For the future of OOH Advertising
How did the interviewees react to the prototypes?
As explained in the Yesterday section, the mass-reach of OOH Advertising is probably the best advantage of such medium, but exposing crowds of people to irrelevant campaigns is a missed opportunity for OOH. The risk is that adverts get ignored, and companies waste their financial resources.
“If no innovation is brought to OOH advertising, this will die in a few years. At the moment, I see it as a way to fill empty spaces” A. remarked during Phase 01 Interviews.
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In the Prototyping Phase, we learned how Synthetic Media can bring cutting-edge adverts & experiences to life, by also exploiting the power of OOH to reach a broad amount of people, and by personalising such communications on a one-to-one level to give ads more relevancy.
a. On Consent
During Phase 01 Interviews, participants stated that to have an ethical perception of Synthetic Media in Advertising, they would need to give their consent before seeing their personal images and data re-elaborated in adverts. Phase 02 revealed something more.
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Adding value & limits to consider: double consent
Picking on the examples from my prototypes, some interviewees claimed that in Prototype no. 3 they felt in a safer space compared to the other two. The advantage of this experience is that it totally relies on visitors' intention to participate to it, and consent is asked twice: during the collection of personal data, and when the visitor decides to enter the immersive environment.
Because of their setting, the street, Prototype no. 1 and 2 might appear less favourable, as we are forced to see the advert, like any other billboard we normally see on the street.
G.(1) defined Prototype no. 3 as healthy advertising, adding: "compared to the other two ones, no one is throwing me an advert on the street, and no one is forcing me to stare at it. Here, you are given the chance to decide to participate in the experience or not. You're the one that decides".
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This teaches us something about the directions that OOH advertising should take in the future.
As far as I could notice from the interviews, participants don’t particularly have an optimistic consideration of outdoor advertising. They feel bombarded by ads they do not want to see.
What should be our next move then?
Do we keep on irritating audiences by filling the streets with our billboards?
The worst reaction advertisers can possibly receive is when audiences consider their adverts as too pushy, which then leads to aversion. Advertisers must guarantee that their advertising efforts are perceived positively by audiences, and I guess it’s probably time to start cutting down our unhealthy advertising practices if we want to implement Synthetic Media in Outdoor Advertising.
When we go this deep into the personal sphere, and when individuals do not have any choice, at least we should provide them with hints and make them feel part of the process - customers should feel more in control over this journey.
This aspect also connects to the relevancy of first-party data over third-party data; you will read more in the section dedicated to hyper-personalisation.
b. On Capturing Attention
While commenting the prototypes, A. claimed: “As I said the other time, I am not paying much attention to OOH ads, I am looking at them, but I am not really looking at them. When adverts go so personal like in the first prototype, and when I see my face on a billboard, my attention is definitely grabbed. I now see a possible future for this type of advertising”.
Participants were not familiar with the potential to see themselves on billboards, which resulted in a surprise-effect. Indeed, novelty constitutes an effective trick to capture attention and make OOH ads stand out.
Despite this, the workshops showed that it’s not only a matter of novelty... you will discover why.
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Adding value & limits to consider: ego
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As you are aware, I intended to apply Synthetic Media in Fashion Advertising to appreciate the uniqueness of every participant’s physical appearance, counting on the idea that Fashion Advertising should be more representative of the average society.
Phase 02 Interviews raised bigger debates around our conception of beauty and the perception we have of ourselves. I realised that participants who possess a high level of self-esteem were attracted to seeing their faces in ads the most. A high degree of self-esteem also corresponded to a stimulus to look into the brand’s products later on, not only because the participant’s attention is caught by the advert, but because the advert boosted their confidence even more. “It triggers my ego”, C(1) said.
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However, while experimenting with deepfakes, we must be extremely careful because some might react differently to what they see. During the interviews, I noticed a slightly divergent response coming from those who tended to be more critical of their physical appearance. One of the interviewees said: “I think it just made me reflect how I’d actually look on a billboard, and how different the billboard-me is from the actual me. It’s kind of odd because that is the version of me that is good enough to be put on a billboard, the same way that the real version of me is not good enough to be put there”, but she also added: “My attention is captured because I look good in this advert, and this is triggering me to buy that jacket too. It’s as if I were buying that version of myself, where I am well dressed and I have perfect hair”.
