VMO has installed high-tech screens that measure real-time audience behaviour at a Sydney gym – the first major project by VMO since it acquired Active Media Group.
The screens, some of which measure to more than 3m in length, provide better connectivity with gym patrons and allow advertisers monitor the performance of campaigns in real-time.
The out of home company has installed 17 at Fitness First’s newest health club in Sydney's CBD region of Barangaroo.
This takes the VMO Active network to more than 140 gyms and health clubs across Australia with plans to grow the networks footprint by 50% in 2017.
Although similar technology has been deployed at shopping centres and petrol bowsers, this is the first time it is being used in a gym in the world.
The screens are ultra high definition and use VMO's DART technology, an audience measurement tool that anonymously detects viewer’s facial features to assess age, gender and engagement.
“With DART going into Barangaroo, this is the first introduction of an audience measurement platform at a gym anywhere in the world,” VMO managing director Anthony Deeble tells AdNews.
“We've deployed a number of audience metrics that DART requires to determine who is looking at our content on screen broken up into 16 different demographic profiles. We're also able to determine how many eyeballs are on campaigns, what time of day and day of week, individual campaign tracking – and its all dynamic and in real time.
“This allows us to better pinpoint the type of audience advertises are targeting and deliver greater efficiencies and less wastage. We're also able to provide them real accountability in terms of how their campaign is performing and tracking.”
Advertisers in health clubs typically include brands in sportswear, entertainment, travel and automotive. Deeble believes the enhanced screens and data accountability should attract even more categories to the mix.
He says the gym experience will also be enhanced for patrons, who will see brighter, larger screens that show more relevant and engaging content.
“The content stickiness, relevance and engagement is well featured. They'll see the ambiance created by the screens and how it fits into the environment,” Deeble adds.
It's not just high tech connected screens that the "connected gym” boast. There are also exercise machines that connect to members via their mobile phone signal, offering bespoke training regimes and historical workout data.
This curated workout experience complements carefully curated content and advertising on screens - workouts just got a whole load more personal.
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