Vibenomics

The Sights and Sounds of Retail Media In-Store

The Power of Choice and Scale in Programmatic Advertising

You are driving home from work contemplating what you will fix for dinner tonight, when you pass a billboard on the side of the road prompting you to pick up ingredients for your favorite casserole before calling it a day. On your commute to work the next morning, the same billboard shows an ad for breakfast biscuits, reminding you that you forgot to grab breakfast on the way out the door. So, you pull over to the nearest convenience store and make an impulsive purchase as a result of seeing the ad. This is the power of programmatic advertising

Programmatic advertising is the method of purchasing and trading digital media using technology to execute buying commands through a public platform. Buying digital media in an automated fashion allows advertisers to purchase in an efficient and effective manner. Traditional Out-of-Home advertising methods were stagnant – billboards and signage that presented the same ad for months on end to a broad, catch-all audience. Today, various forms of Digital Out-of-Home advertising enable advertisers to programmatically target the right audience, in the right place, at the right time. Through the years, consumers have changed their media consumption, with more consumption going digital. Instead of traditional methods, consumers have fragmented their media behavior and consumption across a plethora of screens and mobile devices. With the movement to digital advertising, programmatic now accounts for over half of digital advertisement placements.

The power of programmatic lies in choice and scale. With programmatic, the advertiser chooses what ad impressions they want instead of the publisher doing it for them. Programmatic allows advertisers to engage with consumers at different points along the path to purchase, providing the greatest opportunity to influence purchase decisions. This choice in ad placement allows advertisers to be seen and heard in the right place, at the right time, by the right audience. Thus, the power of choice in programmatic has the ability to increase return on ad spend (ROAS) given that brands reach the type of impressions they are intending to land. Not only does programmatic impact sales, it provides insights and analysis on how the ads are performing. Purchasing programmatically offers marketers and advertisers insight of what channels are worth investing in and how it affects a brand’s media mix.

The reach and scale of programmatic through public platforms provides ample opportunities for brands to reach their targeted audiences beyond the initial publisher or website. To put it into perspective, Facebook reaches an audience of 2.31 billion per day and YouTube reaches an audience of 1 billion per day with their advertisements. Programmatic platform, The Trade Desk, however, reaches over 4 billion potential consumers per day. The omnichannel approach of programmatic advertising ensures that retailers’ targeted audiences will receive relevant ads regarding products or services they are likely to purchase, rather than random, overarching advertisements that do not provide as much value to them as a consumer. This method shares a more holistic view of the customer, reaching them with the same ad on multiple devices simultaneously. 

The future of advertising is programmatic. The ability to choose, on a large scale, when and where your audience will encounter your advertisements is a major contributor to increased brand recognition and sales. Vibenomics, the pioneer in Audio Out-of-Home Advertising, provides brands with a programmatic offering that allows advertisements to be heard by target consumers directly at the point of purchase when propensity to spend is highest. To get started with Vibenomics and unlock the power of programmatic advertising, visit www.Vibenomics.com.

3 Ways In-Store Audio Helps Retailers Battle the Amazon Effect

The numerous furloughs and bankruptcy filings over the course of the past year have proven that the pandemic has caused an immense strain on the retail industry. Consumers avoided in-person shopping experiences and instead found alternative ways to continue their buying habits. While big-box retailers, such as Walmart and Target, were able to withstand the economic upheaval, even the most established brands are seeing shifts in e-commerce shopping, various delivery and curbside pick-up options, and consumer behavior across brick and mortar locations. This drastic change in consumer behavior has accelerated the phenomenon known as the Amazon Effect, and has made it difficult for brands to meet new demands and expectations. With this shift in buying behavior, consumers have come to expect targeting, personalization, and convenience.  However, with Audio Out-of-Home technology (Audio OOH), businesses are able to overcome this change by framing their brand, driving higher sales, and enhancing the customer’s in-store experience. 

1) Audio OOH Helps Frame Your Brand

Audio Out-of-Home advertising technology gives retailers the ability to reach consumers with customized messages and advertisements at the point of purchase. Utilizing consumer demographics, location-based customization, and personalized messaging can help maximize the impact of Audio OOH. Not only do retailers have the unique opportunity to reach customers along the path to purchase, but the ability to tailor music, messaging, and advertisements based on the target audience’s characteristics, behaviors, and expectations. Audio OOH allows retailers to deliver environmental consistency and frame their brand in the way they wish to be perceived by consumers. With Audio OOH, retailers have the opportunity to generate a carefully crafted environment, giving their customers an enhanced understanding of the brand. 

