Why the journey to ISE is at least as effective for ooh advertising as the trade fair itself
In part 1 (click here to read the article), we saw how brands create visibility with targeted outdoor advertising at El Prat Airport, even before the first conversations begin at the trade fair. But the airport is only the beginning. On the way to Fira Barcelona Gran Via, almost every industry visitor inevitably passes through a handful of transport hubs. That is where the real strategic opportunity lies: people who are on their way to a destination are more receptive than in their everyday routine. Their minds are already focused on what lies ahead. Anyone who reaches them with a message at that moment doesn’t land just anywhere in their awareness but exactly where decisions begin to take shape.
Below, as in part 1, you will find an overview map of Barcelona showing the locations of the airport, the two exhibition centers Fira Gran Via and Montjuïc, the CCIB convention center, and the most important transportation hubs during trade fairs and conventions:
Overview map showing the locations of Barcelona’s airport, exhibition centers, and train stations
Fira (Europa) station: diverse outdoor advertising right at the trade fair hub
If you want to attend events like ISE at Fira Barcelona Gran Via, you will most likely arrive at Fira (Europa) station, regardless of whether you are coming from the airport or the city center. What is otherwise an ordinary station becomes a lively hub for the industry on trade fair days. Suitcases roll across the floor, a mix of voices in a dozen languages fills the air, and everywhere you can tell from the name badges and trade fair bags that this is not an ordinary Tuesday.
Thousands of passengers stream through the corridors: international conference attendees, business travelers, executives, industry experts, investors. And many of them pass through the station again and again over several days of the trade fair. That is the crucial point: you are not booking an outdoor advertising space here, you are booking a moment that repeats itself every day. Every time a visitor passes through the station, they encounter your outdoor advertising again. Repetition creates familiarity. Familiarity creates trust.
Shure dominates the L9 Sud metro line with outdoor advertising in the media mix
What happens when a company doesn’t just just book one advertising space but takes over the entire station and leaves no room for competitors?
That is exactly what Shure, a leading company in audio technology, did at Fira (Europa) station, and the result was impressive. Personally, as a media consultant at wtm Outdoor Advertising, I have rarely seen anything this striking.
Cleverly, Shure positioned itself in the minds of industry enthusiasts and decision-makers who were streaming toward the exhibition grounds from the Metro L9 Sud. The campaign occupied strategically chosen locations at the same time: the ticket machines used by every passenger, ceiling-high columns, several huge, unavoidable horizontal advertising areas on the walls facing each other in the long tunnel, the directional advertising space directly in front of the eyes of escalator users on their way outside, as well as the wall along the stairs leading toward the trade fair. Even the elevator on the station square was wrapped. Wow!
The attention of passengers, including mine, was guaranteed, and curiosity about the trade fair presence was built up very deliberately. Outdoor advertising in the media mix at its very best! A brand that appears everywhere does not feel intrusive. It feels present. And presence at a trade fair does not begin at the booth but already on the way there. With outdoor advertising, you and your brand become a companion along the way for thousands of (visual) contacts.
Outdoor advertising at Fira station: Digital screens and City Light Posters
Another key transport hub for the Fira Barcelona Gran Via exhibition grounds is Fira station. When trade fairs take place, this station also transforms into a bustling hub: streams of visitors fill the station, suitcases roll across the floor, and a mix of voices fills the air.
On the intermediate level of Fira station, just behind the ticket machines, two digital City Light posters and four horizontal ceiling-mounted displays create striking visual accents. In the otherwise understated station environment, they naturally draw the attention of passersby.
The combination of City Light posters and ceiling displays is particularly effective: it provides maximum visibility from different angles, whether someone is walking straight ahead or looking up. And the mix of formats in outdoor advertising opens up creative possibilities: your message can be staged dynamically and impactfully, perfectly reflecting the character of your brand.
Discover our presentation on outdoor advertising around the trade fair in Barcelona:
Outdoor advertising during trade fairs and conferences in Barcelona
Digital advertising screens at Barcelona’s main station (Sants) – the first point of contact with the trade fair
National and international trade fair visitors arrive at Barcelona’s main station, Sants, on regional and high-speed trains from all corners of Spain and Europe. Here, even before they have really entered the city, the next opportunity for outdoor advertising is already waiting.
