by Sarah Druhan, OOH TODAY Journalist
You’re seeing it everywhere, you’re hearing it everywhere, and all around it seems there’s just a special feeling in the air. Yep, it’s that time of year—‘early bird’ registration for the upcoming OAAA/Geopath OOH Media Conference, longest-running and most prominent OOH convention in the business, is finally open.
An annual three-day immersion in all things OOH, the highly anticipated event is set to take place from March 27-March 29 in 2023. While the previous conference unfolded on the serene shores of Florida, this year out-of-home luminaries will be converging on the Grand Hyatt Nashville Hotel in the advertising hotbed of Nashville, Tennessee. ‘Early bird’ registration prices will last all the way up to January 27, but the slight spike in attendance prices from last year may encourage attendees to grab their tickets at the first chance.
Following up last year’s theme of ‘collaboration,’ the 2023 conference key word ‘BreakThrough’ invites guests to ‘roll up their sleeves’ and dive headfirst into some of the biggest questions facing the industry today. A quick scan of this year’s initial speakers will show observant out-of-homers just how determined OAAA seems to meet these questions with a strong expertise. The Senior Director of Brand Marketing at digital payments network Zelle, for instance, will probably address the conference objective of “[breaking] down the physical-digital divide” in OOH. Representative for advertising giant The Trade Desk likely knows a thing or two about “[breaking] through” the advertising “noise.” And the Chief Diversity Officer of UM Worldwide no doubt has a wealth of experience in “[breaking] up obstacles or misconceptions” that too often hinder the world of out-of-home.
Perhaps one of the conference’s highest points will be the 81st OBIE Awards, held on the evening of March 28. The prestigious ceremony will no doubt recognize the industry’s ‘Gold Standards’ for their outstanding contributions to out-of-home, but also light a fire under their competitors to craft their upcoming campaigns with all the more originality and outside-the-box creativity. And what with OOH ad revenue projected to continue its current surge all the way up to 2027, the ingenuity on display this year—from vibrant billboards to augmented reality experiences—may be just the beginning of what’s to come.
In part because of the pandemic and in part because they alternate hosting with Geopath, this March will mark OAAA’s first stab at putting on the event in-person since 2019. As the trade association works to follow up a year of record-breaking attendance, there’s no doubt that they have a lot to live up to. But in bringing the conference to Nashville, one of the brightest spots on the out-of-home map, OAAA seems prepped to pull out the big guns for their moment of truth. And as both OOH and the world continue their progress out of the pandemic—as well as into an age of rapid technological advances—it seems increasingly likely that this 2023 conference could denote a genuinely pivotal moment in the industry. One thing’s for sure: after all these years, the OOH Media Conference is still the hottest ticket on the market.
Click here to register early for the OOH Media Conference.