2) Audio OOH Contributes to Driving Sales 

With the advanced technology and well-placed advertisements, Audio OOH enables retail locations to move product on the shelf, leading to higher return. Delivering messages to the consumer when propensity to spend is highest along the path to purchase, turns those impulsive buys into strategically selected purchases. As a matter of fact, 70% of shoppers make their purchase decisions in-store, making it the best place to influence an impulsive purchase. This creative and strategic method of messaging increases advertisers’ return on ad-spend (ROAS) and sales, because not only are shoppers more inclined to purchase these products, but the subconscious listening instills brand awareness, recognition, and loyalty. Consumers’ likelihood of leaving their comfort zone to try new products, remember that forgotten item on a shopping list, and make repeat purchases is higher when utilizing Audio OOH technology. 

3) Audio OOH Enhances the In-Store Experience

Consumers have come to expect the same personalization in physical retail locations that they have become accustomed to in the world of e-commerce based on the advancements in digital and online advertising methods. Not only does Audio OOH technology offer data-driven, measurable, and programmatic automation of advertisements, but it enhances the in-store customer experience. 80% of consumers are more likely to purchase from a company that offers a personalized experience. When advertisers shift their focus on increasing engagement and loyalty to stand out among competitors in the market and meet the evolving shopper expectations, customers will begin to develop a level of loyalty for specific retailers. 

Both retailers and brands can benefit from utilizing Audio Out-of-Home  in physical retail locations. Audio OOH enables retailers to increase sales while improving the customer experience when propensity to spend is highest. Vibenomics, the pioneer in Audio OOH, provides retailers with the cloud-based technology and industry expertise to frame their brand, enhance the in-store experience, build brand loyalty and drive higher sales. Allowing locations to control the in-store vibe through background music, live announcements, and promotional messaging, Vibenomics powers audio channels for retailers, giving brands the ability to talk to shoppers directly at the point of sale, battling the Amazon-Effect.

Vistar Media and Vibenomics Partner for First Programmatic Audio Out-of-Home Offering

Audio advertising tailored specifically for in-store retail environments can now be purchased on the largest programmatic OOH exchange. 

Vibenomics, a location-based Audio Out-of-Home™ (AOOH) advertising and experience company, today announced its partnership with Vistar Media, the leading global provider of software for digital out-of-home (DOOH).

The partnership marks the first time that advertisers will have the ability to purchase audio-only inventory — combining licensed, background-music playlists, paid commercial spots, or brand messaging — on an OOH exchange. Now, advertisers can further impact immediate purchase decisions by reaching shoppers directly through a unique auditory experience at points-of-sale inside thousands of retail locations. In turn, participating brick-and-mortar retail businesses can increase sales, participate in a revenue share program, and enhance the customer experience.

“Vistar Media is a pioneer and leader in the programmatic OOH space,” said Brent Oakley, co-founder and CEO at Vibenomics. “Together, we are opening up access to this growing channel, while utilizing Vistar Media’s experience in building a vast exchange across some of the largest place-based venues in the world. This partnership is so unique because no other SSP could handle both the nuances of out-of-home and provide access to real demand at that level.”

Through a single integration with Vistar’s API, Vibenomics has access to Vistar’s supply-side platform (SSP), as well as Vistar’s ad server, to handle delivery and scheduling of their own ad placements and content. Vibenomics selected Vistar as their ad serving & programmatic software provider because of Vistar’s expertise in handling the nuances of location-based OOH and digital programmatic.

“Vistar chose to partner with Vibenomics and to embrace audio out-of-home because it provides our marketers with the ability to reach a consumer near the point-of-purchase in a retail environment,” said Michael Provenzano, CEO and co-founder, Vistar Media. “Our customers are already doing that with screens in retail locations, and audio-out-of-home is a perfect extension of those strategies. Our partnership with Vibenomics creates not only a new category of DOOH, but also indicates a bright future of advertising overall.”

For more information about Vibenomics, visit www.vibenomics.com. For more information about Vistar Media, visit www.vistarmedia.com.