In all three halls (A, B, and C) of the station, arrivals are greeted by a large network of digital City Light posters. Sometimes placed above travelers’ heads, sometimes directly in front of passageways or along queues, these displays are simply impossible to miss. They make use of the moment of arrival: suitcases are still unpacked, hotels not yet checked into, minds still clear. It is exactly in this moment that brand messages take hold most effectively, even before visitors disperse into the city and take in a thousand other impressions.
Shure didn’t miss a beat at the main train station either: the company took over a network of digital City Light posters, ensuring first-class visibility—even on the way to the trade fair, before the first handshake. Anyone who sees your brand at Sants train station won’t be encountering it for the first time at the exhibition center. And that makes a difference.
Double the power: The large digital screen in Hall A at Barcelona Central Station (Sants)
In addition to the extensive dCLP network, the main station offers another particularly powerful advertising space: Hall A, the busiest access point to the platforms, is located in the heart of the station. Here, a large digital screen attracts everyone’s attention.
The ISE trade fair also made clever use of this space, placing its message directly in the field of vision of all arriving and departing visitors. The combination of the CLP network and the central screen is particularly effective: you reach travelers multiple times, from different angles, at different locations in the station.
Welcome your target group as soon as they arrive in Barcelona at Sants Central Station and ensure that your brand leaves a lasting impression.
Our tip: The digital CLP network and the large screen at Sants station can also be booked independently. Those with a limited budget will get broad coverage in all three halls with the CLP network. If you want maximum attention at a single, high-traffic point, go for the screen in Hall A. And those who combine both? They are impossible to miss.
Statements with digital outdoor advertising at Plaça d’Espanya station: Two trade fairs, one stage
Located right by the trade fair grounds at Montjuïc, Plaça d’Espanya station brings together a particularly diverse audience. During ISE, the Barcelona Wine Week was taking place at the same time. This is Spain’s leading trade fair in the wine industry, attracting professionals and wine enthusiasts from around the world. Barcelona is happy to host multiple target groups simultaneously, creating interesting opportunities for advertisers who want to reach a broad audience.
Between the two platforms of line L1, a large overhead bridge features a big digital billboard mounted on the ceiling, capturing the attention of passersby. As passengers make their way to the other metro lines, they encounter this impressive advertising space—perfect for putting outdoor advertising directly in the line of sight. ISE also leveraged the reach of this digital screen, taking another step toward a presence throughout the entire movement space of its target audience.
A gallery of City Light posters: Telling stories along the corridor
As you walk through Plaça d’Espanya station toward metro line L3, you’ll find a multitude of City Light posters in the corridors, including right in front of the stairs leading to the trade fair grounds. How about a poster series that tells a story along the corridor, sparking curiosity about your product or brand? Poster by poster, step by step, until the visitor climbs the stairs and is directly on their way to the trade fair. There could hardly be better timing, could there?
From the Metro to the Sea: Outdoor Advertising Around the CCIB Convention Center
All three trade fair and event venues in Barcelona have one practical thing in common: they are all located right next to metro stations. Fira Gran Via is accessible via Plaça d’Europa station, the Montjuïc exhibition grounds via Espanya station, and the CCIB via El Maresme stop.
Directly at the CCIB, aside from the City Light Posters at the bus stops, there are no permanently installed advertising spaces. That’s why we recommend advertising at El Maresme station, through which many conference and trade fair attendees arrive. One particularly eye-catching option is a full wrap of the tram that runs there: a fully branded tram immediately stands out in the cityscape and literally accompanies your target audience right to the entrance of the convention center. Participants are reached even before they take out their ticket. That is brand presence before the trade fair begins.
Your extra advantage: In addition to trade visitors on their way to the trade fair, you will of course also reach the broad audience in daily traffic: Parents taking their children to school, commuters on their way to work, families on weekend trips, or people going shopping or attending appointments in town. Two birds with one campaign!
And what about the rest of the city?
Airports, train stations, subway stations—you are now familiar with the most important advertising stages on the way to trade shows such as ISE. If you haven’t read the first article about airport advertising yet: Take a look at Part 1 of the series on outdoor advertising in Barcelona during trade shows and congresses. But Barcelona doesn’t end at the exhibition entrance. In the evening, trade visitors leave the grounds and immerse themselves in one of Europe’s most vibrant cities: they stroll along La Rambla, shop at Maremagnum, and eat at the Mercat de la Boqueria. And your target groups can be reached there too.
In part 3, we show you how a city-wide network of City Light posters turns the whole of Barcelona into an advertising platform and why the compactness of this city is your greatest ally.
