The Outdoor Media Industry sought to engage the public and change the conversation around the medium. We asked: how do we increase awareness for Outdoor advertising among the public as well as advertisers, but also demonstrate our role within the community to stakeholders– using our own signs, and one single campaign?

Two simple word: Look Up.

Everyone asked: what are you selling? And we said: an idea, a pause, a moment, for you.

Ground-breaking and bold, we took on a communications challenge of talking to multiple audiences with one call to action, using an advertising medium to promote itself.

The Outdoor Media Industry in Australia is facing increased competition with digital channels, and a population that is constantly looking down at devices. How do we get people to look at our signs? We needed a campaign that would inspire behaviour change, show the potential and power of digital Outdoor, and spark a conversation. We needed buzz.

We set out to start a movement. We wanted offline and online engagement, media coverage, and high visibility. With pre and post-campaign surveys, we set the objective to determine: did people look up MORE after the campaign? Did people talk about the campaign?

Signs became the canvas for a nationwide call to action that engaged people on a visceral level, inviting public discourse and inspiring people through creativity and generosity. It also encouraged an action that would draw awareness to the Outdoor channel overall.

We know that device usage is increasing globally. New research is pointing to a change in our cognitive functions because of this — we are scatterbrained, more prone to lapses in memory, and more anxious. But what if we looked up?

Neuroscience research shows that looking up and out can significantly change the way people think and interact with the world around them. It’s good for our brains, our bodies, our relationships and our experience of the world.

We worked with Australian neuroscientist Dr Fiona Kerr to compile the many benefits of this one simple action, and published a report, The Art & Science of Looking Up. Great things happen to your brain and your life when you look up and out, and Dr Kerr details the various actions and states of brain engagement that can come with connecting with others, daydreaming, and looking to the horizon.

The strategy set out to engage multiple audiences: the public, advertisers, media buyers, the Outdoor display companies themselves, as well as government stakeholders.

We required a message that would appeal to everyone, resonate with a truth about what is happening in our society, and be a call to action. One, simple message.

We know the best Outdoor campaigns combine static with digital, using place and time to reflect the versatility of the medium. We also required dynamic creative to show the potential of “multi-platform” placement. We developed 10 versions of creative for day, night, sunshine and rain, including one key image of a woman, Looking Up. There were also six different versions of dynamic which included a moon rise, trees in the breeze, and birds flying. The campaign ran exclusively on Outdoor, as the goal was to use our own medium to promote our channel.

We sought inventory from the Outdoor industry across all formats, and creative was tailored to meet each specification. The campaign ran on more than 7,500 signs nationwide for four weeks, in and around the capital cities; approximately 70% of placement was digital.

The first phase of the campaign was dominated by the single image of the woman looking into the sun and the words Look Up. Phase two introduced the other creative showing the sky, moon, trees, and various other visuals one would see when they look up, along with the words Look Up and the URL to the website.

While the Outdoor placement was focussed on reach, the secondary approach was a PR blitz with Dr Fiona Kerr, social media outreach via Influencers, and an on-ground activation of people dressed in letter suits spelling Look Up in the capital cities of Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne.

The campaign was seen by 92% of the Australian population living in and around the capital cities (12.8 million people). It took on a life of its own with social media, reaching over one million people via Instagram.

There were more than 130 pieces of media coverage across print, digital and TV; Dr Kerr was featured in three major TV spots and total media reach was over 5.2 million.

There were over 54,207 Likes and Comments on #LookUp Instagram posts alone. The increase in #lookup posts during the campaign was 250% more than previously noted in Australia.

In a follow-up survey, 50% of respondents who recalled seeing the campaign said they were making a conscious effort to Look Up more, and 33% said they spoke to friends and family about the campaign.

*Adhoc survey February 2019, Dynata