About Vistar Media

Vistar Media is the world’s leading end-to-end programmatic ecosystem for digital out-of-home (DOOH). Vistar Media’s demand-side platform (DSP) and supply-side platform (SSP) empower buyers and sellers to easily transact on DOOH inventory while applying intelligent data insights that improve media performance. Vistar’s SaaS solutions (unified ad server and Cortex for device and content management) deliver enterprise-grade solutions for monetizing and operating digital signage networks at any scale. Through its global reach, direct platform integrations, data partnerships, and complete technology stack, Vistar Media continues to power innovation and growth across the digital signage industry. Founded in 2012, Vistar Media is headquartered in New York City and has offices across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia.

About Vibenomics

Vibenomics, Inc. is a location-based Audio Out-of-Home™ advertising and experience company that powers audio channels for retailers, giving brands the ability to talk to shoppers directly at the point of sale. With its powerful cloud-based technology, licensed background music library, data integration capabilities, full-service team of audio experience experts, and network of on-demand professional voice talent, the company provides the right revenue-enhancing vibe for over 100 advertisers in more than 4,000 locations across 48 states, reaching over 150 million people.

Delivered through flexible plug-and-play mobile tablet devices, Vibenomics dynamically broadcasts hyper-targeted, in-stream audio advertisements and curated playlists within any combination of locations across its swiftly growing national footprint, unlocking a powerful new shopper marketing channel for reaching consumers during the critical final footsteps along the path to purchase. Through a first-of-its kind partner program, retailers can receive a portion of revenue for all advertisements sold by Vibenomics that play within their locations, giving them the ability to monetize their private airwaves and transform a legacy expense into a new profit center.

Vibenomics Maintains AOOH Growth Momentum as 2020 IAB NewFronts Presenter

In recent weeks, our world has changed in unimaginable ways – shifting how consumers work, shop, play, travel, and live. Given new restrictions and consumer preferences, the world of digital advertising and media habits have transformed as a result. 

While IAB NewFronts may look different this year, Vibenomics is excited to be a presenter at this year’s immersive, digital event. Planned around the themeInsight. Inspiration. Transformation., there could not be a better time for brands and agencies to be introduced to our unique offering – Audio Out-of-Home™ advertising. Brands and agencies are seeking innovative ways to spend unallocated dollars and new offerings continue to emerge as buying behaviors change. 

“Just look around at the innovation we are seeing in production, storytelling, and building immersive virtual experiences. That’s how fast things have changed. This is one NewFronts no one should miss,” notes David Cohen, IAB President

As a new entrant to the advertising market & first-of-kind offering, the IAB NewFronts event will be critical to the continued acceleration of our Audio Out-of-Home™ advertising growth. “Vibenomics is an evolutionary change for a new category of ad spending. We bring in-store media into programmatic’s world with ease of buying, targeting, transparency and proof of performance through POS attribution. IAB Newfronts is an ideal showcase for the great things we have been developing and are now ready to share our insights with this buying audience,” says Paul Brenner, President of Audio OOH and Chief Strategy Officer for Vibemonics.

We are eager to introduce the Vibenomics Advertising Market to the world’s largest brands and the research supporting the power of audio advertising alongside other confirmed presenters like Hulu, Youtube, Facebook and more.

Read the full release from IAB about the digital experience and confirmed presenters here.

Vibenomics Raises $6 Million to Accelerate Dominance of Audio Out-of-Home™ Advertising

Vibenomics, a location-based Audio Out-of-Home advertising and experience company, today announced it has raised $6 million in Series A funding to further its momentum in the advertising market. The round was led by BIP Capital and brings total company funding to $13.5 million. The funds will largely support the expansion of convenience stores and grocery retailers in the Vibenomics Audio OOH™ Advertising Marketplace.

By combining licensed, background-music playlists and commercial spots paid for by brand advertisers, Vibenomics helps businesses with physical locations enhance store sales, enrich the customer experience and receive a share of advertisement revenue. The company enables brands to talk to shoppers directly at the point-of-sale inside thousands of retail locations through Audio OOH advertising, impacting immediate purchase decisions.

“Our team is pioneering programmatic Audio OOH media and has emerged as a resounding success story of how a traditional ad medium committing to digital transformation can achieve significant growth in both revenue and share of ad spend,” said Brent Oakley, co-founder and CEO of Vibenomics. “We will use this Series A investment to accelerate product development and scale go-to-market execution, building on the momentum we’ve already seen in only a short period of time.”

