Intersection’s Chief Revenue Officer Michael Rosen talked with Billboard Insider about how transit advertising is recovering from covid.

What do we know about transit ridership and how it is recovering from Covid-19?

Cities are seeing a recovery at a rapid pace as weather turns warmer, vaccinations increase and new guidelines are implemented. For anyone who spends time in city centers, the proof is right in front of you. The recovery has started at street level and is extending to transit, including below ground. National mobility trends show transit is making a comeback, in some systems across the US, as high as 70% of pre-covid numbers.

While there is steady growth in ridership now, we expect a significant increase in September, as live events get back to full capacity, the new school year starts fully in person, and offices fully reopen.

Think about the sheer number of riders that this represents right now, millions of consumers who are prime for a brand’s attention. Combine that with the data from the recent Harris Poll that shows that consumers are more open to OOH messaging, mostly due to increased digital fatigue, and this is a prime opportunity for marketers to capitalize on transit, before inventory, especially big station dominations and street furniture takeovers, sell out.

We can also see which areas are seeing increased mobility for street facing media, such as train wraps, platform panels, DUPs, headhouses, bus shelters, and bus exteriors. In many cases, areas around certain transit stations and other transit assets have already recovered to pre-COVID levels.

Most Transit Authorities maintained their full bus schedules – so even though ridership may have been lower, overall reach for exterior media stayed the same since they do not rely on ridership.

We believe consumers are creating new habits as they return to public spaces, and the coming months are a once in a generation opportunity for brands to become a part of this new consumer journey.

At the end of the day, our clients are looking to reach audiences and drive outcomes. Intersection takes a data driven approach to identifying where the right audiences are, apply local insights by specific transit system, neighborhood, station or transit line and then help marketers measure the outcome.

How has transit ad RFP and contract activity responded?

We’re seeing a significant uptick in bookings. Up about 60% in the last 2 months across the business. And over the last two weeks, we’ve seen a 47% increase in requests for transit media specifically.

More and more brands have reached out proactively to lock in key transit placements prior to September, when our data shows that the “back to school” phase of the recovery will catapult ridership even higher than current levels.

What kinds of advertisers are showing the most interest in transit advertising now?

Many verticals are either already back or are actively looking to take advantage of the summer reopenings and back to school phases. Those categories include:

• Gaming, especially as sports betting becomes legalized in more states
• Entertainment, especially streaming services
• Tech & Telecom
• Retail, driven by fashion specifically
• Digitally native brands
• Local businesses, like legal services
• CPG, driven by the beverage category
• Education

Can you give me a recent example of an Intersection client who is taking advantage of reopening to advertise?

DraftKings began their 3 year station domination of Addison Station outside of Wrigley Field in Chicago on Opening Day this past April, when fans were first welcomed back to the stadium since the 2019 season. Addison Station provides direct access to the stadium and serves as a transit hub for millions of locals, fans and tourists, providing the relevancy and scale for the brand’s messaging.

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