubt… on whether that video they’re watching or that post that they’re seeing… was even created or written by a human.”
“We’re not serving ads to bots. That’s not a thing yet,” he said. “Ironically, some of our fastest growing categories this year include AI because even the AI software companies and tech companies realize they’ve got to reach people in those memorable, unskippable, trustworthy moments.”
Hackett, about six months into the role, said clients are holding Outfront accountable for outcomes and for how it works with other channels. “Beyond things like MMM, which are all really important… how can we get search back to the performance that it used to drive or get social back to the interest and the followers that it used to build for brands?”
Series Videos
