We Are Part of the Solution

By Steve Richards

DENVER — Listen to Colorado’s governor (Jared Polis) say those words “outdoor advertising.”

The governor — like his colleagues in California, Connecticut, Indiana and elsewhere — publicly thanked the Colorado Outdoor Advertising Association for delivering health information.


See 6:18 for comments about OOH media.

In these tough times, we share pride as an industry because:

  • Out of home media is part of the solution
  • Cross-company collaboration makes us stronger
  • We are fast (responsive)
  • Out of home media complements digital media

From the earliest days of the pandemic, out of home media displayed public-health messages authorized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in English and Spanish. The content was updated twice . . . a tribute to the speed of our medium to change copy.

The articulate voice of the governor of Indiana (Eric Holcomb) provides narration for this OAAA video that honors the public-service efforts of place-based, transit, truck side, marine, and roadside formats.

In Atlanta, the mayor’s office recently reached out to OUTFRONT Media to help inform citizens of the city’s curfew and to urge calm (“RESTORE, HEAL, STAY HOME, AND STAY #ATLSTRONG!”).

The Outdoor Advertising Association of Georgia (OAAG) shared the creative. More than 100 billboard faces communicated curfew information, said Zakery Daniel of OAAG.

Once again, there was collaboration among competitors for the common good.

Social media and mainstream media amplified the billboard public-safety messages in Atlanta, including TV-news tweets and publication by the daily newspaper.

Tomorrow, on out of home inventory, we look forward to new messages and new ways to help communities. Because we are part of the solution.

(Steve Richards president/partner of Mile High Outdoor and Pacific Outdoor; he is chairman of the OAAA Legislative Committee).