Why some brands are embracing ‘fake out-of-home’

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📆 Friday, 2^nd February 2024 

Hi, and welcome back to Growth Espresso - your one-stop destination for everything e-com.

This Espresso ☕️ will cover a new trend is emerging that’s turning heads and raising questions about the boundaries between real and unreal.

We are talking about Fake Out-of-Home (FOOH) advertising, and it’s reshaping the way brands engage with audiences in the online realm.

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Let’s dive in! 👇️ 

How many times in the past 15 years have you lectured your frustratingly undiscerning close ones – usually those older than you – for believing everything they see on the internet? Well, life comes at you fast, doesn’t it? You might now find yourself scratching your head, watching smartphone camera footage of giant Jacquemus bags cruising along the streets of Paris.

You’re looping the video for the second or third time, squinting, then asking yourself: it can’t be real, can it?

The FOOH Phenomenon

This new form of reality-bending media has been dubbed as FOOH (or fake-out-of-home) and has been the burning topic on the marketing world’s lips, lately. The art form usually involves the addition of giant CGI products to mobile-shot footage of OOH city locations. Seemingly, the objective is to capture attention by duping audiences into a short state of disbelief, poking them to ask the question: is this real or not?

Examples of FOOH Advertising

1. Barbie at Dubai

2. Maybelline New York

3. Samsung

samsung_be

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The Allure of FOOH Advertising

FOOH advertising has gained significant traction due to its ability to create an emotional connection with the audience. It can transport viewers to far-off destinations, immerse them in fantastical worlds, or even let them envision the perfect lifestyle. This emotional resonance often results in increased brand engagement, fostering a deeper connection between consumers and the advertised products or services.

Gray areas

When he first started making FOOH videos, the CGI artist behind the Maybelline campaign, Padgham said tourists visiting Bordeaux were hoping to ride the wine-bottle tram he animated for Château de Cérons. “The intention wasn’t to dupe people or to make fake news, it was more like, ‘Hey, what would be the ideal world?’” he said.

However this type of advertising could raise questions similar to those around AI regarding when (and how) brands should disclose if something is fake. Some brands have found ways to acknowledge it: For instance, Febres said Maybelline winked at the use of CGI in comments.

Truff has taken a slightly different approach. “We just let the internet do its thing,” Guillen said.

Given that CGI can erase certain boundaries, there are also questions around which ones brands can cross: British Airways was criticized this year for posting an image that appeared to show a billboard at Glastonbury, where such ads are limited. Another British company, GymBox, also recently received pushback for a FOOH campaign depicting ads on top of buses in London, which would have been the first of its kind.

Padgham said he often talks to brands about the importance of not trying to convince audiences that something is real when it’s not. “That always backfires because then people just feel let down,” he said. “I think the idea is to find that fine line of sparking people with a sense of charm and imagination that’s like, ‘Okay, this isn’t real. But it would be cool if it was.’”

Sources:

1. https://www.marketingbrew.com/stories/2023/10/26/why-some-brands-are-embracing-fake-out-of-home

2. https://www.merca20.com/what-is-fooh-or-fake-out-of-home-advertising/