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Digital signage

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File:Ikea-by-beaver-solutions.jpg
Digital Signage in IKEA at the Edmonton, UK store.

Digital signage is a form of electronic display that is installed in public spaces. Advertising using Digital signage is a form of out-of-home advertising in which content and messages are displayed on digital signs (such as LCD, LED or Plasma), with a common goal of delivering targeted messages to specific locations at specific times. This is often called Digital Out of Home or abbreviated as DOOH.

Digital signs are typically used to entertain, inform or advertise.

Benefits of digital signage over traditional static signs are that the content can be exchanged more easily, animations can be shown and the signs can adapt to the context and audience, even interactively.

Market and applications

While the world is embracing digital signage as an emerging market, China currently leads the world in the number of digital signage displays deployed and number of NASDAQ IPOs with over 100,000 displays installed and a collective market capitalization of over $10B [1]. Total revenue from the digital signage market in the United States – including hardware, software, installation, and maintenance -- is expected to grow by about 33% in 2009.[2]

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:

  1. Public information – news, weather and local (location specific) information, such as fire exits
  2. Internal information - corporate messages, health & safety, news, etc.[3]
  3. Advertising – either related to the location the signage is in or just using the audience reach of the screens for general advertising
  4. Brand building – in-store digital signage to promote the brand and build a brand identity
  5. Influencing customer behavior – directing customers to different areas, increasing the dwell time on the store premises
  6. Enhancing customer experience – in restaurant waiting areas to reduce perceived wait-time and recipe demonstrations in food stores
  7. Enhancing the environment- with interactive screens (in the floor for example[4]) or with dynamic wayfinding

Content

"Content", in the context of digital signage, is the name used to descibe anything designed and displayed on screens. Content can be anything, including: text, images, animations, video, audio, interactivity, etc. At the ISE Conference in February 2009, it was argued that "It's content delivery NOT digital signage", to suggest that digital signage as a whole relies on good content for it to work.[5]

While the continued growth of the market suggests that digital signage has an important place in content delivery[6], it doesn’t guarantee that an individual marketer, network or screen will succeed. Some operators of digital signage networks, particularly in the retail industry, regard their networks as comparable to television channels, displaying entertaining and informational content interspersed with advertisements. Whilst this may enable them to run an in-store tv network[7], this is a view which sometimes misses the capabilities and purposes of digital signage.[8]

The audiences of a digital signage network are unique and as such need to be treated in a unique way. Where the technology has proven itself, it is often the content that fails because marketers don’t adapt their thinking to produce appropriate and engaging content. A widely reported example of how content was used badly on a digital signage network was at Tesco, where the network was eventually abandoned due to poor content.[9][10][11]

Content design

Content design (much like the design for static signage) is typically done through a content design agency who have the skills and tools to do it. A design agency may use their own software or the may use one of the leading suppliers in the market[12], but whatever they use, the content is designed specifically for it's medium. While there are a great number of different software solutions out there, the most popular are made for the specific purpose of digital signage. The use of other systems to run a digital signage network often does not provide the flexibility and management which is often required for a successful network.[13]

Updating content

One of the main features of digital signage is that it can be updated easily, showing up-to-date and relevant content. This requires that some updating is done to make sure that the correct messages are being displayed. This can either be done manually as and when needed, through a scheduling system[14] or by linking in with an outside feed (such as RSS or an in-house data source).[15]

Keeping the content updated is a key factor in the engaging nature of digital signage and is one of the major distinctions compared to static signage.[citation needed]

Technology


Digital signs may be scrolling message boards, LCD or plasma display panels, electronic billboards, projection screens, or other emerging display types like living surfaces or Organic LED screens (OLEDs) that can be controlled electronically using a computer or other devices, allowing individuals or groups to remotely change and control their content (usually via the Internet).

