With the lifting of pandemic restrictions, there’s been renewed interest in the power of place-based out-of-home advertising and the potential for digital media displayed in stores, gyms, restaurants, office buildings, and other businesses. The thing is, while many large companies may have the resources to build their own place-based media networks, they may not have the time and/or expertise to execute an endeavor this large and complex. Similarly, smaller mom-and-pop shops might not have the necessary capital, or know-how, to implement a similar setup on their own but that’s where Loop Media comes in.
A digital media company that provides curated music videos and branded entertainment channels for businesses, Loop offers companies of all kinds of free digital signage solutions—as well as free access to their licensed streaming content—in exchange for premium video ad placements in their brick-and-mortar locations. Committed to offering its customers quality video content and an easy way to create and manage digital messaging in their businesses, Loop TV is helping small companies harness the power of digital signage to entertain and inform customers with video-centric DOOH content.
A music-forward approach to digital out-of-home content
Loop Media’s roots as a company stretch back more than 30 years, originally starting off as a business that supplied background music for retail stores and during telephone calls when placed on hold. When the current company’s founders took over, they were more interested in creating a dynamic audio and visual environment for their customers—and in 2016, Loop Media Inc. was born. Since then, the company has grown into a leading multi-channel streaming platform that provides curated digital video content for a range of businesses throughout the United States.
Although DOOH has historically treated audio as an afterthought, it’s a central focus for Loop Media, whose team includes a number of management staff with a background in, and passion for, the industry. Thanks to its “music-forward” approach, the company currently boasts the largest music video library licensed for business use, with content that dates back to the start of TV and film. In addition to music videos, Loop Media has established licensing and partnership deals to offer a wide range of non-music video content that can fit the needs of almost any vertical, from FailArmy viral videos and 4K drone footage to first-person action shots from GoPro World Surf League and branded entertainment content from The Wiggles.
Helping small businesses leverage digital signage & DOOH
Today, Loop Media works with customers of all sizes, but the company has retained its commitment to small- and mid-sized businesses—the brick-and-mortar locations that were most impacted by the pandemic.
“We want to help businesses that got crushed by the pandemic,” says Bob Gruters, Chief Revenue Officer at Loop Media. “Our model lets businesses leverage free content—pre-cleared, fees paid, licenses paid—and also push out promotional and informational content via an intuitive CMS, at no cost to them.”
The recent introduction of a rewards program also allows business owners to benefit from the sale of ads shown on-site—enabling them to grab a piece of the DOOH, and in some cases retail media, pie for themselves.
“So not only did we eliminate a cost,” says Gruters. “We actually helped to unlock a new revenue stream.”
Meeting the demand for contextual, place-based advertising
Loop Media’s approach is well-positioned in the context of the current advertising landscape. As third-party cookies are being phased out, marketers are searching for new ways to meaningfully engage with consumers. Place-based out-of-home advertising—particularly in locations with a captive audience—is gaining favor as an appealing alternative to online media.
A forward thinking-company, Loop Media has its eye on transforming the digital out-of-home market into another arena for digital video. Investing in technology to ensure success in both spheres has proven a smart strategy. In addition to designing their own plug-and-play hardware to complement their API-driven software, Loop embraced programmatic transactions early on.
“In the world of digital video, nine cents out of every ten cents is being transacted programmatically,” says Gruters. “That’s not been the case in out-of-home. So, we’re future-proofing our business because we know that once digital video catches up, digital out-of-home transactions are going to be led through programmatic.”
This has also meant ongoing investment in technology designed to improve the customer experience for people who are exposed to their content on an out-of-home display. Anonymized data sources built into the Loop Player provide real-time audience insights, while integration with third-party data solutions will soon enable contextual targeting capabilities for ad buyers. By adopting a programmatic-first approach and investing in future-friendly technology solutions, Loop is well-positioned to adapt and act on exciting new possibilities as they arrive moving forward.
Building a flexible, future-proof business with Broadsign
To meet its ambitious DOOH expansion goals and bring as much potential revenue as possible to its customers, Loop Media also needed to invest in a supply-side platform (SSP) that could connect them with digital media buyers worldwide. Broadsign’s programmatic OOH platform Broadsign Reach was an attractive option to Loop because of Broadsign’s established relationships with many leading OOH and omnichannel demand-side platforms (DSPs), including Broadsign Ads.
“Having a partner like Broadsign who can help us understand what’s going on at that DSP level and quickly initiate a dialogue with key DSP stakeholders is paramount,” says Gruters. “We can reach the DSPs faster to better determine actions we can take or pull back on to improve.”
Broadsign Reach not only helps to automate programmatic revenue generation, but also provides Loop with accurate insights into network performance and offers real-time visibility on programmatic inventory. As Loop Media continues to grow its network of digital properties inside and outside the US, Broadsign’s DOOH solutions will scale alongside it and ensure that, whatever the future may hold, Loop is well-equipped to succeed.
Gruters concludes, “From the beginning, we wanted to build a business that can play on trends as they surface and evolve, is technologically innovative, and can constantly adapt. With Broadsign on our side, we have all the right resources to do just that.”
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