Queue The Obama Graphics, And Action…
Manolo Almagro, Q Division Managing Partner
These historic photos were shot around 10pm EST last night, during the ABC News (with a little help from Show + Tell) event, where Times Square was transformed into a massive live and interactive Digital Out of Home showcase.
As you can probably imagine, it was an amazing night! There was an absolutely huge crowd in Times Square, all cheering as the voting results for each state was revealed on the screens. If you were there you would have thought it was New Year’s Eve!
Around 10:45pm EST, I overheard the TV producer tell Jason Ray, our sign operator – “Queue up the Obama graphics” for the announcement at 11pm EST.
For the next 15 minutes I sat in quiet anticipation with Jason and I both fixated on the F11 key on the computer keyboard.
I knew we were both thinking the same thing…
…the person that presses this key will announce to the world the next President Elect of the United States! (or at least the people in the world that were watching in Times Square)
At 10:59, as we waited for the command from the TV producer to launch the graphic. – I fantasized for about 1 second AND seriously considered wrestling the keyboard from Jason’s hands and pressing the button myself!
Thankfully we know you didn’t, Ed
From left to right, ABCSupersign, NASDAQ and Reuters.
Reuters Sign Graphics
November 5th, 2008 at 13:20 @597
It’s very exciting to be involved in this technology that was used so effectively in this campaign and in this huge announcement to huge crowds.
Not meaning to sound too cynical and self-serving, but I do hope that some major PR efforts are made on behalf of the industry to spotlight attention on the role our industry played in reaching these massive Obama crowds.
It’s an opportunity, let’s hope that the PR/media folks involved in the industry and/or the companies seize the moment, too.
November 5th, 2008 at 14:39 @652
June – well said! and I agree – every case study (and trust me, there will be a big one) that proves how effective DOOH can be is just what the agencies & brands are looking for. From my first hand observation – of all the message delivery systems that ABCNews used during the election coverage (sms alerts, web-updates, and the signs in times square) it was the signs in the square that had the most emotional impact with the people. In addition, the signs were always the fastest way to get information out to the people, there was a 20-30minute delay on SMS updates, and the websites were about 5 minutes behind the data we were streaming direct from the sources. So, not only is DOOH effective, but its one of the most efficient ways to get breaking news/information out to the public.
November 5th, 2008 at 18:18 @804
I couldn’t agree more with everything that’s been said. The entire DOOH ecosystem was energized last night, and Times Square certainly has to be DOOH’s crown jewel.