Fast-growing out of home media business Smart Outdoor has given the gift of kindness to a host of charities, providing more than £50,000 worth of free advertising in the last 12 months.
The digital media firm, which is based in Sunderland, has provided brand-boosting ads across its network of screens to a range of charities, to help them through a challenging 12 months. The business – which reaches 12.5 million people a week through its 227 screens across the North East, North Yorkshire and Scotland – has supported charitable campaigns including Feed The Bairns, a campaign to help feed families during the pandemic, as well as Parkinsons UK, a charity that is close to the heart of Smart Outdoor founder Mark Catterall. The company – which plans to increase its consumer reach to 28 million people per week by this time next year – has donated screentime across high-impact digital advertising channels at the Tyne Tunnel, Stack Seaburn and Newcastle and the A19 among others. The screens have helped the brands raise awareness of their campaigns, delivering important messages to consumers travelling throughout the North East and Scotland, and were served alongside campaigns from Smart Outdoors’ impressive client roster, which includes American Golf, Statsport, JD and Castore among others. Mark said: “We’re a commercial business, but one that really does want to give something back, and it’s tremendous to be able to support causes that are important to us. “We’ve backed campaigns to support people during Covid, health related charities, and public safety initiatives just to make a difference. We know how effective outdoor advertising is, and especially as we come out of lockdown, our reach will grow significantly as people enjoy their new-found freedoms after a tough year.” “We have been only too happy to lend our support to charities and campaigns that make a positive difference.” Smart Outdoor, which is part of a wider group of Smart businesses that support customers to digitally connect with local communities nationwide, was set up by Mark Catterall just over two years ago, and already it employs 19 people. It has prominent large-screen sites across the North East, North Yorkshire and Central Scotland. The company operates prominent North East screens at the Tyne Bridge, Whitemare Pool and Sunderland’s St Mary’s Boulevard. As well as large format digital screens, sister company Smart Sanitiser will roll out a network of more than 1,000 smaller screens at gyms and service stations across the UK. “Our reach is growing month by month, meaning we can deliver yet-more value to charitable partners and good causes. It feels really good to use the business to drive social good, particularly after the challenges so many have faced over the past year. We’ll continue to do our bit as we grow.”
