OOH’s Hidden Strength: Youth Attention
2 March . Opinion
Surprisingly, OOH Is a Young Person’s Medium
At BrandMapp, we use one primary measure to assess outdoor effectiveness:
“In the past few weeks, which of these outdoor media have carried an advert that caught your eye?”
Not whether you drove past it.
Not whether it was visible.
But whether it actually registered.
The result is clear… and slightly surprising.
Across shopping malls, digital highway billboards and traditional billboards, noticeability consistently skews younger.
26% of Gen Z notice mall advertising vs 12% of the Silent Generation.
15% of Gen Z notice digital highway billboards vs 6–7% of older cohorts.
28% of Gen Z notice traditional highway billboards vs 11% of the Silent Generation.
Then look at “None of the above” – the slope reverses sharply, rising from 30% among Gen Z to 61% among the Silent Generation.
Younger generations are significantly more likely to perceive OOH as effective.
That’s strategically valuable because once you know who is noticing, you can plan formats, creative and placement with intent.
And where this really becomes powerful is when you layer in life stage, income, brand loyalty and behavioural context.
But that’s the next conversation.
About WhyFive and BrandMapp
WhyFive exists to decode South Africa’s tax-paying middle class – the economically active consumers who drive brand growth, retail performance and media value in this country. We work across industries – retail, media, financial services, automotive, property and beyond – helping organisations move from surface metrics to behavioural understanding. Our role is simple: turn data into strategic clarity.
BrandMapp is our flagship annual study and the most comprehensive independent survey of South Africa’s tax paying consumer class. Each year, we map how this audience lives, earns, spends and engages. That includes media consumption, brand participation, financial resilience, life stage shifts, mobility patterns and category pressure points – not as isolated variables, but as an interconnected ecosystem of behaviour.
In media terms, this matters.
Reach tells you how many people moved past a site, BrandMapp tells you who they are. Are they financially confident or under pressure? Are they students, young professionals, established families or approaching retirement?
Which retailers define their world? Which brands already sit in their basket? What media do they trust and notice?
For media owners and agencies, BrandMapp closes a persistent strategic gap. It moves the conversation beyond audience scale to audience substance. Because in today’s environment, knowing how many passed your billboard is useful, BUT knowing who they are – and what resonates with them – is powerful.