The Power of the Image to Connect

Whether viewed via social, mobile, print or outdoor, it’s the image that makes the consumer pause, take a look and feel something. In our information-dense world, we have adapted by scanning. We scan emails, headlines, articles and faces in the crowd. At times, even 140 characters can seem like too much copy, but post an arresting image and watch the passersby slow their steps and engage.

Atop The Grand Hotel, Clear Channel Outdoor displayed one of the largest screens in the world to project super-sized brand images to those strolling the Croisette (see photo at top). Heads looked up and shoulders bumped, in spite of the many existing distractions along this busy stretch of the French Riviera. The impact of this magnitude of creative and the energy of the Festival led us to coin the phrase, “Get Seen. Be Loved.”

When Apple’s “World Gallery” campaign was awarded the prestigious Outdoor Grand Prix, the power of emotional connection through visual imagery was reinforced. Most relevant was the fact that Apple displayed user-submitted photos in their creative, making their campaign engaging, interactive and original. The US-originated campaign invited users to take photos with their phones and enter them into a competition using #ShotoniPhone6. Over 150 of the best images were blown up into billboards and displayed around the world, showcasing iPhone’s superior photographic capabilities (see photo below).

This year, the Outdoor Lions attracted 5037 entries -- making it the most popular category at the festival, speaking volumes to the power of this visual medium.

Compelling imagery has always been a core component in out-of-home, and has become increasingly engaging with social, mobile and local apps that invite consumers to inject themselves into the art. Projecting their own creative magic back to our digital screens with photos and ideas provides a stickiness that is measurable and effective. It works because it’s authentic.  

Coca-Cola’s “Share a Coke” campaign, a 2014 Lions recipient, continues to reinvent itself and attract participants. It is a great example of bold imagery, personalization and social marketing that is connecting with consumers again and again. By tagging photos and stories with hashtag #ShareaCoke, consumers are changing the face of Coke’s creative on interactive billboards across the country (see photo below).

Drawing from the success of both Apple and Coca-Cola, here’s how to harness the power of imagery in your outdoor campaign:

Be Authentic

Capture and project moments that are natural and unstaged to create emotional connections.

Use Simple Design

Integrate the right combination of these basic elements: Simplicity. Composition. Humor. Surprise. Intrigue.

Enable Two-Way Communication

Give the audience a way to interact and speak back to the creative by allowing them to share their own.

Create Social Impetus

Great creative extends across borders, nationalities, politics and languages. If it inspires emotion, the consumer will feel it even if the tagline is foreign.

As marketers we touch consumers through sight, sound and emotion. To the brands of the world, find your way to the consumer’s heart: Get Seen. Be Loved.

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