Most Common Uses of Digital Signage
Digital signage is used for many different purposes and there is no definitive list. However, below are some of the most common applications of digital signage:
- Public information – news, weather and local (location specific) information, such as fire exits and traveler information
- Internal information – corporate messages, health & safety, news, etc.
- Menu Information – pricing, photos, ingredients and other food information including nutritional facts
- Advertising – either related to the location the signage is in or just using the audience reach of the screens for general advertising
- Brand building – in-store digital signage to promote the brand and build a brand identity
- Influencing customer behavior – directing customers to different areas, increasing the dwell time on the store premises
- Enhancing customer experience – applications include the reduction of perceived wait time in restaurant waiting areas, bank queues, etc., as well as recipe demonstrations in food stores
- Enhancing the environment – with interactive screens (in the floor for example) or with dynamic wayfinding
*Call EDN at 850-432-8080 today for an estimate or to discuss digital signage further!
Moving Digital Signage
Digital signage is everywhere. From outdoor billboards to indoor digital signage at banks, hotels, restaurants and various businesses and corporations digital signage is now on the move to take the roads by storm. We’ve all seen buses and cars with logos and/or advertisements on them, but recently digital signage has been seen popping up on the sides of moving vehicles as well. For bus patrons the move to integrate digital signage is being done to help regulate fares. Advertisements on the sides of buses are seen all over town on a constant basis, thus the digital signage allows for more people to see a variety of advertisements on a constant basis. As the digital signage changes from one advertisement to the other, a larger audience is able to view the ads.
The ability of a canvas that displays more ads means more income for the display company and a wider market viewing the advertisers. Moving displays offer businesses to reach consumers that may not otherwise view the campaign in a static location. As the moving billboards are seen by a variety of people, buzz about them will increase, thus increasing sales advertising sales for the display companies and those advertising. Another medium for moving digital signage are taxi cabs. Taxi cabs typically offer signage on the top sign of their cabs that until recently has been static. With the advent of better digital technology, these ads are evolving and therefore lend themselves well to digital signage. Moving digital signage allows people from all walks of life to view the signage at various locations, creating a larger audience for the advertiser and greater possible income in the long term.
What is Wayfinding?
Do you know where you need to go? What is the fastest way to get there? Are there alternative routes? The term wayfinding is used to define how to move large numbers of people in a large area, such as an airport, casino, convention center or hotel, when those people are unfamiliar with the area and aren’t sure where they need to go, using some form of signage to direct them. The advent of digital signage has added a new dimension to wayfinding by enabling organizations to visually present information such as maps and schedules. Traditional wayfinding solutions consisted of static signs or large maps which proved useless if a route changed due to construction, or the relocation of a destination. New, data-driven, wayfinding systems operate dynamically to determine the best route based on current conditions.
University of West Florida Will Soon Have Digital Signage
As of January 26, 2012 we anticipate a signed contract with University of West Florida to be the exclusive operator/provider of the digital signage program in buildings and common areas throughout the main campus. EDN will be installing 10 screens throughout the campus by March 31, 2012 as a pilot program, with plans to add 25 more screens within the next year.
We’ve grown into a regional and somewhat national leader in digital signage. The flat-screen displays will be a mix of interactive news feeds (RSS), time/date, current and forecasted weather, university information for students and visitors, including schedules, route maps events calendar, safety, and police alerts; as well as a section (1/3) of the screen for partner information and display advertising.
EDN will be working proactively with the University’s staff to sell the advertising space to local and national companies to net a profit for the university. We will be putting approximately 15 advertisements per screen. If you would like more information about advertising on the screens, please contact us today!
Digital Signage as a Sales Tool
Digital signage is not only a great way to get information to your customers and offer downloadable coupons, but also as a sales tool to enhance your staff. With busy sales floors and employees concentrating on customers, digital signage can be used to add to the sales staff as a silent partner that is there when you aren’t available.
Digital signage in businesses such as tire centers and or banks are perfect because customers are typically waiting a short while when the staff is engaged with other patrons and if they are viewing digital signage may be inclined to purchase or inquire about the products of offers they have seen. Digital signage can be used to mix offers from a variety of brands and various promotions from the businesses.
While a customer may know the general items a business has to offer they may not be completely familiar with all the programs or specials available, but with digital signage retailers and advertisers can display a larger number of products and reach the customer on several levels. In fact, digital signage has seen an increase in revenue larger than those of traditional signage and displays.
With digital signage, offers can be replaced and changed frequently to appeal to the customer’s needs at a specific time. For example, if it’s winter time and snowing a good idea may be for a grocery store to advertise various hot chocolates on their digital displays rather than ice tea. Using traditional signage there is a need to replacing all the items at a display, but with digital signage it’s as easy as uploading a new file with zero cost on physical materials in-store.
Digital signage as a sales tool is a growing market for many businesses. It is important to take advantage of this technology, as consumers are always looking for the next revolution in technology and digital signage is the perfect complement to the typical items carried, such as smart phones and tablet computers on consumers today.
