Adspace Ends Tough Year With First Profit
Gail Chiasson, North American Editor
New York-based Adspace Networks has closed the 2009 books with sales figures up 40%, showing a profit for the first time.
“There is no doubt that this was a tough economic environment for everyone, and the media industry was certainly no exception,” says Dominick Porco, chairman and CEO, Adspace Networks. “2009 was not without its trials for the company, but we were able to end the year with a strong sales growth of 40%, nearly doubling the number of advertisers on the network. This is not only a true testament to our sales team, but also to our business model.”
Adspace, dominant in the mall-based Digital Out-of-Home space, credits an increase in viewership among the many reasons for success in 2009. In Nov./09, the company released results from follow-up research to a 2007 Nielsen Media Research study. The 2009 study found that 65% of mall traffic views the Smart Screens in the Adspace Digital Mall Network, up from 47% as seen in the same study done in 2007. In addition, overall impressions of the screens increased 30% versus 2007.
Adspace’s portfolio of advertisers also grew, with categories such as consumer packaged goods and telecommunications joining entertainment and retailers as top advertisers. There were 86 advertisers running on the network in the month of December alone.
“Adspace is a true mass medium, and is now attracting television advertisers.” says William Ketcham, executive vice-president and chief marketing officer, Adspace Networks. “We reach 100 million upscale shoppers every month that are light TV viewers, and we can increase the reach and frequency of a traditional television buy at a fraction of TV’s cost.”
In 2009, Adspace also added more editorial content to the network. Trend Alert, the newest program showcasing the must-have trends of the season, is created by Adspace’s personal shoppers in the editorial department. In addition, Essentials and Today’s Top Ten have been redesigned to inform and engage the consumer more effectively.
“Our editorial content is the key driver of mall shoppers’ engagement with the Smart Screens,” Ketcham says. “The evolution and expansion of this content also drove the dramatic increase in impressions measured by Nielsen’s most recent study.”
Adspace Networks Inc. owns and operates the Adspace Digital Mall Network, the largest in-mall digital billboard network in the U.S.. Currently located throughout more than 100 Class A malls across the United States, the network consists of 1,400, eight and nine-foot-tall plasma screens called Smart Screens. The Smart Screen displays show programming which combines a mix of the top 10 sale items in the mall, the hottest seasonal items available, mall events, and local and national advertising. The network reaches over 100 million affluent (source: Directory of Major Malls) consumers each month, and is particularly effective at reaching teens, young adults, and women. Adspace is also a charter member of the Out-of-Home Video Advertising Bureau, an organization that will help provide standards and best practices for the burgeoning out-of-home video advertising industry.
January 13th, 2010 at 14:12 @633
Aspsace has proven to be resilient and steadfast in a brutal market. Kudos to Dominick and the team over there. Other digital OOH companies targeting malls, such as Reactrix, clearly did not fare so well. Here’s to a big 2010!
January 13th, 2010 at 17:00 @750
Amazing that this company was able to have such a great success in this rough economic climate. Whatever they are doing-they are doing right! The DOOH industry should take notice of this endeavor. Congratulations Adspace employees!