By 2026, Out-of-Home advertising (OOH) has moved far beyond static printed maquettes and vinyl banners. The rapid growth of DOOH (Digital Out-of-Home), particularly elevator advertising, is reshaping how brands engage urban consumers. However, when investing in an elevator advertising network, CEOs and CMOs are not only concerned with coverage; they also raise strategic questions about user experience, the ability to measure sales impact, and how elevator media can be integrated into the overall marketing funnel. This article provides an in-depth overview of these strategic considerations.

Does elevator advertising annoy residents?

An elevator is an enclosed and relatively quiet environment where users may enter a state of “forced attention.” If elevator advertising content is repetitive, monotonous, or accompanied by overly loud audio, residents are likely to complain, potentially creating a negative reaction toward the brand.

Optimizing the elevator advertising experience through a “Contextualization” strategy

To address this challenge today, leading DOOH providers are investing heavily in hardware infrastructure upgrades. In particular, the adoption of DF 5.0 display generations with edge-to-edge designs and 1080p FULL HD resolution allows elevator advertising screens to resemble digital artworks, softening the waiting environment and delivering a more premium visual experience.

In parallel with the hardware platform, the system is developing a strategic roadmap to elevate the user experience through “Contextualization.” Under this development direction, elevator advertising screens in the future will move toward the ability to automatically and dynamically change content based on residents’ daily routines: coffee recommendations at 8:00 AM, lunch promotions at 12:30 PM, and entertainment services at 7:00 PM.

Although this remains a future-oriented strategy, the vision of “the right person, in the right place, at the right time” demonstrates the network’s strong commitment to transforming elevator advertising into useful information while eliminating the feeling of intrusive message overload.

Content moderation systems protect the user experience

To ensure that inappropriate content never appears on screen, leading providers cannot rely solely on manual review.

Automated control with the KUMA platform

Focus Media Vietnam has deployed the KUMA remote player management system. The system includes stringent content moderation capabilities and automated review processes to ensure that no non-compliant message is published to the advertising screens.

Role-based management and data security

Beyond content moderation, KUMA also provides separate accounts for each client to monitor and manage their own campaigns. All transmitted data is protected through encryption technology, ensuring the highest level of information security.

Premium residential coverage in Ho Chi Minh City: One partner or multiple partners?

When a brand aims to reach the entire middle-class audience segment across premium residential buildings and Grade A offices in Ho Chi Minh City, it is generally more effective to work with a single provider that has strong market coverage rather than fragmenting the budget across multiple vendors.

The data fragmentation problem caused by splitting the budget

Working with multiple smaller providers can lead to overlapping datasets, make it difficult to maintain consistent impression frequency, and dilute the strategic message.

The advantage of Focus Media Vietnam’s ecosystem of 17,000+ touchpoints

With an ecosystem of more than 17,000 display devices across more than 2,000 premium buildings nationwide, Focus Media Vietnam provides an end-to-end solution for capturing the attention of high-purchasing-power audiences. The network covers prime locations in Ho Chi Minh City such as Sunwah Tower, Vinhomes Central Park, and Van Hanh Mall. Through the ARK platform, brands can analyze data and accurately define target audiences within a 3 km radius.

Measuring the correlation between DOOH advertising and sales

Measurement capability is one of the key distinctions between traditional OOH and DOOH. Today, elevator advertising campaigns can demonstrate a measurable correlation with sales.

Independent effectiveness reporting through the EPIC model

Focus Media Vietnam works with independent measurement organizations such as NielsenIQ to conduct pre- and post-campaign evaluations. Effectiveness reports apply the EPIC model (Empathy, Communication, Impact, Persuasion) to analyze campaign impact.

A representative example is the Want Want Frozen case study, based on a survey of more than 400 respondents in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi: correct brand recognition reached 79%, while 78% of viewers stated that they intended to purchase the product.

Real-time conversion tracking (O2O) through NFC technology

Direct interaction provides one of the most immediate indicators of sales conversion. Through NFC devices installed beneath elevator advertising screens, customers can tap their smartphones to receive promotional vouchers or download an app, generating immediate and clearly measurable Offline-to-Online (O2O) conversions.

Integrating elevator advertising with digital into a full-funnel strategy

The real power of DOOH becomes apparent when it is integrated into an Omnichannel marketing funnel.

Advertising screens as a Top-of-Funnel touchpoint

Elevator advertising serves as an upper-funnel Awareness touchpoint, building strong brand awareness within consumers’ living and working environments.

“One-touch” NFC technology leading users to E-commerce

Focus Media Vietnam provides “One-touch” NFC interaction technology with a connection time of under five seconds. Users simply bring their smartphones close to the NFC device to instantly open a landing page or receive a voucher.

This offline traffic can then be directed immediately to E-commerce platforms such as TikTok Shop or Shopee, creating a closed-loop journey from awareness to purchase action.

Synchronizing OOH campaigns with television TVCs

When a brand launches a large-scale TVC campaign, adapting the same message for a DOOH network requires careful design refinement.

The strength of a strategic partner ecosystem

Focus Media Vietnam does not only provide hardware infrastructure; it also collaborates with leading strategic and production partners such as Le Bros, VCCorp, and Cốc Cốc.

This collaboration enables maquettes and TVCs to be refined with UI/UX optimized specifically for the vertical format of elevator screens. As a result, television and online messaging can be amplified consistently across channels.

Conclusion

Today’s elevator advertising strategy has evolved far beyond simple awareness coverage. By integrating content moderation solutions, NFC technology, and direct sales measurement capabilities, brands can build closed-loop conversion funnels and maximize ROI across their communications campaigns.