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OOH ad spend sees modest growth in May

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June 20, 2022

In May 2022, in the out-of-home advertising industry, spending was relatively flat year-over-year with a modest amount of growth. However, it was the second-highest spend month during year-to-date 2022 and the best May on record, according to a case study from the Standard Media Index.

In Q2 2022, digital and out-of-home continued to post the largest percent spend increase vs. 2021.

Upward digital momentum continued, with online channels representing a 56% share of dollars, after surpassing television in the same period last year.

Linear TV spend receded in Q2 to date, as gains in sports, up 15%, primarily NBA and NHL, failed to balance out the pull-back across entertainment, down 14% and news, down 4%.

OOH had the greatest percentage growth in the quarter so far. Year-over-year, entertainment and media, up 55%, and pharma, up 66%, primarily drove growth in ad revenue for OOH media. Only Facebook and Disney sustained ad spend gains into May 2022 vs. 2021, amplifying last year's COVID-19 recovery trajectory.

Facebook reached a new high for the month, up 8% vs. 2021 and up 61% vs. 2020. Online retailers (plus 142%) and toys and games (plus 133%) ramped up advertising, more than doubling their investment in May 2022.

Disney ad revenue grew by 5% vs. March 2022 and another 46% vs. March 2020. Disney was the only top-five traditional media owner to display increased spending in the linear space, an increase of 8%. Prescription drugs showed the heftiest investment, while the credit cards sector notably expanded 156% over the previous year.