According to a recent study by MAGNA, listeners are 35% more receptive and open to audio ads than viewers. Built for both location-based businesses and advertisers, Vibenomics has reached incredible scale at a rapid pace. The company has added over 100 brand advertisers in more than 4,000 locations across 48 states — reaching over 150 million people — and provides a vehicle for retailers to monetize their private, physical-location airwaves to transform a legacy expense into a new profit center.

“Vibenomics is a fresh new way to reach shoppers at the point of making purchase decisions,” said Paul Iaffaldano, chief investment officer at BIP Capital. “It has an amazing effect on both impulse items and brand preference within competitive categories.”

In addition to the funding, Vibenomics recently welcomed several key brands to its customer base, including convenience store chain Kwik Trip, and additional national retailers being announced in Q2.

“When Vibenomics approached the Kwik Trip team, the technology and revenue model was something I’ve never seen in this space before,” said Mark Meisner, Director of Marketing and Advertising at Kwik Trip. “We typically see 8 million or more transactions a week in our stores and, with that amount of ears and eyes, we have a unique opportunity to impact buying choices. When I first took a deep dive into the Vibenomics model, I saw the potential to offset costs to the stores for in-store music and potentially generate ad revenue. The model itself made sense to me and the technology was clean as far as installation and logistics. Vibenomics has been a great partner in accommodating our business needs.”

BIP Capital is recognized as one of the most active venture investors in the Southeast, serving entrepreneurs, investors, and operators to grow the emerging company ecosystem. It applies experience and process to make investment decisions and operational recommendations, allowing its portfolio companies to achieve and stay on a glide path of growth. Areas of focus include Enterprise SaaS, Healthcare IT, Digital Media, Dev Tools, and MarTech.

Vibenomics, Inc. is a location-based Audio Out-of-Home™ advertising and experience company that powers audio channels for retailers, giving brands the ability to talk to shoppers directly at the point of sale. With its powerful cloud-based technology, licensed background music library, data integration capabilities, full-service team of audio experience experts, and network of on-demand professional voice talent, the company provides the right revenue-enhancing vibe for over 100 advertisers in more than 4,000 locations across 48 states, reaching over 150 million people.

Delivered through flexible plug-and-play mobile tablet devices, Vibenomics dynamically broadcasts hyper-targeted, in-stream audio advertisements and curated playlists within any combination of locations across its swiftly growing national footprint, unlocking a powerful new shopper marketing channel for reaching consumers during the critical final footsteps along the path to purchase. Through a first-of-its kind partner program, retailers can receive a portion of revenue for all advertisements sold by Vibenomics that play within their locations, giving them the ability to monetize their private airwaves and transform a legacy expense into a new profit center.

Vibenomics Promotes Paul Brenner to President and Chief Strategy Officer and Expands Audio Out-of-Home™ Advertising Team

Hires Seasoned Advertising Executives Josh Pyne and Brian Liebler

Vibenomics, provider of custom streaming radio stations for thousands of points of interest and the industry’s first audio out-of-home™ (OOH) programmatic advertising marketplace, has promoted Paul Brenner from Chief Strategy Officer to President and Chief Strategy Officer and expanded its sales team adding seasoned advertising industry veterans Josh Pyne and Brian Liebler. Mr. Brenner will own the overall vision and go-to-market strategy for Vibenomics’ audio out-of-home advertising.

“The market reception and growth trajectory of audio out-of-home advertising has been astounding, and there is no more capable leader than Paul Brenner to accelerate our momentum in this exciting space,” says Brent Oakley, CEO and Co-Founder of Vibenomics. “When Paul joined Vibenomics six months ago, it marked a clear turning point in our company’s evolution as a premiere destination for marketers who want to influence shoppers as they take those final footsteps on the path to purchase, and he has earned the full support of our entire team.”

To support the rapidly growing marketplace inventory and demand from national brands and agencies for Audio OOH™ advertising, the company has named Josh Pyne Vice President of Ad Sales, reporting to Mr. Brenner. Mr. Pyne assumes leadership of an existing team of category direct advertising account executives who work with Vibenomics Ad Market partner retailer category vendors. The company also hired New York-based Brian Liebler to be Director of National Ad Sales.

