Out-of-Home media company JCDecaux has handed its inaugural Programmatic Campaign of the Year award to Lion and UM's 'Guinness Brewery of Meteorology' campaign.

The campaign strategy was based on the correlation between the optimal temperature for a Guinness and winter temperatures in Australia, leading to the creation of a new weather platform, 'The Brewery of Meteorology' app.

The app informed Australians when it was the perfect time for a pint, creating an omnichannel experience that engaged customers from checking the forecast to savouring the colder weather moments. The campaign used programmatic digital Out-of-Home and dynamically optimised creative to display city-specific, weather-triggered creative whenever the temperature dropped and reached cold, encouraging drinkers to enjoy a Guinness.

Geographic planning was used to direct customers to their nearest pub to claim their free pint of Guinness. The campaign strategy emphasised integrating Guinness into the winter season and reaching consumers directly, using weather forecast-style online videos and social content, and a targeted approach through Guinness' first-party customer database.

The campaign resulted in increased sales and growth in brand association, including a three-point growth in salience and a 17 per cent increase in brand power. It also led to a 13 per cent increase in consumption year-on-year, and an 18 per cent boost in revenue during key winter months.

One of the judges, IAB Australia CEO, Gai Le Roy, said: "I loved this campaign. They're staying true to the cheekiness of the Guinness brand. They're bringing it to a new format, and they're also closing it from a performance point of view. You've got a cheeky brand, you've got new trial, and you've got immediate results. What's not to love there?"

Other judges also spoke highly of the campaign.

"This was a really impressive campaign that showcased a great creative concept, skillfully connecting weather and consumption moments with a strong promotional offer. The customised creative stood out for providing a tangible value exchange through directions to the nearest Guinness pub, creating a delightful customer journey," said Uber Head of Media APAC, Joe Lunn.

"The offer was compelling, providing a complimentary Guinness near the pub with immediate redemption. The allure and value proposition were highly appealing," said JCDecaux Australia and New Zealand CEO, Steve O'Connor.

"Linking the temperature and making it the brewery of meteorology was clever. It amplified and showcased the capabilities that programmatic presents," said Outdoor Media Association CEO, Elizabeth McIntyre.

"This entry really excited me. I loved the concept of advertising a beer in winter, and this campaign demonstrates how weather targeting can be used in a sexy way to drive exciting results. It was more than just weather, it was point of interest, it was audience, it was well planned and executed, and the results are amazing," said WallDecaux, Germany Head of Programmatic, Dorota Karc.

The judges also highly commended Yahoo and Starcom for Tourism Tasmania's The Off Season 2023 campaign. In 2023, Tourism Tasmania boosted winter tourism through a strategic omnichannel campaign, primarily using programmatic digital Out-of-Home and audio channels, in partnership with Yahoo and Starcom. The campaign resulted in a 45 per cent increase in physical visits to Tasmania, with Large Format billboards generating a 140 per cent footfall uplift and a 151 per cent website uplift compared to a non-exposed control audience.

Karc said: "Love this campaign. The data usage was incredible, the execution on the data for an omnichannel campaign was excellent. The results were remarkable, and the creatives were delivered well."

Lunn said: "This campaign deployed a comprehensive range of datasets to identify audiences and then activate them across multiple channels. I loved how they thought about how to use other channels beyond programmatic Out-of-Home for a true omnichannel campaign, to produce strong results."

O'Connor said: "A strong campaign, with great use of data, producing solid results. They've also built on their learnings for subsequent programmatic campaigns. The creative concept was different, they pushed the boundaries, and it was engaging."