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Destination Media continues march across U.S.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

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Entrepreneurship, Oakland County, PR/Marketing

Usually dropping from the Top 15 to the Top 20 is a bad thing, but not for Destination Media.

The Oak Park-based firm has expanded its reach from the Top 15 markets in the U.S. to the Top 20. The gas pump TVs reach more than 350 million viewers each year in more than 800 cities across the country.

This advertising medium, called "out-of-home", is the one of the fastest growing markets around. Second only to the Internet, it's expected to grow 25 percent annually through 2011.

The idea behind the market is to reach captive consumers for about 5 minutes during a natural pause point in their day. Or put more simply as they stand idle, pumping gas or waiting in line at the register.

The gas pump TVs offer only one channel that shows news from CBS, sports from ESPN and local weather, along with, of course, commercials. Offering only one channel eliminates channel surfing or multitasking that could redirect the consumer's attention. The content is specifically tailored to geography and time of day.

While it has been expanding its market share, Destination Media has slimmed down its workforce from 38 to 35. However, company officials expect to add more employees in 2009. They declined to give an estimate on how many.

Source: Elin Nozewski, spokeswoman for Destination Media
Writer: Jon Zemke