“Traditional audio, OOH, and retail media are in the midst of a digital renaissance along parallel paths that converge at Vibenomics, putting us in a unique position that resonates with a range of media buying disciplines tapping into a variety of budget sources,” says Mr. Brenner. “Josh Pyne has the right leadership experience scaling emerging media channels to seize upon this transformative opportunity. He is well on his way to building a world-class ad sales organization with the addition of respected industry veteran Brian Liebler who gives us a crucial local presence on the ground in New York.”

Before joining Vibenomics, Mr. Pyne oversaw global channel partnerships with data-driven marketing agencies and consultancies for 2 years as part of Equifax’s Enterprise Alliances organization.  Earlier in his 15-year career, Mr. Pyne gained both agency and publisher side experience defining go-to-market strategy and providing executive-level sales leadership throughout the emergence of digital, mobile, and programmatic advertising.  Roles included VP of Strategic Partnerships for ChaCha, VP of Account Strategy at LEAPamp, and VP, Engagement Strategy for Caperion. Mr. Pyne holds an MBA from the University of Indianapolis and a BS from Georgetown College where he played football. He is also currently a Partner at Bluegrass Snack Co, giving him unique insight on retail media from the perspective of a category vendor.

Previously, Mr. Liebler served as Vice President of Sales, US at Launchmetrics and before that, was Vice President of Advertising Sales at Whisper. He was also Vice President of Advertising Sales & Business Development at ooVoo, and over two decades, held positions of various seniority at ChaCha, Alloy Media + Marketing (now Defy Media), Y2M: Youth Media + Marketing (acquired by Viacom’s mtvU now Cheddar), XOS Digital, and CO-ED Magazine/COED Media Group (acquired by bluTonic). Mr. Liebler holds an M.B.A. in marketing from Seton Hall University.

Vibenomics, Inc. is a location-based Audio Out-of-Home™ advertising and experience company that powers custom radio stations for retailers, giving brands the ability to talk to shoppers directly at the point of sale.  With its powerful cloud-based technology, licensed background music library, data integration capabilities, full-service team of audio experience experts, and network of professional voice talent available on-demand, the company provides the right revenue-enhancing vibe for over 100 advertisers in more than 4000 locations across 48 states, reaching over 150 million people.

Delivered through flexible plug-and-play mobile tablet devices, Vibenomics dynamically broadcasts hyper-targeted, in-stream audio advertisements and curated playlists within any combination of locations across its swiftly growing national footprint, unlocking a powerful new shopper marketing channel for reaching consumers during the critical final footsteps along the path to purchase.  Through a first-of-its kind partner program, retailers can receive a portion of revenue for all advertisements sold by Vibenomics that play within their locations, giving them the ability to monetize their private airwaves and transform a legacy expense into a new profit center.

Founded in 2016 in Indianapolis as Fuzic, the company rebranded to Vibenomics in 2017 and is backed by $7.6 million in investments. Vibenomics was named a 2020 Best Place to Work by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce and is a finalist for “Scale-Up of the Year” in the 2020 TechPoint MIRA Awards, the biggest tech awards program in Indiana.

Vibenomics Launches Convenience Store Audio Out-of-Home™ Ad Marketplace

Generates New Revenue for Partner Stores and Enables Brands to Reach Shoppers at Point of Sale

Vibenomics, provider of custom streaming radio stations for retailers, today announced the launch of a Convenience Store Audio Out-of-Home™ Advertising Marketplace that will generate new revenue for participating stores and help shopper marketers target customers in-store with a new form of retail media. The Marketplace launches with 4000 convenience retail locations in the U.S. across 48 states and by year’s end, will grow to more than 9000 stores.

The C-Store Audio OOH™ Ad Market provides a share of revenue to convenience stores for each campaign that runs in their locations while relieving the cost of selling and managing ads, which is handled entirely by Vibenomics, giving c-store operators the ability to generate profit and an opportunity to offset the traditional cost of business music licensing.

“What had been a cost center for providing background music feeds, can now be a new revenue stream for convenience stores, with material effect on c-store margins,” says Brent Oakley, CEO and Co-founder of Vibenomics. “Convenience store operators appreciate the unique partner program we have developed that enables them to transform the legacy music providers into a new revenue generating engine for their business, and a disruptive new marketing tool for their vendor categories.”

