Rural demand and early bookings to fuel up to 30% surge in festive OOH adex

The Indian outdoor advertising industry is bracing for one of its most competitive festive seasons yet, as brands lock in prime locations weeks in advance and significantly raise their spends. From airport LEDs and metro dominations in urban hubs to bus station announcements and hyperlocal digital out-of-home (DOOH) in rural markets, the OOH (out-of-home) medium is emerging as a central battleground for consumer attention during the crucial September-to-November sales window.

Premium inventory vanishes early as spend surges

According to Yuvrraj Agarwaal, Chief Strategy Officer at Laqshya Media Group, inbound briefs for OOH campaigns are up about 25% over last year, with purchase orders being signed within days instead of weeks.

Read more: APAC dominates 49% of global OOH spend at $22.8bn: Report

The average campaign value has jumped around 30%, as brands secure high-impact spaces like CBD mega boards and dynamic DOOH walls. Bookings are also arriving 30–45 days earlier than in 2024, leaving little room for last-minute buyers to grab marquee slots.

“Festive-season FOMO is fueling a land-grab for prime OOH; the scramble is real and the cheques are bigger,” Agarwaal says.

He estimates that roughly 35% of the full-year OOH ad expenditure (AdEx) in FY26 will be driven by festive campaigns, up from about 32% last year.

Rural India fuels an optimistic wave

If metros are chasing premium outdoor visibility, small-town and rural India are driving the growth momentum.

Rajesh Radhakrishnan, Co-Founder and CMO of rural marketing and DOOH specialist Vritti iMedia, says client enquiries and confirmed campaigns have surged significantly in tier-II, tier- III, and rural markets.

A favourable monsoon, higher agricultural income, political stability, and rising consumer sentiment in the heartland are giving brands confidence to spend big.

“For us, this is the best time of the year to deploy contextual OOH and DOOH activations,” Radhakrishnan notes. Bus stations, mandis, and religious venues are becoming high-impact touchpoints, with digital formats helping blend tech with tradition.

Read more: Traditional adex under pressure as TV grows by 1%, print down by 3% in 2025: WPP Media

Vritti projects that 50–60% of FY26 OOH AdEx will come from festive campaigns, representing a 15–18% jump over last year.

The biggest spenders in rural OOH this season will be FMCG, consumer durables, automotive, BFSI, and insurance players — all eyeing aspirational buyers ready to make high-ticket purchases.

DOOH and innovation steal the spotlight

Junaid Shaikh, Managing Director at RoshanSpace Brandcom, observes that while marketers have been somewhat cautious in 2025, they are more open to experimenting with DOOH and creating large-scale, innovative installations that go beyond traditional advertising.

Festive campaigns typically account for 42–45% of overall OOH AdEx, and Shaikh expects an uptick from last year’s 43%, driven by growing faith in OOH’s effectiveness.

Real estate, OTT platforms, mobile manufacturers, and automotive brands remain core spenders, joined this year by e-commerce, consumer electronics, organised jewellery, tourism, and home improvement companies aiming to ride the festive demand wave.

Mixed views on growth trajectory

From aggressive metro takeovers to immersive rural activations, the festive period is pushing brands to treat OOH as more than just a medium, it’s becoming, in Agarwaal’s words, “cultural infrastructure.”

The convergence of rising rural prosperity, early booking trends, digital innovation, and cross-category competition is setting the stage for one of the most vibrant outdoor advertising seasons in recent memory.

Read more: India adex to rise 8.4% to $21.3 billion in 2025, even as global growth slows to 6%: WPP Media

While several industry leaders predict a sharp festive uptick, not all agree on explosive growth. Priyanka Kapur, Managing Partner at Zenith India, believes OOH will remain relatively stable compared to the past two to three years, with automobiles, e-commerce sales, and mobile phones leading the spend.

OTT platforms will also invest heavily, depending on their content line-up.