Region: United States | Date: November 1, 2026
Simply telling consumers where the nearest store is on a digital out-of-home ad can materially change their behavior, according to new research from Vistar Media, the programmatic DOOH platform. The study, conducted with Omnicom Media Group and Annalect, tested the impact of adding a store locator to DOOH creative across three categories: Retail, Quick Service Restaurants (QSR) and Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG).
The research used a control group that saw creative without a store locator and three test variations in which the locator appeared at the top, middle or bottom of the ad. The study measured visit intent for Retail and QSR campaigns and purchase intent for CPG campaigns, alongside brand recognition, brand appreciation and ad appreciation, giving a broader picture of how store locators shape both immediate intent and overall campaign perception.
The headline finding: adding store information can significantly increase consumer intent, but placement matters. Across the study, top and bottom placements delivered the strongest results, while middle placement was less consistent. For Retail, placing the store locator at the bottom of the creative increased visit intent by 35% compared with the control group. For QSR, bottom placement lifted visit intent by 24%. The strongest effects came from CPG, particularly impulse-buy products such as candy, where purchase intent increased by 116% with bottom placement and 110% with top placement.
The research also found that design execution matters as much as placement. Using a familiar location pin icon increased visit intent by 16%, and high contrast between the store locator and the rest of the creative lifted visit and purchase intent by 10%. The middle position was the weakest: when store information appeared in the center of the visual, it competed with headlines and imagery, making it easier to overlook, and visit intent declined by 10% in that configuration.
The findings have practical implications for brands using programmatic DOOH. Store locators are among the most accessible dynamic creative elements available in DOOH, because they can be automatically populated based on the screen’s location and updated in real time. The research suggests they work best when treated as a deliberate design component, positioned at the top or bottom of the frame, rather than as an afterthought squeezed into the middle of the creative. Creative testing frameworks like the one used here also point the way toward more systematic experimentation in DOOH, moving the channel closer to the testing culture of digital media.
For retailers and restaurants, the ability to measure visit intent lifts tied to specific creative elements also strengthens the case for outcome-based planning in DOOH. Combined with foot-traffic measurement and mobile attribution, store locator creative gives advertisers a concrete lever to optimize campaigns against store-visit objectives, a capability that has historically been one of the hardest to deliver in outdoor media.
Why it matters: Vistar’s study quantifies the store locator effect across categories and shows that small, low-cost creative changes can drive double-digit gains in visit and purchase intent, giving DOOH buyers a practical, measurable optimization tool for store-visit campaigns.
Source: Vistar Media