While the term "digital signage" has taken hold throughout North America and most of Europe the same technology in the Netherlands is often referred to as Narrowcasting or Narrowcast networks. There are some companies who prefer screen media, place-based media, digital merchandising or "digital media networks" or in some cases "captive audience networks", or "CANs". The large number of terms that have emerged to describe the nascent industry led Point of Purchase Advertising International (POPAI) to form a digital signage standards group in 2005. This group was tasked with assembling a list of standard terminology for describing digital signage technology and business models and was expected to release a final list of its recommendations in 2006.

Content Management

Content scheduling and playback can be controlled by a number of technologies ranging from simple, non-networked media players that can output basic loops of MPEG-2 video to complex, N-tier player networks that offer control over many displays in many venues from a single location. The former is ideal for small groups of displays that can be updated via sneaker net (the practice of physically transporting data to each location on a disc or CD-Rom, usually by walking), while the latter allows digital signage network operators to either push content to many players at once or have each player pull content from a server as needed

Developments in web services have meant the APIs for some digital signage software has added more breadth to the potential for content management. Customised content manager interfaces allow end-users to manage their content in a way which suits their requirement.

The recent introduction of free digital signage software may further expand the "pool" of potential users of this technology. It will now be attractive to smaller businesses (that may have otherwise found this technology too expensive), as well as to "non-profits" such as schools, universities and churches.

Digital Screens

Rapidly-dropping prices for large plasma and LCD screens and wide availability of Internet connectivity have caused digital signage deployments to gain in popularity, and displays can now be found in such diverse locations as retail outlets, transit hubs (like airports or bus stations), doctor's offices, fast food restaurants and even gas stations.

Another price related benefit that is allowing a larger group of businesses to install digital signage is the increasing availability of newer LCD and plasma display brands in the market. Many locations have opted to forgo more expensive brand name displays for more affordable non name brand displays. A recent study shows that there is a statistically significant relationship between price and the display size. The same study also shows that there is a significant relationship between whether or not the display is a name brand. These two variables actually account for 77% of the price in displays[16].

Network Infrastructure

Digital Signage networks are typically made up of an internet access, a media player, a distribution network to the displays, and a network management component. The internet access. or broadband internet access connections are either wired or wireless. A hard wired connection is usually through a DSL, Cable, or T1 modem, and wireless internet connections are typically through a mobile broadband modem or a Satellite internet access connection. Mobile Digital Signage networks (such as buses and trains) would use a wireless connection for dynamic updates. Wireless connectivity also provides flexibility in temporary installations.

Media Players are computers that play content through the use of content management software. Content is loaded to the media player through the use of an internet connection, USB stick, or DVD.

The content is then distributed to the displays through a series of wired network connections (such as Cat 5 cables) or wireless connectivity through the use of wireless adapters.

The overall network is then managed from a central location using a Network Management application.

Other Technologies

A further development is the use of mobile media, mobile or wireless phones. By combining mobile media with out of home advertising, print or digital, either the mobile phone becomes the digital signage display or the media becomes interactive. By various means, messaging, scanning a barcode or taking an image with a phone cam, a user can interact with a print advert or digital signage media. This enables a user to obtain further or even local information about an advertised product or subject on the go.

Issues and progress

Digital Signage in a pharmacy store.

Digital signage in the broad sense has been in use for decades in the past in the form of LED ticker signs and LED video walls. However, it has yet to become a major public medium, mainly due to the following negative factors:

