Digital signage is one of the best ways to reach consumers where they are—short attention spans, and continuously moving. Digital signage is a form of electronic display that presents information to the viewer.
Digital advertising may seem outdated due to our reliance on technology but this doesn’t mean a well-designed print ad can’t turn some heads; artists are great at what they do!
Luckily for marketers, there’s been an emergence in new methods that don’t require any special skillsets or extensive training: digital signage.
What is digital signage?
Have you ever been around on a day when flights were delayed or canceled?
If so, you’ve seen how quickly the screens at the airport change to update the flights.
The reason that airports can quickly change and update these flight times is because they have a digital signage system in place.
Unless you’ve been cooped up in a cave for a few years, there’s no doubt that you’ve driven down the road and saw a billboard where the display changes.
Or, if you’ve been in a subway station, you’ve seen how the graphics displays change.
One of the most common digital signs is at your local delis or fast food restaurants.
Digital signage can show up anywhere in any shape or size.
If you are looking for a formal definition of digital signage, perhaps this will help.
Digital signage is just print signs on steroids.
You use LCD and LED and projection displays to make your signs move!
It’s made from digital images, streaming media, and even video. Digital signage can show up anywhere in any shape or size.
How does digital signage work?
There are a few components that need to work together to turn your marketing ideas into digital signage.
These consist of software, digital signage player, a network, and a digital screen.
There are many different software options available that will help you design a digital sign.
Again, you can incorporate, images, streaming media, graphics, music, the works.
But to get started, you need to find the right software to meet your business’s needs.
Next up, the digital signage player connects and acts like a storage device to playback your signs.
After you’ve designed your sign, the media player stores it and acts as a playback device.
It’s kind of like a digital DVD player. And, like a DVD player, it needs to connect to a screen.
Information can be sent from your central platform to media players via WAN, LAN, or Internet connection.
And once it’s on your media player, it needs to have a cable to connect to the digital screen.
It’s important to remember that screens can come in multiple sizes.
You can set up full-blown billboards, or you can set up small display screens in public locations.
What’s the best digital signage software?
There are many different software options available for digital displays.
The key is finding the right one for you. As the old saying goes, “Keep it simple, sister (KISS).”
So, if you can find a way to sync what you are already doing with what you want to do, that pile on your plate of things to do won’t seem so overwhelming.
Take eHopper for example.
The POS company understands that marketing is vital, which is why they offer an affordable digital signage solution that syncs with the POS system.
This way you know what you need to advertise, and you can market the right products almost instantly.
How can digital signage help my small business?
Step back for a second and think about what your company’s goals are.
Is it better customer services, is it increased sales, or is it to grow your number of multiple sales?
No matter what your business hopes to accomplish, digital signage can help.
Whether you own a brick and mortar retail store, a bowling alley, a deli, a quick service food mart, a food truck, or your small business sets up at the local craft shows or vendor shows, a digital sign can drastically improve your marketing endeavors.
In fact, one thing that companies love about their digital sign solutions is that it levels the playing field for their small business.
How? Because it’s quick.
You spend less time getting your marketing efforts deployed, which gives you more time to get them right.
Why? Digital signage enables SMBs with little or no IT staff to quickly and affordably set up interactive signage in a lobby or at a front desk.
And, the best part? You little to no tech skills to get the ball rolling.
Market or advertise as much as you want on your display.
The more you keep your customers in the know, the better off you are.
Digital signage enables SMBs with little or no IT staff to quickly and affordably set up interactive signage in a lobby or at a front desk.
But it’s not just advertising in lobbies, on roadsides, or in common areas that make a digital signage solution so powerful.
Digital signage at the point of sale has been proven to effectively drive sales by displaying relevant and readily available product information during checkout.
Because the point of sale is often the point-of-decision, digital signage also acts as a sales guiding tool, converting retail browsers to retail buyers.
And probably the most useful feature from an employee standpoint is that it can also be used to inform staff on customer information and product benefits.
So, when you are looking to increase those customer service reviews, a digital signage platform tied to your POS would be an excellent tool.
Conclusion
Experts project that the digital signage market to grow $6.7 billion industry by 2025.
So, if you are not getting on board with what the industry can do for your small business marketing, your competitors are.
What that means in simple terms is that they will be reaching the customers and you won’t.
Change is hard, and when technology is involved, it makes it scary.
But, at the end of the path is a much bigger and better bottom line for your company.
So, it’s time to explore finding the right digital signage platform for your small business.
Get ahead of the game, so you are not chasing the competition.