Play centre advertising: how it works and what it costs

What is play centre advertising?

Play centre advertising is a form of out-of-home media that places your brand inside indoor children's play centres. Your advert runs on the big screens families watch while their children play, and can extend to formats like table talkers, booking confirmations, email and social. Instead of interrupting people who are trying to do something else, it reaches parents and young children in a relaxed setting they have chosen to spend time in.

Why it works

• Captive dwell time. A typical family visit lasts up to two hours. That is a long, repeated window of attention, not a fraction of a second.
• No skip button. A screen on the wall cannot be scrolled past or closed. Your advert simply runs, on a loop, all visit.
• A trusted environment. Parents are relaxed in a place built for their children, so your brand lands in a positive frame of mind.
• The real decision-makers. You are in front of the parents who actually do the buying, alongside the children who influence it.

The formats

The screen is the star, but it is not the only option. Around it you can add table talkers on the cafe tables where families sit, adverts on booking and e-ticket confirmations, a slot in the venue's email and social, and in-hand product sampling. Every format sits in the same family environment. You can see the full artwork specifications for each one.

What does it cost?

There is no single price, because a campaign is built from the venues you choose, the formats you use and how long you run. As a rough guide, in-venue screen advertising like this ranges from the low hundreds of pounds for a single venue over a short flight, up to the low thousands for a full-network, multi-format campaign over several months. For exact figures, see how much it costs to advertise in a play centre, or request a rate card.

How to get started

Request a rate card and tell us your goals. You pick the venues and dates, send your artwork to spec (we can help), and go live. Every campaign ends with a proof-of-play report showing exactly when and how often your advert ran, so you can see precisely what you paid for. Not sure families are your audience? See how to advertise to parents and families without being skipped.