Exploring Out of Home and Indoor Advertising Opportunities at Pulkovo Airport in Russia

The audience for advertising in airports is the whole country and also residents of other countries who use the services of airport terminals. They work around the clock and do not depend on holidays, time of year, or weather. The average attendance of large airports in Russia is more than 10 million passengers a year. These are predominantly high- and middle-income individuals, i.e., potential clients for brands that respond well to DOOH/OOH advertising. Advertising structures in airports are usually placed in the most prominent and passable locations.

DOOH/OOH placements use every available meter of the airport territory. They utilize building facades in the parking lot, check-in counters, luggage belts, columns and walls in crowded areas, and any surface in the lounges. This makes the airport one of the most profitable sites for outdoor placements.

In this article, we're going to keep sharing our experience in the outdoor advertising segment. Over the past few years, we've done over a hundred DOOH/OOH campaigns and developed our own approach that works well in Russia and the CIS.

Let's take a look at the advertising opportunities at Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg, one of Russia's largest airports.
 

Capacity and traffic of Pulkovo Airport

Pulkovo Airport is Russia's second busiest airport in terms of passengers carried in 2023. It's located in St. Petersburg and has federal significance. Since 2010, the airport has been managed by a private corporation,  The Northern Capital Air Gateway LLC, which is the first example of a public-private partnership in the aviation industry in Russia.

Pulkovo airfield has two runways that can be used for landings in any weather. It's worth noting that the airport code is LED1, which was assigned back in Soviet times when the city was named Leningrad. The total area of the airport is 1,350 hectares, and the airport terminal is serviced by 4,000 employees.

 

 

There are regular flights from Pulkovo Airport to 69 domestic and 34 international destinations. The top five domestic flights that passengers like the most are to Moscow, Sochi, Kaliningrad, Yekaterinburg, and Kazan. The top five foreign destinations are Turkish Antalya and Istanbul, Belarusian Minsk, Dubai, and Yerevan.

The airport has two buildings: the old four-story terminal "Pulkovo-1," which is used for domestic flights, and a new three-story building "Pulkovo-2," which is connected to the old one by a transition gallery. It is used for servicing international flights. 

The first floor of Pulkovo-1 has a common entrance with inspection points, an arrival hall, and a waiting area. The second floor has a waiting area, a capsule hotel called Aerosleep, a police station, and a medical center. The third floor has a departure lounge and a duty-free store, and the fourth floor has a business lounge.

The first floor of Pulkovo-2 has a waiting room and a medical center. On the second floor, you'll find the departure area for international flights. The third floor is home to the waiting room and business lounges.

There are cafes, restaurants, stores, pastry stores, and pizzerias on all floors of the terminal. You'll also find a post office, a phone charging station, and a tourist office.

The Pulkovo-3 business aviation center is also located on the Pulkovo International Airport grounds. It handles private and commercial flights, and its 100,000-square-meter area includes two landing strips for business jets of Russian and foreign production.

Indoor formats of the Pulkovo International Terminal

If you're looking to promote your brand to foreign audiences, the Pulkovo-2 international flight terminal is the place to be. It's especially good for B2B marketing. The terminal sees a lot of business travelers, including top company execs who can make decisions and influence budgets. If your ads catch their eye, you could reach a whole new audience. 

Also, lots of flights to popular Russian resort destinations in Turkey, Thailand, and the UAE usually leave from here.

One of the best indoor spots in the International Terminal is the common departure area on the 3rd floor. There's a double-sided digital screen measuring 2.4x4.1 meters. The location is characterized by the highest passenger traffic in the terminal, as the screen is in sight of all the people standing in the check-in queue.
 

Digital screen in the general check-in area of international flights at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

They also put in another 3.1x1.6m screen in the inspection room for passengers on domestic flights.
 

Digital screen in the passenger boarding area for international flights at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

Once you've checked in, you'll head to the departure waiting area. There, you'll find 11 80-inch digital screens measuring 0.99x1.77m. Seats are set up opposite the screens, where passengers wait for their flights to board and watch the ads.

Digital screens in the international flights departure area at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

Another big screen, about 4.1x5.2 meters, was put in here. It's right across from the passenger seating area.

Large digital screen in the departure area of international flights at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg, Russia

A 3.1x1.7m digital screen was installed in the passengers’ arrival area on international flights. Since everyone who arrives passes by, the advertising creative is right there in front of the audience all the time.

