by Imy Brighty-Potts, Marketing and Content
18 months ago I didn’t care about advertising really. Media was something that happened around me. I didn’t think it got to me. I was painfully naive. Now, working in media for the past year I have noticed that some specific things really pique my interest, and my housemate can attest to the fact I am getting geeky about advertising (that new Strongbow ad with The Streets running in the background is incredible). One thing I have loved since before this passion grew, is flyposting.
Rough and ready, community-targeted posters with the vibe of an old school arts zine, or really just the overall energy of Pulp’s Sorted for Es and Whizz; flyposting is a down-to-earth, often rebellious form of advertising. Brands emulating flyposting on larger boards to get more bang for their buck is nothing new, but it is becoming more common at the moment.
It is no coincidence that as outcry for authenticity in advertising (amid the AI creative obsession often leaving many ads looking the same) is being met with a lean towards flyposting styles on more expensive formats to maximise attention over multiple creatives clustered together. Getting more physically in front of people to highlight the variety of creatives and brand uses or offerings they have is an inherently good thing. But does it carry risks?
Don’t get me wrong, these are objectively good ads, they are getting bang for their buck in high traffic areas. But, when big brands try to do what smaller brands do without the creative authenticity, they risk looking like the teacher who tries to rap to make physics lessons seem more interesting.
When Netflix is dominating so much of the streaming market, using multiple images to emulate a grassroots advertising tactic feels like a kick in the teeth when the artistic flair doesn’t appear to be there. It takes so much work and creativity to launch a truly authentic flyposting campaign and without actually doing the community research and working out what their audiences will best relate too, the campaign appears hollow and misplaced on such a large canvas.
Leave the creative, rough and ready advertising to the brands truly in that space, trying to appear authentic and ’indie’ won’t get you credit with new audiences, it will only have them rolling their eyes wondering what you thought the outcome would be when the creative feels so far removed from the format. Mr Jones shouldn’t be rapping about electromagnetic waves, and highly produced creatives without understanding the flyposting culture that you are emulating won’t land in the same way.
Instead, looking for that Relative Advantage of bigger brands working with smaller community and cultural groups to create genuinely appealing flyposting or OOH campaigns will engage more with the groups who are picking up on flyposting tactics. Instead of going for the big formats, with the collages of overproduced creatives, why not go for the small formats with the more rough and ready creatives that speak directly to consumers.