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The discussion is getting broader now. Undoubtedly, we still have a long way to go to solve the issues of the fashion advertising industry, an intrinsically fake world.
Conscious that it might sound like an oxymoron, I believe that exploiting Synthetic Media in this way not only increases the chances of capturing individuals’ attention, but it might also strengthen the idea of more truthful advertising. Through deepfakes, it becomes easier to show our faces and bodies in adverts, not models with unattainable physical features. Advertisers know it well: ads must be appealing somehow, and even though the billboard-us looks better, it’s still displaying us.
The interviews also showed that using Synthetic Media within this type of personalisation results as a solution that stimulates participants to feel more represented, identified, and connected with fashion brands, which is our goal. As indicated during the workshops, even though Synthetic Media is fake content, it’s still realistic - way more realistic than what traditional fashion adverts usually convey.
"What makes Prototype no. 1 attractive to you?"
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C(2): "The fact that it’s me on the ad... it’s not something that happens every day, I am not a model. It makes me feel like I am a model, and I like it”.
c. On Hyper-Personalisation
As supposed in Theme 03, personalising OOH adverts might be an ideal direction to embrace in some circumstances, and the interviews just confirmed that in this case, it definitely is. A notable insight came from one of the interviewees who tends to have a particular aversion towards the world of advertising. During Phase 02 Interviews, she particularly pointed out that “personalisation makes the advertising experience more worth it”.
At this stage, we are not even taking standard personalisation into account. We are acknowledging that Synthetic Media has the potential to bring personalisation in OOH to the next level, it’s transforming its nature, because more than ever, adverts are focused on our person, not on groups of people.
This makes me question the type of personalisation we encounter in OOH today: is it outdated already?
With Synthetic Media, will the future be hyper-personalised?
Let’s discover more about hyper-personalisation in the following paragraphs.
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Our starting point: first-party data
To hyper-personalise well, the workshops showed that first-party data should be preferable than third-party data.
C(2) specifically pointed out: "When you ask for consent from customers, ask them in what way they should be portrayed in the ad, ask them for their opinion and feedback. If the outcome is to build stronger connections with customers and let them feel more identified, then what's better than asking them what they would like to see? Regarding that, I feel like brands sometimes forget that they are customers, they think in the same way as us, they have to detach from profit, and be more human".
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Moreover, an article on Ad Age discusses that "the death of the cookie should be a wake-up call for marketers to stop relying on tracking technology and start engaging consumers in the same way they communicate among themselves conversationally. Be bold, be transparent in how you intend to use consumer data, and get it straight from the source" (Glomb, 2021, n.p.).
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Not only this helps brands orientate in the creation of hyper-personalised adverts, but it can also reduce the possible discontent that is caused when people see content they don't expect, disagree with, dislike, or do not associate themselves with, which is more likely to happen in absence of direct communication with customers.
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Limits to consider & adding value: privacy and rewards
When it comes to hyper-personalisation, we also have to remember that we mustn't exceed its ethical boundaries. We all have aspects of our lives that we do not want to share, imagine seeing them on giant billboards, a big no-no. Following this perspective, interviewees suggested that they would be more positively inclined towards hyper-personalisation when this doesn't go too deep into their private life.
One of the participants suggested: "I like this prototype, but I only want to see situations that I normally share on social media. I want to see my social life. For example, imagine seeing yourself wearing pyjamas or something that enters more into your personal life. That's something I would keep for myself because it goes too personal".
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Plus, the lesson from Phase 02 Interviews is that when customers give their data, they also expect something back - letting brands 'intrude into our privacy' must be rewarded. Many directions can be considered, but in our case, we specifically focus on emotions and usefulness, brought up during the interviews.
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Emotions
Interviewees recognised how emotions shaped their perception of the three different prototypes. Positive feelings corresponded to the likelihood to prefer one experience amongst the others, and vice-versa.
