Keen and Accretive: OOH Drives Hidden Growth
In a media landscape dominated by search, social, and streaming, a new analysis from Keen Decision Systems and Accretive suggests marketers may be missing one of their most efficient levers for growth: out-of-home (OOH) advertising.
The joint study reveals that OOH delivers a marginal ROI (mROI) of $7.58 … well above the average media mROI of $5.52 … making it one of the most underfunded yet overperforming channels in the marketing mix. The findings underscore what many in the industry have long suspected: as digital efficiency declines, OOH’s incremental value is rising fast.
The study, which examined cross-channel spending between January 1, 2024, and March 31, 2025, analyzed media performance using Keen’s proprietary response curves. Accretive supplied advanced OOH activation and performance data, helping quantify the channel’s true impact in driving incremental sales — the additional return generated by each new marketing dollar invested.
“OOH has proven its ability to produce outsized returns compared to incremental returns in other channels,” said Justin Jefferson, VP of Strategy and Analytics at Keen Decision Systems. “Marketers should consider reallocating spend to OOH to improve overall marketing efficiency and ROI, helping them weather economic headwinds.”
“Our partnership with Keen helps deliver more definitive proof: not only does OOH work well with others, but it is highly effective on its own. A marginal ROI of $7.58 demonstrates that OOH is a powerhouse for incremental sales and can be one of the most efficient and underfunded tools marketers have in this oversaturated media environment. Long gone are the days that marketers can use search and social to raid the lower funnel – that simply no longer works.”-
A High-Return Channel Hidden in Plain Sight
According to Craig Benner, Chief Executive Officer at Accretive, OOH’s $7.58 mROI outperformed traditional media like print ($7.18), radio ($6.61), and linear TV ($6.53). Yet, it still represents less than 1% of total U.S. media spend. For marketers accustomed to chasing efficiency in search and social, this data presents a compelling reason to rebalance.
“Search, social, and streaming video have become extremely saturated, accounting for more than half of all media dollars spent, which leads to diminishing returns,” Jefferson explained. “Marketers who shift spend from saturated channels to high-marginal channels like OOH are coming out ahead as they boost total marketing efficiency and ROI.”
Jefferson added that many brands’ media portfolios are “overconcentrated in upper-funnel digital and TV, where frequency waste creeps in.” With mobility up and consumer attention diffused across screens and environments, he says OOH acts as a “reach engine brands are underusing.”
“Shifting even a modest share to OOH diversifies exposure, reduces saturation, and drives more efficient growth than simply pushing harder on the same channels,” he said.
Industry-Level Momentum
When Keen examined ROI by industry, OOH remained competitive across sectors, achieving an average ROI of $1.58. Top-performing categories included Retail and Ecommerce ($3.64), Travel and Hospitality ($2.96), Consumer Goods ($2.49), and Sports and Fitness ($2.47) … all outperforming the OOH average.
These numbers illustrate why OOH’s underutilization is not just a budget anomaly, it’s a strategic blind spot. Despite its efficiency, many brands continue to allocate most of their incremental dollars to digital channels that have long since hit their saturation points.
Proving and Scaling What Works
To help marketers act on these findings, Keen and Accretive are partnering to make OOH optimization more accessible and measurable. Keen’s decision optimization platform will integrate Accretive’s OOH activation data, giving marketers visibility into how current or planned OOH placements enhance their overall media mix performance.
This integration allows brands to simulate budget shifts, forecast outcomes, and validate results, turning OOH from a legacy tactic into a dynamic, data-driven component of omnichannel planning.
“Accretive was founded on the premise that OOH has always been an effective channel — it just needed to be proven,” said Craig Benner told StreetFight. “Our partnership with Keen helps deliver more definitive proof: not only does OOH work well with others, but it is highly effective on its own.”
Benner added that OOH’s mROI of $7.58 demonstrates its potential as a “powerhouse for incremental sales” and an underfunded weapon in a crowded digital ecosystem. “Long gone are the days that marketers can use search and social to raid the lower funnel — that simply no longer works,” he said.
A Shift Toward Balanced Growth
The findings from Keen and Accretive come at a moment when many brands are reevaluating their media portfolios to combat stagnating digital performance. With CPMs rising and engagement rates falling, marketers are seeking channels that restore balance between efficiency and reach.
OOH, once viewed primarily as a top-of-funnel awareness driver, is proving itself to be a full-funnel performer — one that builds brand equity while delivering measurable, incremental sales.
The report also reframes the conversation around marketing ROI itself. Traditional ROI tells you how past dollars performed; marginal ROI reveals where the next dollar should go. For marketers under pressure to do more with less, that distinction is becoming increasingly critical.
