Technologies are advancing and with it the way in which we can interact with users, discover all that Digital Signage is capable of doing.
But first, let’s start with the basics.
What is digital signage?
We all know digital signage as a digital installation that displays video or multimedia content for informational or advertising purposes. We see it everywhere. We have looked at advertisements in bus stations, found information about boarding gates at the airport, ordered food at fast food restaurants, bought movie tickets, looked up directions at museums, all thanks to digital signage. There are countless uses that support a diversity of business and public needs.
As digital signage increasingly impacts our lives and presents opportunities for the business world, its capabilities are also evolving from a passive system that pushes content to a more advanced system that connects, interacts and pulls content from diverse sources in real time.
Digital signage typically consists of three key components:
- Content: An inventory of audio, video, image, graphics, text, etc., assembled to tell unique stories for any number of unique intentions.
- Hardware: The physical and tangible components, such as screens, media, payment devices, printers, cameras, etc.
- Software: The digital infrastructure that enables the creation, deployment, management and analysis of the content deployed on the hardware.
Digital Signage Applications
In recent years, the acquisition and installation costs of digital signage solutions have been reduced considerably. This has led FMCG chains, supermarkets, retailers and restaurants to make a large deployment, often without being very clear about the purpose and strategy of these.
The first question you should ask yourself is “What do I want to achieve with digital signage? This is the first step in identifying the goals and objectives of a potential customer.
Examples of the most common types of digital signage, based on the usage scenario:
- Supermarkets and FMCG: self-billing, product showcase, smart mirror, shift management, parking management.
- RestaurantsSelf-service, digital menu board, ordering kiosk.
- Public spaces: location-specific information (news, weather, traffic, etc.), maps, orientation.
- TourismOrientation, points of interest, information about the city.
- Marketing: Concept Store creation, ambience, gamification.
- Museums: gallery, orientation, digital tours.
- Exhibitions and fairs: interactive catalogs of products/services, visitor registration.
- Companies: Branding, meeting room booking, meeting coordination, training…
Interactive Displays
Digital signage is no longer a simple screen displaying pre-planned content. We live in an age where industries, creators and service providers can choose at will from a variety of hardware options to achieve their goals. Here is a summary of some of the technologies.
Multi-touch screens
Multi-touch screens allow one or more fingers to interact with the content displayed on the screen. These fingers can belong to more than one person, resulting in multiple independent interactions in parallel. The two most popular technologies are:
- Capacitive touch technology, which detects anything conductive. Sensors embedded in the glass detect the location of the current flow which is then recorded as a touch event. The most popular form is known as projected capacitive, and can be found in all cell phones and tablets. Capacitive displays are considered the most accurate touch technology and therefore the gold standard if the target environment is protected from the elements.
- Infrared technology emits a network of invisible infrared light across the face of an LED/LCD display. When an object comes into contact with the display, the infrared light is interrupted, resulting in the identification of the touch location. Unlike project capacitive displays, which require a conductive material to indicate a touch, infrared displays can work with any material.
Beacon technology
Beacons are low-power devices that broadcast a unique identifier or URL. By assigning a beacon to individual items or sending beacon notifications, content providers can create a contextual bridge between screens and the actual product or a
RFID, NFC and more readers
All of these devices capture unique IDs that can be used to identify relevant information. For example, when you swipe your membership card, your membership information appears on the screen.
IoT
Connected objects are devices present on the Internet and accessible through some kind of API, which facilitates feeding information to/from them with other digital services. The resulting Internet of Things (IoT) is becoming increasingly ubiquitous. (This technology can connect a digital signage solution with lights, cameras, TVs, etc.
Tangible objects
Here you place something other than your fingers on a screen. The screen can automatically identify which object it is and react to its placement.
Visual Marketing Strategies
Within visual marketing, and more specifically in Digital Signage, we identify 3 key strategies.
Communicate
Improving brand communication is one of the primary features, digital signage is shaping communication at the point of sale. This gives brands the opportunity to connect with consumers at any time.
- Menu panels
- Digital signage for shop windows.
- Orientation displays in a shopping mall
- Videowall
- Shift management
Interact
Awaken the senses. Turn digital signage into more than just information. .
Make shopping an experience and add value to your point of sale.
Solutions such as Holograms, interactive kiosks or totems with RFID technologies will provide an enriched experience from the first impact.
Analyze
Analyze consumer behavior and deliver personalized content in real time.
We connect CRMs, ERPs and other information sources (such as Artificial Intelligence) to deliver amazing content throughout the customer journey.
Create engagement and improve the customer experience.
Some of these solutions are:
- Beacons
- Wifi Tracking
- Audience measurement
- Satisfaction surveys
Creative Agency
From Inprofit and Aidvertising we offer disruptive technological solutions to impact the user in each of the phases that our clients may need.
Digital Signage is much more than digital signage. It is essential to know what you want to achieve in order to define effective Visual Marketing strategies.
If you are thinking of implementing this type of solution, consult us before making inefficient investments.
