Outdoor Advertising vs. Paid Social: Which Drives More Brand Lift?

When you want to get your message out there, do you use a megaphone or just your mouth? You can get good results with either, but probably not for the same things. They’re just fundamentally different things with a different core purpose. Outdoor advertising is your megaphone — it broadcasts a message to everyone who can see it. But paid social targets specific people based on their behavior — it’s like a more intimate chat.

OOH Strengths vs. Paid Social Strengths

Outdoor advertising excels at building trust and brand recall. Studies show 56% of consumers trust outdoor ads more than digital advertising, and outdoor campaigns generate 2.5 times higher brand recall. This trust comes from outdoor advertising's physical presence.

Not everyone uses social media — and ad blockers stop many people seeing digital ads at all. Outdoor advertising gets audiences digital misses. And the best part? You get these unreachable audiences during the daily routines in a way that doesn’t feel like an interruption.

You get faster clicks and immediate engagement with paid social ads. You can launch campaigns within hours and target specific demographics with precision — all while tracking clicks, conversions, and engagement in real time.

Paid social excels at driving immediate action. Users are already engaged with their devices and can click, share, or purchase instantly. The interactive nature creates opportunities for two-way communication.

Cost per impression varies significantly between channels. Outdoor typically runs between $3 to $12 per thousand impressions. Paid socials are more expensive — from $5 to $25 per thousand impressions.

Synergy Creates the Best Results

Ideally, you’ll use both — that’s what gets the best results. You get broad awareness and credibility from outdoor, but paid socials get you specific actions and engagement.

Amplify your effectiveness with sequential targeting. Use outdoor advertising to build initial awareness… then retarget people who enter those geographic areas with paid social ads. This approach combines outdoor's broad reach with social media's precise targeting.

Creative consistency across channels strengthens brand recognition. Outdoor ads feel more trustworthy. When someone sees your outdoor ad then sees you again on their socials, it builds recall and trust. Through consistent messaging on outdoor and digitals you can create a unified brand experience.