SXSW is still going in Austin, but our part of it wrapped up last weekend. Vugo sponsored the Future+ House of Innovation, an afternoon home for panels, demos and conversations on Saturday and Sunday, March 8 and 9, and we kept people moving between it and the rest of the festival.
The orange car
If you were at the House, you probably rode with us. Both afternoons, from 1:30 to 6 PM, our orange Vugo car ran a shuttle between the House, Brand Innovators and the Austin Convention Center, every ten minutes or so.
For a company that sells media on and in cars, there's no better demo than a ride. And at a festival where getting across town can take longer than the session you're going to, a free ride is the best thank-you we could think of.
The future of OOH
The House's panels opened on Saturday with "The Future of OOH: Shaping Tomorrow's Advertising," a panel themed around MOOHA, the Moving Out of Home Association, which brings together the companies that put advertising on moving vehicles. I sat on it with Bo Sijuade of Nickelytics, Jonathan Trilleras of LED Truck Media and Pedro Martins of Mediaplus UK, with Aisling Conlon of the UK's Advertising Association moderating.
You can watch the whole conversation above. It was good to share a stage with others who believe in moving media. Here's the case Vugo brings to it:
- Out-of-home is going where people go. A billboard waits for traffic. A car goes to it: the neighborhood, the venue, the street outside the festival. Vehicle wraps are recruited for each campaign in the market a brand chooses, and swarms bring those wrapped cars to a place for a window the advertiser schedules.
- The back seat is part of out-of-home. In-vehicle screens put a brand in front of people on their way somewhere, with time on their hands.
- Context makes it smarter. With real-time event and venue data, TripIntent® can weigh the games, concerts and festivals happening nearby when it decides which ad comes next. It's a priority, never a filter: it puts the most relevant ad first without shutting the others out.
- The category is stronger together. Moving media has always been many small networks. An association like MOOHA gives brands one place to understand the category, and gives all of us a reason to raise the bar.
Thank you, Future+
Thank you to the Future+ team for building the House and inviting Vugo in, to Aisling and our fellow panelists, and to everyone who came by or took a ride.
If you want your brand on the road for the next big weekend in your city, read our SXSW plans, see vehicle wraps and swarms, or get in touch.