Capturing the Working Daypart Audience: The Case for Advertising to Professionals Throughout the Day

The first radio ad was a live corporate presentation that aired in 1922. The script was read over the airwaves by a corporate representative at 5:15 pm. The timing of that spot helped ensure the message was received by its intended audience. 

The “emotional” appeal clearly stated how the advertiser could fulfill consumer needs, objections were anticipated and addressed, and the announcer presented their new apartment building as an attractive alternative to owning a home in the suburbs. The creators of our nation’s first radio ad clearly understood the importance of creating well-timed content intended to appeal to a specific demographic.

Although the technology today’s advertisers rely on has clearly evolved beyond the confines of print ads, radio spots, and network television, the concept of carefully targeted ad placement is nothing new. But even with today’s enthusiastic embrace of digital technology, many agencies find it increasingly difficult to reach high-value professional audiences.

While there was a time you could count on reaching this key demographic during evening and weekend hours, recent polls suggest 70-80% of internet users scroll past sponsored search results, and more than 40% take advantage of ad-blocking software. If you want to stay ahead of the competition, it may be time to revise your strategy. 

Consider adding office media solutions to capture the attention of busy professionals at peak times to influence purchase decisions. This hard-to-reach but highly influential time of day is the working daypart—effectively reaching people during their work day. 

For B2B brands, this means advertising to decision makers at precisely the time when purchase decisions are discussed, made, and executed.  For B2C brands, this means advertising to high-value consumers during the long stretch of time when they’re at work—where they online shop, run errands & research products.  

The Case for Advertising to High-Value Professionals During Office Hours

As an advertiser, you likely place a great deal of importance on where your client’s ads are displayed. Chances are you rely on multiple channels to ensure they get the best return for their advertising dollar. While there’s no reason to abandon your entire ad placement strategy, the daypart audience allows you to reach a segment of the population that cannot be easily reached during the workday.

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Much of a professional’s life happens at the office—online shopping, booking travel, researching products/services, and running errands at lunch. Today’s professionals are taking strides to achieve a better work-life balance by accomplishing personal and professional tasks during business hours. Companies have accepted that these may now be normal workplace activities—and brands can benefit by reaching people and influencing decisions as these activities are happening.   

Recent polls suggest decision makers are making important purchasing decisions—and purchases—from office computers and locations nearby. That shift in workplace culture provides ample opportunities for advertisers to connect with these high-value professionals long before they’re heading home for the day.

One study notes that over half of American workers—a whopping 57%—shop online while at work. For the 140 million workers that do this, the time adds up: about 234 million hours a day are spent browsing online. Advertising agencies are turning this shift in workplace culture to their advantage by fine-tuning their efforts with dayparting. 

While daypart strategies can be applied just about anywhere your agency is placing ads online, some of today’s most successful campaigns are capturing the attention of busy professionals on a digital out-of-home (DOOH) office media network that engages them with relevant content right alongside ads that meet their needs and appeal to their interests.

What Is Digital Out-of-Home Advertising?

The concept of out-of-home advertising is nothing new. For decades, advertising agencies have commissioned billboards, invested in extravagant wallscapes in prime locations, and decorated buses for the sole purpose of attracting consumer attention as they go about their day. 

While out-of-home advertising strategies have the potential to capture the attention of a large, diverse audience multiple times per day, many ad agency clients are hesitant to invest because of concerns about their inability to reach highly-targeted audiences, the overall quality of most out-of-home impressions, and the increasingly high cost. After all, it takes a dramatic increase in revenue to ensure a favorable return.

Instead of billboards and signs, digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising is shown on digital screens in public spaces. It’s the type of advertising you’ll often see in airport terminals, check-out lines, gyms, and the lobbies and elevators in office buildings. 

With the unique capacity of DOOH technology to merge online and offline marketing campaigns, industry analysts anticipate a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of more than 11% between 2022 and 2032. DOOH screens are so popular that many multi-family and off-campus student apartments list them as an amenity.

Why Are Agencies Using Daypart Advertising on DOOH Screens?

Digital out-of-home advertising works on the same principle as a strategically placed billboard— but is far more cost-effective. With dayparting, these signage screens use data to display content automatically targeted to the interests of the people most likely to be in their immediate vicinity at any given time. 

DOOH campaigns can also be further refined to ensure their advertising is relevant for the time of day, weather conditions, or any number of variables. With the right DOOH partner, advertising agencies have everything they need to leverage their access to a vast network of digital screens located in premium locations where notoriously hard-to-reach professionals live and work.