G(2) said: "Prototype no. 3 made me feel very emotional in a way. It made me think about culture-specific brands that we had in early 2000. (..) Prototype no. 2 and 3 are more focused on you. So, they are the ones I liked the most".
G(1) had a similar take on this. The prototype made her feel more confident with herself. She felt that by going out of that space, she would be in such a positive mood because of the feeling she had by imagining herself surrounded by different people, music that she likes, new cool clothes. She also commented: "I experienced how it feels to wear that product, so I would have an additional reason to be interested in buying it".
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Usefulness
As well as the power of emotions, we have usefulness. All the participants appreciated how helpful all the three pieces of work were - another option for reward. In this way, Synthetic Media would undoubtedly ease people's lives to different extents. Prototype no. 1 helps people establish how garments might suit them; Prototype no. 2 contextualises the adverts; and then, Prototype no. 3 does both by adding the experience layer.
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Brands must consider that customers give out their data for a reason. Personalisation, as I mentioned in Theme 03, is not always the solution to aim at all costs - not all personalisation is done well. And it's not about delivering relevant communications so that customers won't feel annoyed, that's to catch their attention. Personalisation, especially when done this way, needs to be a win-win situation where both the brand and the customer get something back out of this experience.
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Providing customers with useful tools is discussed more in detail in the following section which focuses on the prototypes' impact on the future of physical stores and e-commerce in fashion.
Beyond
Advertising
Observations for the future of Fashion
In relation to fashion advertising, applying Synthetic Media emerged as a convenient solution. The prototypes helped interviewees visualise how they would suit garments without having to imagine it, and according to participants, this sets a step ahead in the purchasing journey, not only because they would pay more attention to the advert, but because they might not need to try clothing on.
G(1) particularly noticed how helpful this would be for busy shoppers: "Not everyone has the time to look for new clothes to buy, and for the most indecisive it usually takes a long time. A solution like this could simplify this process, suggesting individuals the items they might like based on their personal information. In this way, the busiest and the most indecisive have the chance to put less effort in their search for clothing".
Moreover, these methods could also set the pillars for a more inclusive fashion industry by overcoming the barriers of gender classification, for instance. Who stabilised that women's clothing must be worn exclusively by women, indeed? Think about cross-dressers.
In this sense, we can also exploit Synthetic Media to align adverts to each person's unique fashion choices.
The following paragraphs highlight some relevant observations that transpired during the interviews.
For the future of physical stores
Focus on Prototype no. 3
Enhancing the experience
Considering that we are facing a moment where offline stores are suffering the competition with e-commerce platforms, what if the ideas behind Prototype no. 3 were the key to revolutionise the in-store experience? Due to hygienic measures, clothing try-on is no longer the advantage of physical stores. More than ever, the distinctive element of brick-and-mortar shops is in the experience: the interiors, the music, human interactions.
Prototype no. 3 combines both: (digital) clothing try-on, and the experience, which is personalised and enhanced by adding synthetic features in physical spaces.
G(1) is of the idea that "The concept of Prototype no. 3 is very cool, you see yourself wearing clothes that you might actually like, and you also might feel more confident, with happy people surrounding you. I guess I will go out of this place in such a good mood because it positively impacts on the way I feel. Then, I would maybe check the products shown to me, and maybe I am even going to buy them - because I got to experience how it feels to wear them, and if it made me feel good, then it will be a positive reason that makes me buy them".
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For the future of e-commerce
Focus on Prototype no. 1 & Prototype no. 2
Synthetic Media is also extremely associable to virtual worlds. For example, using deepfakes to personalise online experiences might be very effective for a fashion e-commerce, as it will allow customers to see themselves wearing the garments they're interested in, and better judge whether to proceed with the purchase or not. C(2) underlined: "This idea is super effective for me. If I realise I like myself in that new dress, and I also like the situation in which I am shown, I don't even have to try clothing on because I'll buy it online. It would be very useful for e-commerce platforms".
The same theory applies to the so-called Metaverse, Meta (ex-Facebook)'s online virtual environment where individuals can use their avatars to play, interact, and work. This allows for greater opportunities in terms of online shopping and personalisation with Synthetic Media.