Gathering Attention with Digital Signage
Today’s consumer is attracted to exciting advertisements. Studies show that moving advertisements garner more attention than those that are static. Therefore, it only stands to reason that to reach your target audience, digital signage direction to go.
Making the move to digital signage may seem like a large step monetarily, but in the long run it will save money and garner more attention for your particular product or campaign. The costs associated with standard advertising such as printing, postage and even the design process are either lower or eliminated entirely.
The costs of creating digital signage are the displays and the advertisement designs. Technology is constantly evolving and displays are becoming cheaper and better on steady basis. The cost for advertising design is still consistent; however with digital signage the costs associated with printing proof for color matching can be nearly eliminated, thus saving time and money on many projects.
Digital signage is attention grabbing and entertaining. With the ability to incorporate various animations, videos and moving text, digital signage has the upper hand on standard print signage. In advertising the goal is to reach your target audience and motivate them to react to the advertisement in a favorable manner be it to relay and allow them to retain information or make a purchase.
Digital signage can be found everywhere from moving vehicles to inside customer service locations, all with the same goal in mind, motivate a response.
Grabbing the attention of a consumer in this fast paced world is not an easy task, but with digital signage your chances are exponentially increased.
Flexibility and Digital Signage
Indoor digital allows advertisers the flexibility needed to change items on their ads and re-work marketing campaigns and have them available for public consumption at a relatively instantaneous pace compared to standard print advertisements. Ads of the past required complete re-workings and re-printing, but with today’s digital signage once an image or video is approved the signage can be uploaded with the new campaign instantly.
The flexible environment for digital signage doesn’t just take advantage of the ability to re-work advertisements and have them instantly available to the public, but also allows for customization. With indoor digital signage and exterior digital signage, simple changes in color and prices and be tailored to suit each location the signage is displayed.
Customizing advertisements can be of the utmost importance when attempting to reach your target audience. For example, digital signage advertisements can be seen in varying languages when displayed in certain areas of a community or in a different country. Without the need to print the advertisement in several languages and displaying it using digital signage instead, companies are free to create more ads with the capital they would have spent in other manners.
Having the flexibility of digital signage allows for a marketing campaign to change as needed after the advertiser gains additional knowledge about its target audience. Being able to tailor to your market on a case by case basis allows for more opportunities to grow your audience and brand out to smaller, niche sectors.
Digital signage is a platform that is ever evolving and changing at a rapid pace. It is key for advertisers and businesses to take advantage of this technological medium to decrease their bottom line and cater to their customers on an individual level.
Economics and Digital Signage
The goal of any advertisement is to make money and sell your product. When utilizing digital signage, the purpose is also to make it economically beneficial to the businesses advertising the product. Standard static, paper/plastic signage can be very costly. Each item from the printing, paper, plastics, additional materials and postage costs to proof and produce with standard signage. With digital signage, while any videos and graphics do cost money to produce, in addition to the technology utilized, the high costs of printing and proofing the materials is no more.
The economic impact of digital signage is immense. For businesses, the economic advantage of digital signage comes into play during the production of materials and dissemination of the materials. Digital signage is additionally beneficial when creating new advertisements that are simply additions to current ads or small tweaks in pricing or logos. Digital signage can be changed on a moment’s notice and viewed by the consumer while standard signage must be re-proofed, re-printed and re-sent to all business locations and/or homes.
Digital signage offers the ability for advertising to increase sales without all the costly additions that typically are associated with them. For businesses this ability to cut costs, while continuing to advertise allows them to focus on creating better products and directing profits to other areas of the business.
In addition to the economic advantage for advertisers using digital signage, businesses that offer digital signage can sell portions of time to other advertisers in order to capitalize on the digital medium and advertise several products on one forum.
Digital Signage and Cloud Computing
Cloud computing is an exciting and evolving premise and like digital signage is becoming more and more relevant on a daily basis. It only makes sense that digital signage will be making the leap from on premise software to the cloud, like many other digital offerings such as music and information. Changing digital signage software to the cloud may seem like a huge leap, but in actuality it’s just another step in the direction of innovation and the evolution of computing. In fact, many digital signage offerings are already in the realm of cloud computing under a different name, Software as a Service (Saas). Saas offers the ability of software to be “on demand” and accessed when it’s needed, typically over the internet. While Saas is typically a “pay as you go” model, cloud computing is more cost effective with information always ready to use and an infrastructure you can become familiar with. Digital signage needs to be immediate to be relevant. With the advent of cloud computing, it can stay up to date and ready to change at a moment’s notice. The cloud offers digital signage superior cost benefits and storage options to most digital storage providers. Your business deserves to take advantage of the digital signage technology, but the advancements in the technology world to compliment it.
Using cloud based digital signage can allow the customer to work from any location at any time. In addition to the ability to work anywhere, cloud based systems offer high security that rival hard-based systems. How many of us already use banking software online, Paypal, etc…? We already have one foot on the cloud for personal needs, it’s time digital signage and additional corporate needs follow suit.