The best DOOH advertising partners ensure ads are placed alongside the type of expertly curated content busy professionals value, including weather updates, entertainment news, stock market reports, health information, and real-time transit data.

Clients also have the option of working in partnership with media partners to create custom brand integrations tailored to better achieve campaign goals, including content alignments, dynamic creative, the use of scannable QR codes their target audience can use to claim coupon codes, participate in surveys, or find additional information about a product or service. 

Together, these advantages offer ad agencies the ability to keep offline audiences engaged while helping their clients maximize the return on their investment. Unlike the rather restrictive home advertising methods of the past, digital out-of-home ad placement strategies delivering lackluster results can be quickly altered and refined as needed.

What Should Agencies Interested in Engaging the Working Daypart Look for in a DOOH Partner?

With the demand for digital-of-home advertising expected to increase dramatically over the next few years, you’ll likely find multiple companies offering various levels of service. As you’re browsing your options, it’s important to understand that service capabilities, audience targeting capabilities, and quality assurances can vary considerably from one provider to the next. 

Experience matters. So do network size and screen locations. The best media partners offer an expansive network of screens located in premium spaces and display your client’s ads when influential business professionals are most likely to be receptive. They’ll also work with you to ensure customized content and custom executions, dynamic integrations, and creative display options, including the ability to choose between standard and large-format ad products. 

With the right partnership, your clients also reap the rewards of highly advanced targeting capabilities based on job title, company size, geographic location, and more. Once you’ve narrowed your options to providers you feel meet those all-important requirements, you’ll want to consider how they compare based on the following criteria.

Providing a Brand-Safe Environment

Poorly managed ad placement can have lasting repercussions on brand image. While the concept is open to a fair amount of interpretation, your clients will appreciate having assurances that their content won’t be associated with digital programming that could be considered inflammatory, factually questionable, or inappropriate in any way. Even appearing alongside a tragic news story is enough to tarnish consumer perception. To ensure your agency is protecting your client, verify you’ll be working with a service provider committed to partnerships with reputable content providers that maintain a controversy-free, brand-safe environment.

Ensuring Content is Displayed in Appropriate Locations

A digital screen displaying little more than a steady stream of ads won’t keep viewers engaged. Partner with a company that has access to a wide range of content providers to ensure your client’s ads will be placed alongside engaging stories, compelling information in captive environments that ensure viewer engagement. To get a better idea of how the service works and how your ads will be displayed, look for access to a live feed or service demonstration. 

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In addition, the physical location of your ad placement is an important consideration. Your clients expect their content to be viewed in brand-appropriate locations, and the right office media provider will offer only high-value locations for the best ROI.  

Integrating Advanced Targeting Capabilities

Your agency’s ability to reach working daypart audiences shouldn’t require a significant investment of your time. With the right provider, your agency provides the ad, defines the target audience, and sets the budget; your DOOH partner provides a plan that maximizes reach against your campaign parameters using  highly advanced targeting analytics solutions.  

But that doesn’t mean your DOOH partner should leave you feeling out of the loop. Take a moment or two to confirm the network provider you select also offers custom research solutions and the ability to track key performance indicators for every campaign.  

See How Digital Screens in Offices Can Help Your Agency Capture the Attention of a Working Daypart Audience

The average American spends about 40% of their time engaged with their screens. Although dayparting helps ensure you’re optimizing content placement, many high-value consumers upgrade to ad-free streaming services, download ad blockers, and scroll right past content that isn’t aligned with their immediate needs. 

Partnering with an established office media provider with a premium network of displays helps ensure your clients reach high-value consumers in a way that feels far less intrusive. If your agency could benefit from adding one of the fastest-growing sectors of ad technology to your digital arsenal, visit Captivate to learn more about our vast network of digital screens and engaging, high-quality content.

At Captivate, we place your ads in Class A office towers across North America on our vast network of digital screens— alongside relevant news reports, entertainment news and tech reports, weather updates, stock market reports, health information, and other engaging content busy professionals care about. We’ve also partnered with measurement & attribution providers to track campaign performance.

To expand your ability to connect with the working daypart audience, book a demonstration. When you partner with our team, you can explore customized brand alignments and count on the peace of mind that comes with knowing you’re offering a digital office media solution that provides unrivaled access to high-value professional audiences at multiple touchpoints throughout their workday. Let’s get started!