Volta EV Charging Totem Network Already Past 2,300 DOOH Totems And 1B Impressions

August 9, 2022 by Dave Haynes

The one-to-one, driver-to-screen media model of digital ad posters on electric vehicle charging stations seems a little counter-intuitive for out of home media companies that are all about lots and lots of eyeballs, but it seems to be working for Volta.

The San Francisco-based media start-up now has more than 2,300 double-sided display units deployed in the US – with rapid-charging units paired with large, daylight-viewable LCDs embedded in the totems. The company just announced that it is generating an aggregate of one billion monthly impressions on the Volta Media Network, nine months after the network was formally launched.

I dunno how the company gets to that number, but the math doesn’t work if the count is just for motorists who pull in and plug in. It must be rounding up people nearby in parking lots who would have an opportunity to see the screens, but not necessarily linger near them. The dynamic is similar to so-called street furniture ad totems on downtown sidewalks.

The last financial reporting (the company is public) showed the company is burning through a lot of money, with losses of $48M and $65M in the last two quarters. But the capital build-out phase is unavoidably expensive, and will top out at some point. Volta said in its last reporting period that full year 2022 revenue is expected to be in the range of $70M-$80M.

Volta says:

Volta Media Network’s increased reach is the result of additional media-enabled EV charging stations installed at locations visited by millions of Americans daily, such as Cinemark Theatres, Giant Food, Kohl’s, Stop & Shop, and Tanger Outlets. Volta locates its EV charging stations steps from the front entrances of popular commercial properties to improve convenience for drivers and maximize the number of shoppers influenced by Volta’s digital media screens. As a result of these strategic placements, the Volta Media Network reaches highly valuable consumers moments before they purchase a product or service, allowing Volta campaigns to create awareness and drive measurable sales in support of advertisers’ increasing focus on retail media campaigns. Advertisers can also target specific segments of Volta’s audience, which over-indexes on high household incomes, propensity to purchase, and desire for premium goods and services compared to the general American population.

Volta’s media network is the world’s largest digital out-of-home (DOOH) network integrated directly into EV charging stations that support the transition to electric mobility. Every campaign featured across Volta’s network of more than 4,600 large-format digital screens directly supports charging sessions providing electric miles to drivers. To date, Volta has provided more than 124 million electric miles and avoided over 30,000 tons of CO2 emissions that would have otherwise been created by gas-powered vehicles.

“Volta’s ability to speak to our audience while they are in the shopping mindset with unique, high-impact messages is highly valuable to our business,” said Michelle Leo, VP Marketing at Citizen Watch Group. “Working with Volta also aligns with our brand’s sustainability commitments as we’re directly supporting the transition to carbon-free electric transportation.”

Volta further distinguishes itself by offering advertisers a suite of measurement capabilities enabled by collaborations with industry-leading measurement companies. These relationships allow Volta to report on the same full-funnel impact marketers have come to expect from the most notable digital advertising platforms. This includes performance metrics like sales lift and incremental return on ad spend (ROAS)—a new frontier for the DOOH industry. Volta’s ability to meaningfully drive bottom-of-the-funnel results was best demonstrated through two recent campaigns. Working with a leading shopper intelligence platform, Catalina, Volta revealed its ability to deliver an 8 percent sales lift for Dole’s products and increase category share for the brand by 8.5 percent. In a separate campaign for Coca-Cola, Volta, and digital media and promotions technology company Quotient, measured $2.51 million in attributable sales and a ROAS 56 percent higher than average.

“Catalina continues to be an essential and trusted partner for a variety of our business needs, and we are impressed by what they and Volta deliver together. The concise and point-blank delivery of data to spotlight sales conversions and buyer response further simplified the out of home metrics and underscored the value Volta Media provides,” said Kellee Miller, Director of Shopper Marketing at Dole Food Company, Inc.
 
Volta’s measurement capabilities are fortified by additional attribution capabilities that include footfall, web, mobile, and sales through collaborations with industry-leading organizations like Accretive Media, Foursquare, Reveal Mobile, Quorum, PlaceIQ, and more. Volta’s impact on brand awareness and consideration metrics is measured by third-party research studies with esteemed firms like the F’inn Group.

Volta has also invested in supporting flexible buying options for advertisers—100 percent of Volta’s media inventory is available programmatically. Brands and their agencies can target Volta’s contextually relevant media screens through every major demand-side platform (DSP), making the process of integrating Volta inventory into any campaign easy and seamless. Volta offers both reserved and unreserved access in support of both open and private programmatic auctions, empowering media buyers with the flexibility to access Volta’s inventory in the way that best fits their needs.

“The Volta Media Network creates tremendous value for our advertising partners and commercial properties, both in terms of business and sustainability impact,” said Brandt Hastings, Chief Commercial Officer at Volta. “Our unique media model powers our business, and we continue to scale and push the boundaries of innovation for the benefit of our advertisers, real estate partners, drivers, and the environment.”

I believe Volta continues to get its charging totems from Peerless-AV, which does more than mounts … so whoever closed that deal is likely smiling as the network, and his or her commission, grows.

 

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