What do clients desire? What is possible with technology? What is viable in the market place? These are fundamental questions that arise before the execution of any Innovation in outdoor advertising. In 2012, we saw some bold, beautiful and dynamic innovations on billboards like the 3-D cutouts of Mr. Amitabh Bachchan on Mobile Vans for the promotion of the fifth season of Kaun Banega Crorepati, 'Citi Bank completes 200 years' displays on Bus Shelters, History TV channel's '365 days exploring a country' show on Hoardings, DLF-IPL match promotion on Flyovers, Pole Kiosk displays for 'Rio' movie characters, the Coca-Cola "Burr" campaign on Cantilevers and the Wall Mountings for Spiderman on UTV Action. These innovations not only caught eyeballs but made lasting impressions as well. Sanjeev Gupta, MD, Global Advertisers, says, "Innovations happen when one keeps a close eye on evolving needs that are on the verge of being articulated in the market. This year, we have witnessed brands across industries actively going for innovation. Players in BFSI, Entertainment, Retails, FMCG, Automobile, Telecom and Real-estate are all trying to stand apart from competitors via outdoor promotions. At Global, we ensure that our innovations translate into real value for our customers. For the record, the OOH sector is projected to grow at 10 percent (CAGR) over the next five years and reach a size of INR 28.59 billion by 2016. However, in 2011, the industry preformed at 6.15% CAGR amounting INR 17.75 billion. (FICCI-KPMG Report, 2012).

New York Festivals (NYF) has announced its call for entries for the 2013 competition honoring the world's best advertising.The International Advertising Awards competition receives entries from 70 countries and recognises work in all media in the following competitions: Avant-Garde, Branded Entertainment, Creative Marketing Effectiveness, Design, Digital, Direct and Collateral, Film, Integrated, Outdoor, Print, Public and Media Relations, Public Service, Radio and Student. In 2012, there were a total of six entries from India that won the Finalist Certificate award.NYF is expected to make an announcement soon on the jury members for 2013.The 2013 New York Show, NYF's two-day series of events, will begin on 1 May, 2013, and will feature creative panel discussions, keynote speakers, networking events, the 2013 Executive Jury press conference, exhibits, and the 2 May International Advertising Awards ceremony. Entries submitted before 16 December will receive a 10 per cent discount on fees, while those submitted after 27 January will be subject to a 15 per cent late fee.

Facebook wants more credit for making online cash registers ring.Facebook will begin rolling out a new tool on Friday which will allow online retailers to track purchases by members of the social network who have viewed their ads. The tool is the latest of the new advertising features Facebook is offering to convince marketers that steering advertising dollars to the company will deliver a payoff. ”Measuring ad effectiveness and outcomes is absolutely crucial to all types of businesses and marketers," said David Baser, a product manager for Facebook's ads business who said the "conversion measurement" tool has been a top customer request for long time. The sales information that advertisers receive is anonymous, said Baser. "You would see the number of people who bought shoes," he said, using the example of an online shoe retailer. But marketers would not be able to get information that could identify the people, he added. The conversion tool is specifically designed for so-called direct response marketers, such as online retailers and travel websites that advertise with the goal of drumming up immediate sales rather than for longer-term brand-building. It lets marketers track the impact of a Facebook ad hours or days or even a week beyond when someone might have viewed the ad. That allows marketers to understand the impact of the Facebook ad on the ultimate purchase. Marketers will also have the option to aim their ads at segments of Facebook's audience with similar attributes to consumers that have responded well to a particular ad in the past. Facebook defines a conversion as anything from a completed sale, to a consumer taking another desired action on a website, such as registering for a newsletter.

Online shopping is yet to pick up in India where television has the most perceived advertising persuasiveness across all age groups, according to a survey. Companies in India might be rushing in to tap the e-shopping market, but a lot has to be done to encourage consumer and see more transactions, said the Deloitte's State of the Media Democracy Survey India 2012.Purchasing products is the least online activity done by those surveyed with only 15 per cent saying they shop online, it said.The survey shows that combining online and offline research before deciding what/ where to purchase is important for the majority of consumers. Interestingly, majority of consumers visited websites after watching ads in televisions, newspapers, magazines, or even billboards. The vast majority of consumers continue to read magazines, However, affinity for magazines is considerably lower than TV or newspapers, and they're regarded as much less influential with regard to advertising. A large majority of consumers, 72 per cent on an average, use search engines on a daily basis. This has been an amazing change compared with the 2009 survey where only 17 per cent used search engines. Conversations about social networking sites and websites have gained tremendously compared with 2009 survey where the range was 3-4 per cent compared with 45-47 per cent now. Interestingly, newspapers (53 per cent) are the most talked about media topic among consumers, followed by music (47) and social networking sites (47) and television shows (46).