Martin & Bayley Inc. (DBA Huck’s), operator of 123 large-format convenience store locations across Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, and Tennessee, has beta tested the Vibenomics Audio Out-of-Home™ Advertising Marketplace resulting in significant sales lift and return on ad spend for its vendor category advertisers, including a 21% increase in sales for an energy drink product.

“At Huck’s, we are constantly looking to enhance the customer experience in each of our stores, while raising the bottom line,” says Jon Bunch, Director of Marketing Business Development for Huck’s. “Our category partners are excited by the new Huck’s Radio audio OOH advertising ability, and my team is pumped to be moving more product and creating a new profit center all while enhancing the in-store experience, thanks to Vibenomics.”

To better quantify the Audio OOH™ opportunity, Vibenomics leveraged location intelligence from SafeGraph alongside US census block insights to analyze visitor behavior and demographic characteristics across more than 150,000 individual points of interest in the convenience store industry. The results of this analysis are available to download as an infographic titled ‘Profile of a Convenience Store Shopper’.  When compared to industry averages, the Vibenomics C-Store Audio OOH™ Ad Marketplace locations had:

The technology that powers Vibenomics enables brands to target the precise audience profile, behaviors, and locations that maximize conversions.  Advertisers can choose to provide their own creative assets, or rely on Vibenomics’ full-service sonic branding studio to produce custom audio spots as a value-add, for campaigns ranging from general use national spots to highly personalized hyper-local or retailer co-branded media strategies.

“With the innovation and explosive growth happening in convenience, this retail sector has emerged as a natural fit for Vibenomics that enables our audio out-of-home advertising to reach the majority of US consumers during those critical final footsteps along the path to purchase for a diverse range of product categories,” concludes Mr. Oakley.

Vibenomics, Inc. is a location-based Audio Out-of-Home™ advertising and experience company that powers custom radio stations for retailers, giving brands the ability to talk to shoppers directly at the point of sale.  With its powerful cloud-based technology, licensed background music library, data integration capabilities, full-service team of audio experience experts, and network of professional voice talent available on-demand, the company provides the right revenue-enhancing vibe for over 100 advertisers in more than 4000 locations across 48 states, reaching over 150 million people.

Delivered through flexible plug-and-play mobile tablet devices, Vibenomics dynamically broadcasts hyper-targeted, in-stream audio advertisements and curated playlists within any combination of locations across its swiftly growing national footprint, unlocking a powerful new shopper marketing channel for reaching consumers during the critical final footsteps along the path to purchase.  Through a first-of-its kind partner program, retailers can receive a portion of revenue for all advertisements sold by Vibenomics that play within their locations, giving them the ability to monetize their private airwaves and transform a legacy expense into a new profit center.

Founded in 2016 in Indianapolis as Fuzic, the company rebranded to Vibenomics in 2017 and is backed by $7.6 million in investments.

Vibenomics Launches Audio Out-of-Home Advertising Marketplace

Brent Oakley, CEO, Vibenomics

By: Brent Oakley, CEO & Co-Founder, Vibenomics

Since our launch in 2017, Vibenomics has helped thousands of location-based businesses and connected cities create and control the right audio  “vibe” in their environments driving enhanced sales and enriching visitor experiences. In the process, we have created a national footprint that we know will be much sought after by both audio and out-of-home (OOH) advertisers. Today, we are pleased to announce the launch of the Vibenomics Audio Out-of-Home Advertising Marketplace, offering advertisers access to  150 million on-the-go consumers in the places where they shop, work, travel, and play.

Paul Brenner, Chief Strategy Officer, Vibenomics
Paul Brenner, Chief Strategy Officer

To shepherd the official launch of our Audio Out-of-Home Advertising Marketplace, Vibenomics has brought on visionary broadcast and technology veteran Paul Brenner, a former President of NextRadio/TagStation and SVP of Emmis Communications, to serve as Chief Strategy Officer.

Building a Network Effect

Prior to developing our new Audio Out-of-Home Advertising Marketplace, the Vibenomics team spent two years focused on building a location-based audio experience solution that’s easy to use for a single site, yet powerful enough to handle the most complex demands of multi-site organizations. The result was a complete solution for managing audio experiences that combines cloud technology with full-service audio programming and content production capabilities. Our audio experience offering has quickly scaled to over 4,000 environments, reaching over 150 million unique visitors annually with just the right mix of licensed background music, professionally recorded voice messaging, and live announcements.

