Eight criteria for an out of home advertising product comparison

Brand launch case

For a brand launch, assign greater influence to audience delivery and position quality while retaining checks on the other six measures. Keep the campaign objective beside the allocation: weighting changes emphasis, not the evidence expected from suppliers.

Set weights before reviewing supplier proposals, and record why the campaign objective justifies them. The shares must total 100 per cent. A planning brief can define the objective before costs enter the discussion. Place each rating beside its weight, evidence and source, allowing reviewers to see the reasoning behind it.

These ranges are planning guidance, not published benchmarks. Another distribution may suit the campaign if its rationale is recorded before quotes or sales material are assessed. Keep the mark, weighting and source together; a combined score should not hide the basis for any individual judgement.

Retail footfall case

For a retail-footfall campaign, increase the influence of position quality and rate card cost while retaining the other six checks. A suitable location may matter greatly, but that does not justify lowering the evidence threshold or changing the scoring scale for one format.

Retail-industry figures can supply broad context, but they do not show likely exposure or footfall for a particular proposed site. Keep location evidence and campaign-specific delivery information apart from general market information, so context is not presented as a forecast. Add the source of each site-specific mark to the record.

Format selection case

For a format choice, assess delivery requirements, production burden and planning cycle rather than supplier labels. Keep 48-sheet and 96-sheet billboards, six-sheet panels, digital roadside screens, transport inventory and retail media screens separate; packages with different characteristics should not be treated as interchangeable.

Gather location details before arranging the options by price. A site quality audit can help structure the location comparison. Give production burden and planning cycle their own fields instead of burying them within one cost score; otherwise, a lower rate can appear to include more than the offer specifies.

Set out inclusions and exclusions for each offer. Vinyl, installation, digital copy changes and late cancellation can affect the overall purchase, so align the scope before comparing prices. The budget template can record each cost component; the headline rate by itself does not establish which option costs less overall.

Give every criterion a mark out of five, its weighting, the evidence behind it and a source. Do not accept an unexplained supplier figure as sufficient. The measurement mistakes resource addresses wider failures in method; match reach, attention or sales-lift evidence to the decision in hand.

Useful evidence names the method, states a sample or measurement period and identifies an accessible source. Ask for the relevant report page rather than a broad citation. Place these details beside the mark and distinguish evidence about the particular purchase from material that offers only general context.

Agency-managed purchase case

Score agency handling separately because the organisation managing the budget can affect availability, pricing and reporting quality. A comparison limited to media format can overlook the purchase process and the information returned to the campaign team; record the intermediary rather than leaving its contribution unexamined.

Use agency reviews as one input, recognising that coverage differs by region and specialism. Reviews do not replace campaign-specific evidence, contract wording or reporting details from the proposed arrangement. Score the purchase being considered, rather than treating general reputation as proof about an individual plan.

Apply relevant tests to both the format and the agency, including evidence quality, reporting, contract terms and how a mid-campaign change is handled. A strong format may still underdeliver if the intermediary is weak. Keep the media option and the organisation managing it visible as separate entries, each supported by a cited source.

Allow time for creative approval within the production schedule. Outdoor copy remains in public view during its flight, and material adapted from online may need checks for legibility, substantiation or placement before production is committed. Include possible artwork changes when comparing the timetable for each format.

Use the advertisement control regulation and its current text when considering whether the proposed timetable leaves room for compliant creative or a necessary revision. Record compliance risk beside production timing, and score down an option that leaves no room for this work rather than treating approval as incidental. See also the England campaign rules.