Ready, set, hike your brand into the end zone with DOOH this football season

During the NCAAF and NFL drafts, teams plan and secure top-notch players who will bring them to victory later in the season. Everything is meticulously considered ahead of time, with each player bringing a unique skill set to execute the plays during games. With marketing, it’s no different. Brands plan full-scale campaigns and draft multiple tactics to come together and launch a successful omnichannel campaign.

To achieve a game-winning strategy, advertisers should plan their defensive and offensive plays (or placements) across digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising, CTV, social media, and other channels to create a cohesive experience for consumers. We’re breaking down key placements brands should consider to reach sports fans this upcoming football season. 

Digital out-of-home playbook with campaign-winning strategies

Let’s break it down. Developing an omnichannel marketing strategy is crucial to ensure that brands are reaching their audience from all angles. By adding DOOH to the mix, you’re essentially securing the number one draft pick of the season. Consider the following venue types and environments to reach your target audience:

DOOH Game Plays:

1. Sports Bar Blitz: Where do the majority of people go to watch a game? According to Tiger Pistol, an overwhelming number of adults say they watch games at on-premise venues—including 91% of those aged 21–34, 89% of those aged 35–54, and 63% of those aged 55 and above. Place ads in bars and restaurants during pre-game warm-ups, halftime breaks, and post-game celebrations to capture attention at peak moments of engagement. These environments are ideal for alcohol and beverage brands, sports betting apps, or quick service restaurants (QSR). 

2. Stadium Surround: Go beyond the walls of the stadium. Use DOOH to geo-fence around arenas and target locations with dense zones of fan loyalty. From billboards on the way to the game to screens in residential lobbies, you’ll keep your brand top of mind as fans commute, tailgate, and return home.

3. Dynamic Wins: Real-time game updates keep ads interesting. With DOOH, your creative can shift with live score changes, highlight big plays, or celebrate a victory. Imagine your brand delivering a congratulatory message seconds after a touchdown, or pushing an offer if the home team wins. For example, a QSR brand could run a promotion that aligns with a specific team making an interception during the game. Given the right play, everyone gets free fries with any in-app purchase. Cmon, who doesn’t love free fries?

4. Pregame Picks: Most people head to a friend’s house or host their own watch party for the game. Either way, everyone has the essentials: snacks and beer. Digital screens at grocery, convenience, and liquor stores reach consumers on the path to purchase. You’ll remain top of mind as fans stock up on chips, guacs, and beverages.

5. Seamless Programmatic Plays: Activate your campaign across various placements, including billboards, urban panels, and more, to maximize impact and minimize hassle. Under a streamlined deal ID, you can access more than 130,000 digital screens across 20 networks in the Screenverse portfolio. Think of it as leveraging all of the above plays, and the result? An unbeatable campaign.

Scoring an unreachable audience: How OOH extends CTV’s reach

The switch to streaming and decline of cable, aka ‘cord-cutting’, has been significant. With cord-cutters spending their time on streaming, Connected TV (CTV) provides valuable reach into the 46% of households that have ad-supported plans. CTV is simply television delivered through the internet—think ads on streaming platforms viewed on a big screen, rather than through traditional cable viewed in living rooms. When paired with OOH, brands amplify that impact by capturing audiences in the real world, extending frequency and coverage.

But what about the growing segment of households that pay for ad-free streaming? Those audiences are “unreachable” for traditional digital advertising—yet they can be reached through digital out-of-home (DOOH). A five-year study by Kantar and Clear Channel Outdoor found that OOH not only fills these gaps but also outperforms CTV, TV, and digital channels in key metrics.

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This is where Screenverse comes in. Our digital place-based networks in restaurants and bars, entertainment venues, and other key commercial environments with high dwell time deliver contextually relevant, one-to-many impressions. For sports fans, that means catching a campaign at the bar during halftime. For cord-cutters, it means encountering brand messages in everyday, real-world moments.

Screenverse CEO and Co-Founder David Weinfeld believes in the power of DOOH and streaming video out-of-home. “The future of video and CTV isn’t confined to the living room. It’s everywhere we live, work, play, and experience moments that matter in the physical world,” he shared.

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Turning plays into points with dynamic creative optimization

Once you’ve run your opening plays and incorporated DOOH into your media mix, it’s time to take it to the next level. Dynamic Creative Optimization (DCO) is an advanced form of programmatic advertising that utilizes data inputs to automatically create, iterate, and optimize personalized ads in real time. This innovative technology enables advertisers to set dynamic campaigns that trigger under specific conditions—ultimately allowing brands to connect with their audiences on a personal level and significantly boosting engagement.

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There are many ways to utilize this, but here are some of our favorites:

• Game-Triggered Ads: Change creative instantly based on score changes or final outcomes. Example: “Celebrate the win—$1 fries today only!” if the home team wins.
• Opponent-Specific Messaging: Tailor copy depending on who’s playing. For example, DraftKings might run “Bet Big on the Giants vs. Eagles” dynamically swapped depending on the market. 
• Fan Incentives & Promotions: What’s even better than a victory for your team? Something free to help celebrate. Promotions like “Free coffee tomorrow if the Jets score 3+ touchdowns” sound pretty good to us.
• Localized Targeting: Let’s be real, Eagles fans and Giants fans couldn’t be more different. With DCO, you can deliver different messaging to fans in New York vs. Philly, even if it’s the same national campaign

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Don’t fumble your campaign, it’s time for DOOH

Pre-season has already kicked off, and the clock is running down. The NCAAF and NFL season is fueled with passion, excitement, and energy, and digital out-of-home extends omnichannel games beyond the living room to meet fans wherever they are. Don’t fumble your campaign—team up with Screenverse and we’ll help you draft a playbook for victory.

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