The right music and announcements enable retailers, chains, and connected cities to create differentiated experiences that engage audiences in memorable, non-intrusive ways when and where other mediums cannot. That’s the power of Vibenomics: enabling locations to dynamically control their vibe ensuring an environment conducive to building brand loyalty and driving higher sales.

Establishing a Track Record

The appeal of audio out-of-home advertising as part of the shopper marketing mix has already attracted over 100 local and national advertisers who participated in an 8-month beta testing program with targeted ads running in retail stores, attractions, and public spaces such as Royal Farms, Ricker’s (acquired by GetGo), Georgia Street in Downtown Indianapolis, The Waterpark at Monon Center, and Grand Park Sports Complex. Participating advertisers include Monster Energy, Live Nation, General Mills, Body Armor, Pepsi, Purdue University, and Red Bull. Brand advertisers as well as our advertising marketplace locations reported consistently positive results, with a retail chain partner achieving 42% sales lift and $1.9 million incremental revenue for an entertainment category advertiser.

“How and where audio is consumed is changing rapidly with the emergence of podcasting, streaming services, and smart speakers, but inventory has been limited. Vibenomics is enabling brands to make the most of the emerging digital audio ecosystem by unlocking a whole new placement option that serves both the audio and OOH advertiser markets. We will build up our Audio Out-of-Home Advertising Marketplace with real-time custom branded and curated content, dynamic music and programmatic advertising across all marketing verticals and categories.”
— Paul Brenner, Chief Strategy Officer

Message Received

Our customers, as well as the broader audio and OOH advertising ecosystems, all echo the same message about the potential for our new audio out-of-home offering. Here’s what our Executive Chairman Scott McCorkle had to say about this important new direction for Vibenomics:

Scott McCorkle, Executive Chairman, Vibenomics
Scott McCorkle, Executive Chairman

“The OOH market is expected to grow from $8 billion to $11.5 billion through 2022, and we are already taking market share from others by offering more efficiency and better results. The Vibenomics Audio Out-of-Home Advertising Marketplace is proving very attractive to national advertisers.  They want to reach the unique audience we have created and amplify the voice of their brands in an entirely new way – right at the point of sale – when it matters most.”

— Scott McCorkle, Executive Chairman, Vibenomics

The Out of Home Advertising Association of America reports that the out-of-home (OOH) industry is experiencing growth not seen in more than a decade. Revenue grew 7.7% to nearly $2.7 billion for the second quarter of 2019 compared to the same period in 2018, marking the sector’s highest quarterly growth since 2007. For the first half of the year, revenue was up 7%. The strong quarterly growth occurred across all four major OOH channels: billboards, street furniture, transit and place-based. Moreover, nearly 70% of the top 100 advertisers in the space increased their spend in the second quarter compared to the same timeframe last year, while 25% more than doubled their OOH investment.

Some key highlights of the new Vibenomics Out-of-Home Advertising Marketplace include:

For more about Vibenomics, you can read our story here.

In-Store Audio Marketing Helps the Dough Rise

Lee Marcum, CEO of Jack’s Donuts, was recently featured as a guest on the Hard Stop Podcast where he discussed the tangible ROI realized across all his locations since rolling out “Jack’s Donuts Radio” through Vibenomics Audio Experience Software (AES) and the Vibenomics Ad Market.

The Vibenomics & Jack’s Donuts partnership began in 2017 when both organizations were in important growth phases of their businesses – Jack’s Donuts with only four locations (now with over 20!). At that time, Marcum didn’t realize that private radio networks with promotional messages – like what was heard in “Big Box” stores would be an option that was available to him as a small business owner.

When rolling out Vibenomics, Marcum and his team utilized the software for the promotion of their active deals. They found that during high traffic periods – typically Saturday and Sunday mornings – they had long lines, causing their retail associates to miss out on opportunities to upsell daily specials or promote initiatives like fundraising and catering with their captive in-store audience waiting to order.

Promotional in-store audio marketing messages were the perfect solution. Now, the speaker system in each Jack’s Donuts location is not just for background music, evolving into an entirely new in-store marketing channel that elevates the customer experience, and drives higher transaction amounts. The icing on the cake donut: with audio messaging inventory Jack’s Donuts doesn’t use for self-promotion, they’ve opted in to enable outside advertisers to speak to their customer base, generating additional revenue for Jack’s Donuts through a Vibenomics Ad Market partner revenue share program.

