Article

F1 revs up digital signage at US Grand Prix

Formula One fan festival in Austin, Texas, engaged fans with digital signage, and also raised awareness for typhoon relief.

November 26, 2013

Formula One revved up its fanbase with digital signage at this year's U.S. Grand Prix in Austin, Texas — and also took a lap to raise awareness of Philippine typhoon relief efforts at the same time.

At the recently-completed Austin Fan Fest 2013, a four-day interactive festival that runs in parallel with the Formula One 2013 U.S. Grand Prix, organizers rolled out a digital out-of-home advertising network that included four 12-foot-by-9-foot HD "mega" screens and a 19-foot-by-33-foot HD "jumbo" screen.

Zephyr Media Inc. partnered with digital signage media player provider BrightSign to deliver the DOOH advertising network, and the companies said the network also was used as part of a pro bono effort to raise awareness for relief efforts under way in the Philippines, following the typhoon that recently devastated parts of that country.

According to a case study from BrightSign, the screens targeted a captive, engaged audience in excess of 300,000 people, taking advantage of extended dwell times to provide a high-impact advertising opportunity.

"Last year, the inaugural Grand Prix in Austin was one of the most highly attended, exciting races of the Formula One season," Jose Costa, president of MAACO, which franchises auto painting and collision repair shops, said in the study. "This year we knew we had to be part of the fun."

The Austin Fan Fest occupied 12 square blocks in historic downtown Austin and included dozens of interactive and educational displays, as well as dining, entertainment and live music, according to the case study. The event includes six stages hosting activities and live music for children, families and race fans, an X-Games action sports zone, food trucks, F1 race car simulators and interactive exhibits.

"Austin is known the world over for its ability to put on a show, and F1 racing is at the pinnacle of automotive engineering," Zephyr Media VP of Marketing Luke McEvoy said in the study. "Working closely with BrightSign, we created a powerful DOOH network that reflects that fast-paced entertainment and cutting-edge technology."

While Zephyr Media's DOOH network was initially conceived to deliver high-impact advertising for event sponsors, the network also was to raise awareness for relief efforts for victims of Typhoon Haiyan.

"There are times when serving the greater good eclipses the need to sell ad space, and our network provides the perfect platform to rally event attendees to contribute to the relief effort in the Philippines," McEvoy said. "We believe we'll make an impact much greater than the monetary value of the ad space we're donating to this very worthwhile cause."

The Digital Screenmedia Association created a number of 15-second public service announcements that include instructions on how to easily donate to the relief effort. Powered by a BrightSign media player, each 45-minute segment of programming was set to feature one of the spots twice over the course of three days of the festival, the companies said, displayed on the 33-foot-wide screen that was visible from nearly a quarter of a mile away.

Learn more about DOOH advertising.