Digital screen in the international flights arrivals area at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

Next, let's take a look at how advertising creatives are organized for domestic flights.

Indoor formats of Pulkovo domestic terminals

Pulkovo Airport Terminal has domestic flights to about 70 cities all over Russia. Just like the international terminal, the passengers on these flights are pretty active and have money to spend. Digital video advertising has a big impact on passengers. Since the airport is a place where people have to spend an average of 2-3 hours, this is a great opportunity to reach target customers. 

The check-in area for domestic flights has a 6x3m screen. It's pretty big, so the ads on it are easy to see from different spots in the area.


Large digital screen in the domestic flights departure area at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg
 

The photo below shows digital screens on the second floor of the Pulkovo-1 terminal in the domestic flights passport control area. They were installed opposite each other to get the best visual coverage.

Digital screens in the domestic flights’ passport control area at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

Another screen measuring 2.9x2.2m was installed in the arrival area on the 4th floor, right above the escalator belt. This format provides a high frequency of advertising creative demonstrations with a contact time of about 20-30 seconds.

Digital screen in the domestic flights arrivals area at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

Just like the international terminal, the domestic arrivals area has a big screen (3.1x1.7m) set up. Lots of people use this area, too.

Large digital screen in the domestic flights arrivals area at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

Statistically, it takes between 5 and 30 minutes to wait for luggage. Passengers try to keep an eye on the luggage conveyor belt the whole time, so advertising on conveyor belts is a great idea. The photo below shows an example of creative advertising on a digital screen measuring 0.99x1.77m in the baggage claim area of the Pulkovo-1 terminal.

Digital screen in the domestic flights baggage claim area at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg, Russia

As well as the usual spots in the international and domestic terminals, Pulkovo has some special lounges for VIPs and business people. Let's have a look at them.

Digital screens in Pulkovo VIP and business lounges

The business and VIP lounges are separate spaces with more comfortable conditions. Instead of plastic seats and benches, there are soft sofas and comfortable armchairs for all visitors. Clients of these lounges get through check-in and screening areas faster, they have personalized delivery to the aircraft and access to meeting rooms. For these reasons, advertising here is designed for the most solvent audience.

The business space zones are in the Pulkovo-1 terminal on the 4th floor and Pulkovo-2 on the 1st floor, with a separate entrance for privileged passengers.

One option for placing DOOH advertising in business lounges is 80" digital screens with a size of 0.99x1.77 meters on the 4th floor of the international terminal. There are four of them in total, right next to the seats where passengers are waiting to board.

Digital screen in the business lounge of international flights at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

The VIP lounge is on the first floor of the Pulkovo Domestic Terminal. It's got a big digital screen and comfy sofas for VIP passengers.

Digital screen 4.5x1.5m in the VIP lounge of the domestic terminal of Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

Traditional OOH solutions at Pulkovo Airport

Pulkovo Airport also uses traditional OOH ad formats. They're not too common, but they still get a lot of views.

One OOH structure is placed in the security check area before departure for domestic flights.

OOH construction in the security screening area of domestic flights at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

The second OOH screen measuring 4.8x2.1 meters is located in the departure lounge of international flights.

OOH construction in the departure lounge of international flights at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

There are two more lightboxes, each measuring 4.8x2.1m in the same area.

OOH construction in the departure lounge of international flights at Pulkovo Airport, St. Petersburg

Pulkovo Airport is not just for passengers. It's also a hub for people meeting and saying goodbye to friends, neighbors, relatives, and business partners. Thanks to this, the total number of people who see Out-of-Home advertising can grow by twofold. Pulkovo Airport has a wide range of advertising formats and screens strategically placed throughout the airport, which makes it an ideal spot for a long-lasting campaign. 

This is also true for other leading airports in Russia. We've already talked about the possibilities and prospects of DOOH/OOH advertising campaigns at Moscow airports, including Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo, and Vnukovo.

RMAA has a lot of successful DOOH/OOH campaigns in different airports across Russia, the CIS, and other locations. Sign up for our blog to stay up-to-date with the latest Out-of-Home opportunities in Russia and the CIS, plus useful insights into other areas of marketing.

If you're interested in discussing DOOH/OOH placement opportunities for your business, get in touch. Our managers will answer all your questions and offer effective solutions shortly.