Sustained economic growth in the United States requires input and engagement from all levels of American society. Inclusivity is critical to economic growth. That is the clear directive of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Equity Action Plan.
However, reaching underserved communities, such as people of color or women in all socio-economic groups, can be difficult for local governments. The advent of the internet and digital marketing may have created a plethora of channels to connect governments with citizens. But many of those channels require access to technology which not everyone owns.
Traditional out-of-home (OOH) advertising is experiencing a revival that is set to bridge the gap between municipalities and all of their communities.
Engaging Underserved Communities
Across the United States, underserved communities continue to struggle to access capital, credit, and other tools that may help them improve their situation. This lack of access may limit a person’s career opportunities or their ability to start a business of their own.
For many, the disparity starts with limited access to information. Critical information about government support programs, educational opportunities, or financial aid simply does not reach the people who need it most. As a result, potentially eligible recipients of government aid may not know about their eligibility until critical deadlines have passed.
But community engagement does not only center around publishing information openly. Government agencies need to focus more of their efforts on reaching exactly the right communities and sharing the information that is most relevant and essential to building true equity.
Reaching All Communities
Engaging all underserved communities relies on identifying the channels through which specific communities are best reached. Over the past decade, the number and nature of those channels have changed dramatically.
Marketing and advertising are virtually unrecognizable compared to the early 2000s. Digital marketing channels have changed the way brands communicate with consumers. These channels have also transformed how local governments connect to their citizens.
However, digital marketing may not always be the most efficient way to reach notoriously hard-to-reach segments of the population. According to the Pew Research Center, a digital divide persists between Americans on lower incomes and those earning $100,000 per year or more.
According to the research, nearly one in four adults with a household income of $30,000 or less does not own a smartphone. More than four in ten manage without home broadband or a desktop or laptop computer. A government or municipality smartphone app or website granting citizens access to services out of hours would therefore miss a large part of the country’s lower-income population. For a brand, that may be acceptable, but for a community aiming to engage every citizen, it is not good enough. Reaching all communities demands a different approach.
Traditional Advertising Rediscovered
Engaging underserved communities requires an innovative approach. Out-of-home advertising may not be the first thing that comes to mind in this respect, but industry leaders have found it to be one of the most effective ways for government bodies to reach their citizens.
Encompass Media Group (EMG) Co-CEOs, Adam Pierce and Don Winter, have found that successful engagement relies on reaching citizens where they are. Both believe that the traditional billboard by the highway is no longer just a static medium. Paired with technology, it has the potential to transform the way community agencies connect with all their people.
“The challenge government campaigns face is that they often need to target their messages to a specific audience,” Adam Pierce believes. “Most traditional media options are broad-based and involve a lot of coverage that is missing the mark and involves a lot of waste.”
Few government bodies can afford to waste any of their outreach and engagement budgets. But what if the accessibility of billboards and posters could be combined with the insight and the capability to target the exact audiences that are usually ascribed to digital media?
Targeted Engagement Strategies
Billboards by the side of the highway may reach a wide audience, but in most locations, it is hard to define this audience clearly. Using population data and socio-economic insights allows government agencies to take a more targeted approach.
EMG Co-CEO Don Winter explains that using out-of-home media no longer means placing content everywhere but instead homing in on specific communities, including underserved segments of society: “Our approach allows us to reach any market segment in the U.S. We can focus on finding the highest density of the desired audience.”
Using population data, government information campaigns can target citizens by ethnicity, level of disposable income, or educational achievement. This approach minimizes any waste of public funds, and perhaps more importantly, lets governments reach every segment of society. Information campaigns become an essential tool in connecting with communities that are often ignored by other media channels.
Precision targeting helped the New York City Health Department increase awareness of the dangers of sugary drinks in neighbourhoods with high rates of obesity and diabetes. Rather than covering the entire city with awareness messages, the department focused its activity on bus shelters and subway cars in relevant areas. Campaign analysis confirmed effectiveness and efficiency.
Pierce and Winter believe that OOH advertising campaigns have a significant role to play in allowing local governments to engage with their communities and achieve true equity. Precision targeting is the key to successfully building these bridges and improving access to critical information. The goal is simple: giving everyone in our society a fair chance to participate and build the life they deserve.
