NDA’s Marketing the Marketers series talks to the marketing and comms leaders behind the success of our leading companies. Next up is Steve Cox, Marketing Director at JCDecaux.
What exactly does your job entail?
I lead one of the marketing teams at JCDecaux UK. My role involves developing strategies that communicate the unique value of our out-of-home media, which ranges from digital billboards to traditional posters.
I collaborate closely with our sales, creative, and product teams to ensure our messaging resonates with both advertisers and their target audiences. On any given day, I might be analysing audience data, crafting a new campaign, or engaging with industry stakeholders at events.
It’s a role that combines creative storytelling with rigorous analytics, ensuring that our clients understand how our media delivers significant reach and impact in the real world.
What campaign or piece of marketing/communications are you most proud of in your career and why?
There have been several standout moments. Early in my tenure at JCDecaux, I played a key role in launching Terminal 2 at Heathrow, which was a major milestone for our company.
More recently, however, I’m most proud of the launch of our Programmatic OOH Live awards last year in partnership with NDA.
This initiative not only celebrated innovation in programmatic out-of-home advertising but also challenged conventional approaches by showcasing dynamic digital content in a fresh format. The event successfully demonstrated that creativity and technology can merge to set new industry benchmarks, and it reinforced our commitment to continuous innovation.
Who has been your biggest inspiration in your career to date and why?
Before moving into out-of-home advertising, I spent several years in commercial radio and worked at the Radio Advertising Bureau.
During that time, I was deeply inspired by Douglas MacArthur, the visionary who founded the organisation. His strategic clarity and insistence on knowing when to say ‘no’ taught me invaluable lessons about focus and discipline.
Beyond that, I am continually inspired by the talented team I work with at JCDecaux. Their creativity, fresh ideas, and willingness to take calculated risks motivate me every day.
What is the biggest challenge in your sector and how is your company helping to address it?
Today, approximately 80% of ad spend is directed towards digital giants, which puts traditional media under intense pressure. Our challenge in out-of-home advertising is to demonstrate that our medium remains highly effective and makes online campaigns work harder.
At JCDecaux, we invest in research and analytics to provide solid evidence of our impact. We have embraced technologies such as programmatic buying and real-time audience measurement, which allow us to deliver targeted campaigns with measurable results.
By proving that our platform can effectively complement digital strategies, we are transforming a challenge into a clear opportunity.
What is the biggest opportunity in your sector and how is your company helping to make the most of it?
Digital OOH offers unmatched flexibility and scale. With our expanding network of digital screens and programmatic platforms, we can update content in real time, tailor messages to specific locations and times, and integrate seamlessly with broader digital campaigns.
This approach not only boosts efficiency but also maximizes the impact of every advertising investment. JCDecaux is at the forefront of this transformation, investing in innovative technology and creative solutions that prove traditional OOH can be both modern and data-driven.
How important, and why, are the following in helping you promote your own company: The press, events, and your company’s owned
The press provides third-party validation that builds credibility; events offer invaluable face-to-face engagement, enabling us to demonstrate our capabilities directly; and our owned media channels, like our website and newsletters, allow us to control the narrative and share detailed insights.
Together, these channels create an integrated strategy that educates the market about our evolving OOH power.
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To find out more about the JCDecaux pDOOH Live Awards 2025 – now open for entries – click here.
