A major new study has found that social media advertising delivers 11% lower attention and engagement during the day, when consumers are most active out of the home. The findings, published today in The Point of Social report, highlight a clear opportunity for advertisers to get the most from their social campaigns and position out of home (OOH) as a channel to prime and amplify social media campaigns. To download a research overview click here.
Commissioned by Bauer Media Outdoor UK, Global, JCDecaux UK, Ocean Outdoor and Posterscope, the study builds on 2023’s The Point of Search research and provides one of the most comprehensive examinations of social media behaviour out of the home to date. Consumer research by Norstat tracked 1,150 heavy social media users aged 18–65 through an online survey and a bespoke one-day mobile diary, comparing social media behaviour out of the home with at home.
The mobile diary research established that nine in 10 out of the home social media sessions took place between 8am and 6pm. Subsequent time of day analysis of 3.5 billion impressions across 11 advertisers’ annual social campaigns spanning multiple categories, shows that engagement per impression is consistently 11% lower during the day (8am-6pm) across link clicks, post engagements, page engagements and video plays compared to evening / early morning (6pm–8am). This identifies a clear attention gap during the day when social media usage is highest out of the home.
According to the mobile diary research, social media behaviour differs significantly out of the home compared to at home. At home usage is more passive, often instigated through habit or passing the time, while out of the home behaviour is more active, varied and driven by context. Social media out of the home is more likely to be used to explore products and services or get inspiration for things to do or places to go (47% vs 36%), share content (31% vs 17%) and capture moments through photos or videos (18% vs 9%). The study also indicates that social media use is triggered by a wider range of factors when people are out of the home, particularly things seen or conversations had.
The findings show that location and context play a significant role in shaping behaviour. Workplace environments drive higher levels of content viewing (75% vs a 68% out of the home average), while retail environments increase exploration of products, services, reviews or offers. On average, 21% of out of the home social sessions involve such exploration vs 13% at home, rising to 28% in shopping centres and 31% in shops and supermarkets. Leisure environments show similar patterns when it comes to exploring ideas of things to do or places to go.
The data also indicates that out of the home social media use is more outcome-driven, with users more likely to act, including visiting websites, continuing their search or making purchases. Social media use out of the home is also more likely to take place with others, with 44% of out of the home sessions occurring with other people compared to 23% at home. Out of the home social media sessions were also five times more likely to be conducted in the presence of friends (20%) vs at home (4%), suggesting social is more sociable when out of the home.
Russell SmitherWhat this study proves is that social media behaviour is very different during the day when people are outside of the home. It becomes more diverse, more influenced by their context and surroundings and is more action orientated. Whether that’s exploring products or searching for things to do or places to go, and importantly capturing photos or videos of real-world experiences with intent to share on social. That creates a very different environment for advertising, where attention is harder to capture and where social media ads are more likely to get noticed if primed beforehand.
Head of Research & Insight, Posterscope
The report identifies that OOH advertising is very well positioned to address this attention gap and improve the performance of social media campaigns throughout the day.
OOH’s high weekly reach, combined with its time-of-day alignment with social media usage, best illustrated through IPA Touchpoints, perfectly positions it to prime audiences before and during peak social media usage periods. This effect is particularly pronounced among the 16–34 age group.
Evidence from multiple independent studies demonstrates the scale of this priming effect:
• +42% average increase in dwell time on social ads when primed with OOH, evidenced across two eye-tracking lab studies by JCDecaux (2 Screen Future, +52%) and Ocean (DOOH: The Vital Ingredient, +32%)
• +7% increase in overall campaign effectiveness, including memorability, brand impact and action taken, across 93 brand studies conducted between 2015 and 2025
• +34% increase in social media business effects when OOH is included in the media mix versus no OOH, according to IPA Databank analysis of campaigns between 2014 and 2024
• Specific business effects generated by social media are amplified when OOH is included: sales up +28%, profit up +14%, market share up +59% (IPA Databank)
Ciara SmythThis report reframes how we should think about social media use during the day. It’s not just a channel people consume passively; it’s an active behaviour shaped by where they are and what they’re experiencing in the real world. In many ways, social and OOH have become the dual screening of the outdoors, working in parallel as people move around. OOH sits in the same environments and plays a critical role in priming audiences before and during social use, helping to increase attention and drive stronger business outcomes. The findings point to clear headroom for the two channels to work more effectively alongside each other.
Managing Partner, Total Social, dentsu
About the research
Consumer research was carried out by Norstat in October/November 2025 among 1,150 heavy social media users aged 18–65. To quantify advertising impact, analysis of social media impression and engagement data from 11 advertisers across multiple categories examined 3.5 billion impressions, 365 days of data per advertiser and 96,360 hours of activity in total. Four engagement metrics were assessed: link clicks, 3-second video plays, post engagements and page engagements.