“[Vibenomics] is putting more money in our pockets than the thousands of dollars that we were spending on traditional advertising” – Lee Marcum, CEO

Outside of achieving measurable financial returns, Marcum notes that the biggest difference from their previous audio provider is Vibenomics’ fresh and innovative approach to advertising. Click below to listen to the full interview.

How Audio Can Impact Bottom Line

When it comes to music in your business, there is a lot to consider. All too often, business owners make the mistake of playing the music they enjoy versus the music that could actually provide a noticeable impact to bottom line. As seen in 2005 research completed by the American Psychological Association, music was the key sensory factor in making impulse buyers purchase more, and of those that made an unintentional purchase, it was noticed that these purchasers dropped nearly $30 more than planned when exposed to music in the store.

However, there is no “one-size-fits-all” method for determining what will work best for your space. Outlining business goals — selling more, retaining customers, providing an outstanding experience — can help develop a winning audio strategy. From improved mood, to altered perception of time, to the development of a desired emotion, the benefits of audio are clear. Three elements have research-backed effects on consumer behavior in-store, and should be considered when determining what playlist should come from the speakers in your space:

Tempo

Research has found that tempo is closely correlated to the actions that a consumer subconsciously takes. For business owners, this is incredibly powerful, as you have the ability to dictate exactly how you want customers to behave. It has been shown that slower music keeps people around longer, which typically results in visitors purchasing (up to 32%!) more as duration increases. For example, slow music played in restaurants caused customers to eat slower and spend a noticeably greater amount on alcohol — perfect for fine dining establishments, or the afternoon lull. However, if a fast-casual restaurant is experiencing a dinner rush and a shortage of tables, faster-paced music can make patrons believe they have occupied the space longer, thus turning tables faster as a result. The tempo of the background music in a space can not only provide a tangible change in the atmosphere of the business but can alter the mood of visitors in a positive manner when thoughtfully executed.

Volume

The volume of music also is important to consider when utilizing audio in your space. While most research agrees that the volume of music should match the energy of the patrons of your space, there are a few additional factors to consider. First, loud music has been correlated to less time spent shopping when compared to softer music played in stores. Additionally, young shoppers tend to respond better to music played in the foreground of a space, versus older shoppers who typically stay in a space longer when music is in the background. Determining specific business goals will help define exactly where your volume dial should sit. The Association for Consumer Research found that loud music will keep customers constantly flowing through a space, whereas quieter tunes will help customers stay and enjoy the ambiance a little longer.

Genre

The genre of music to play in a store is fairly dependent on the ideal customer for a business. Family-friendly establishments have seen better results when country music is played since 42% of Americans listen to and prefer that genre. However, high-end liquor stores have seen customers leaving with more expensive bottles of wine when classical music is guiding them through the space. Consumers have noted that classical music has made them feel more sophisticated, and therefore, they wanted their purchase to reflect that feeling. This is also apparent during the holiday season, as retailers have noticed higher purchase rates of festive goods when Christmas music is playing versus a non-seasonal playlist. Music has the ability to connect with a specific emotion, making customers feel something in regards to a product, rather than think about the purchase. Additionally, determining what genre most closely relates with your target market is important because you may want to avoid it, as research showed that consumers spent 8% less time shopping when they heard recognizable music versus unfamiliar tracks because they perceived time to pass more quickly.

The right music cannot only help customers stay longer in your space, but also can make them excited to come back. However, perfecting your playlist can take precious time and attention away from your business. Audio Experience Solution can make your job easier with a library of curated playlists, thoughtful scheduling capabilities, and access to professional voice talent to speak directly to your customers — saving business owners time and energy, while still allowing them to reap the benefits that come with tailoring the customer experience. The right music, at the right time, can influence customers to stay longer, spend more, or feel more positively about their experience. Music can reinforce a message and emphasize the influence of the entire, holistic shopping experience on customer behavior creating happier customers and a better bottom line.

Interested in learning more about using an Audio Experience Solution (AES) platform and how audio can revolutionize the customer experience in your space? Request a demo of Vibenomics today and learn how you can start creating on-brand music and messaging for your customers.

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