That's on the verge of changing. Locally based media research firm Arbitron Inc. and Scarborough Research, a shopping-pattern research firm that's a joint venture of Arbitron and VNU Inc., are developing "reach and frequency" metrics for malls, a set of methodologies for measuring who sees what in mall-based advertising and marketing. Universally accepted metrics for malls do not currently exist, and their creation would help facilitate the acceptance of malls as marketing platforms among the media-buying industry. It could also mean millions in additional revenue for shopping mall owners.

"There are millions of Americans who shop at malls on a regular basis, so it's a large-reach opportunity for advertisers," Bill Rose, VP and general manager of Arbitron New Ventures, tells GSR. "More importantly, it reaches people when they have their shopping hat on, when they're making their buying decisions. Conceptually it makes a lot of sense. The closer to the purchasing decision, the more effective the advertising is going to be. That's a value proposition for advertisers.

"[Still], more work needs to be done to promote the value of the medium," he continues. "Simon [Property Group] has begun this, but more remains to be done. You want advertisers to understand malls as media. We need to promote the idea aggressively, because there are a lot of other advertising propositions out there."