Upcountry out-of-home media to be enhanced by AEC

“The future of upcountry OOH, especially in second- and third-tier cities, has become even more promising as we create a strong foundation with deeper understanding on how to plan OOH campaigns effectively in order to  [facilitate] the communication flow,” Surachet Bumrongsuk, manager of Kinetic Worldwide (Thailand), said yesterday. 

With the expansion of cities and hypermarkets and other modern retail outlets, out-of-home media are now considered effective vehicles in providing local mass advertising coverage at lower cost and with less wastage than the alternatives.  Billboards are considered the cornerstone of this kind of advertising, but local transport is also often used to enhance mass coverage, with in-store media playing a complementary strategic role. 

The growth of the retail industry reflects the high consumption, changing lifestyles and economic status of townspeople. Greater purchasing power will promote more points of sale and retail media in shopping malls and hypermarkets in the very near future, Surachet said.

High demand for fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs) from neighbours near the border will benefit hypermarkets. They will transform themselves from the supermarket format to the warehouse format, which can store a variety of items, he predicted.

After the AEC takes effect at the end of next year, the development of hard infrastructure, free flow of goods and services and concentration from foreign investors will benefit not only each Asean country but also the 31 AEC-corridor provinces in Thailand, which have not been significantly highlighted in marketing and communications blueprints. The AEC-corridor provinces including those home to Friendship Bridges will become gateways that are geographically and economically connected to Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar, Surachet said. 

Highways laid over those provinces will bring more traffic and foreign and domestic passers-by to those provinces. Local tourism and FMCG retailers will benefit, since the free-flow travel from neighbours and domestic residents will stir up the domestic economy and provincial cash flow, he forecast. 

Townspeople will earn more income from international and domestic tourism, Otop (one tambon, one product) and local retail business. Some will enjoy even more from rising prices of buildings and land, he believes.