Publisher’s Note:
Jonathan Graviss (“JG”) is a regular OOH Today contributor whose Thursday columns offer practical advice for OOH operators. Graviss’s observations are based on real-world, extensive industry experience. No fluff or phoniness here. Many sales teams rely on his insights. Start your Year with more substantial revenues with today’s feature. Man! I wish I had his when I managed my OOH Markets back in the day!
“Man! I wish I had his when I managed my OOH Markets back in the day! “
Three Things Independent OOH Operators Need to Be Talking About Right Now
By Jonathan “JG” Graviss, Graviss Marketing
There is a question that comes up in almost every conversation I have with independent OOH operators: why is growth harder than it should be? The inventory is solid. The relationships are real. The effort is there. The answer is almost always the same, and it almost never has anything to do with the boards.
It comes down to three things. And they are the same three things showing up across markets, ownership structures, and years in the business.
why is growth harder than it should be?
The Operators Gaining Share Are Selling Location and Audience
OOH has always been good at selling location. And location is still the medium’s defining strength. No other advertising channel reaches consumers the way OOH does, physically present in the places people move through every day. That advantage does not go away in a data-driven world. It gets stronger when you add a layer to it.
The layer most independent operators have not fully added is audience. When an advertiser is evaluating OOH alongside digital, social, and audio, they are not just comparing locations. They are comparing audience reach, targeting logic, and measurable impact. The operators presenting inventory in terms of both location strength and the audience it delivers are earning a more relevant seat in that conversation. Location gets them in the room. Audience is what closes the gap with every other medium competing for the same budget.
The right location reaching the right audience is exponentially more valuable than either one alone. That is the case most independent operators have not fully learned to make yet.
The right location reaching the right audience is exponentially more valuable than either one alone
What Happens When There Is No Systemized Sales Process
Independent OOH operators often come from other industries. They know their market, they know their inventory, and they are good at building relationships. What many of them have never had is a structured sales process. So they hire account executives and those AEs figure it out as they go, modeling whatever the senior rep does, which itself was never fully documented.
The cost of that is real and specific. Outreach is inconsistent. The funnel dries up because nobody is filling the top of it while managing deals in the middle. Renewals get missed because the 120-day window comes and goes without a system to catch it. And when a strong rep leaves, so does the process, because it was never written down.
A systemized sales process does not replace a rep’s personality or instinct. It gives those things a structure to operate within so the result is not dependent on one person having a great week.
The Difference Between a Tactical Sale and a Strategic Relationship
Signing a contract is not the end of the sale. For most independent OOH operators, it is the last time they have a meaningful conversation with that advertiser until the renewal notice goes out. In between, the advertiser gets invoices. That is not a relationship. That is a billing cycle.
The operators with the strongest retention and the best year-over-year growth are the ones who treat every touch point after the contract as an opportunity to understand the advertiser’s business more deeply. A mid-campaign check-in is not just a courtesy call. It is a customer needs analysis. And that conversation might surface a new location, a new campaign, or a problem your inventory can solve that the advertiser did not think to bring to you.
Industry retention in OOH runs around 70 percent annually. That is a strong foundation. But it also means 30 percent of your revenue base needs to be replaced every year before you can grow. The operators who push that retention rate higher are not doing it with better locations. They are doing it with better relationships.
The Conversation Worth Watching
I recently sat down with Jeff Gunderman at the Digital Out of Home Academy to go deeper on all three of these topics (Click Here to view the interview). The conversation covers the audience shift, what a structured sales process actually looks like for an independent operation, and how strategic account management drives the kind of retention and growth that compounds over time.
The interview is online now through the Digital Out of Home Academy (HERE). If any of these topics are ones you are wrestling with in your own operation, it is worth the time.
Graviss Marketing helps independent OOH operators build the sales infrastructure, positioning systems, and leadership frameworks that turn strong inventory into consistent revenue growth. Learn more at GravissMarketing.com.
Let’s elevate OOH together and make sure your company’s marketing is as strong as your locations.