  1. Uncertain ROI – the costs of deploying digital signage can be high. Not only are large outdoor screens expensive - for example, the LED sign in front of the Las Vegas Wynn Resort cost $15 million - but the much more common, and much cheaper, digital signs based on LCD screens can still represent a significant investment when a large network is planned: the cost of installing one screen in, say, each restaurant in a large fast-food chain could run to millions of dollars. Any investment of this magnitude has to be justified by a clear ROI plan before receiving approval.
  2. Unproven advertising effectiveness – like the Internet in the early 1990s, the digital signage medium has not yet been widely accepted as an effective advertising medium when compared with traditional means (TV, radio, flyers, etc.).
  3. Lack of interoperability – digital signage products today are mostly closed, proprietary systems. It is impossible to advertise across digital signage networks running different solutions, making the emerging media inferior to nationwide advertising media such as the television and the Internet. Due to the lack of a common communication protocol, products from different vendors do not mix, making digital signage systems expensive to build and hard to expand.
  4. Complex value chain - a digital signage network can involve at least the following vendors: displays, media player, management software, project planning, installation, field service, network connectivity, bandwidth, content creation, and advertising sales. Managing such a complex value chain is a daunting task and all parties involved may introduce risk factors to fail a project.
  5. Lack of understanding - despite considerable media coverage there remains a general lack of understanding about the requirements for the successful use of digital signage. This relates to brands and retailers but also, disappointingly, to some vendors. In particular many people responsible for content do not, as yet, have a clear idea as to what works most effectively.

The issues are being addressed today in the following ways:

  1. Understanding the ROI – studies have shown digital signage to be effective in aiding customer recall and retention of displayed information[17] in large-scale merchandising applications, especially taking into account the downward trend in LCD panel and playback device prices. Today a small-scale retail or restaurant digital signage installation can be implemented for just $4-6,000, whose ROI may be realized immediately.
  2. Outdoor advertising picking up momentum – advertising dollars have been consistently shifting from traditional media such as TV and radio into outdoor advertising, creating a double-digit-growth new advertising segment which includes digital signage. However, ad agencies are still slow to explore the potential of out-of-home TV.
  3. Development of open standards for digital signage – industry organizations including the POPAI (Point-of-Purchase Advertising International) and OAAA (Outdoor Advertising Association of America) are actively developing and promoting technical standards that will make it possible to communicate across digital signage networks made by different vendors. Interoperability across systems and media players will increase competition in the supply chain, significantly lowering costs and making the ROI on building networks vastly more attractive.
  4. Value chain consolidation - new business entities are being formed to consolidate segments of the long value chain. System vendors are providing integrated displays that feature built-in media players and software that support open standards. Digital signage service providers (DSSP) are supplying standards-based management software, project planning, installation, maintenance, connectivity, and bandwidth costs. Advertising services companies are providing content creation and advertising sales services. The consolidated value chain reduces project risks and makes the value chain vastly more efficient.
  5. Understanding the industry - there are a significant number of trade shows with conferences as well as specialized conferences and also more informal training and briefing sessions all focused on aspects of digital signage. Many of the related online publications for digital signage provide updated events calendars.

See also

References

  1. ^ "China Leads the Digital Signage Race". Seeking Alpha. Retrieved 2008-02-18.
  2. ^ "US Digital Signage Market to Grow by One Third in 2009". Cloud Computing Journal. Retrieved 2008-03-09.
  3. ^ "Do you rely on line managers for employee communications?". MediaTile. Retrieved 2009-03-09.
  4. ^ "Flasma: Moving images in the floor". Flasma. Retrieved 2009-03-09.
  5. ^ "ISE DOOH Business Conference Presentation". DailyDOOH. Retrieved 2009-03-09.
  6. ^ "US Digital Signage Market to Grow by One Third in 2009". ABI Research. Retrieved 2009-03-09.
  7. ^ "In-Store TV Advertising" (PDF). Management Ventures, Inc. Retrieved 2009-03-09.
  8. ^ "Feeding the digital signage monster". Scala Inc. Retrieved 2009-03-09.
  9. ^ "Signs of the times: digital signage industry". Canadian Business. Retrieved 2006-05-26.
  10. ^ "Tesco's digital signage advertising network may be struggling". Wirespring. Retrieved 2006-01-07.
  11. ^ ""What We Have Here is a Failure to Create Good Content and Placement" - Christian "F. Kennedy"". Just Out-of-Home. Retrieved 2009-03-02.
  12. ^ "Top 10 Digital Signage Vendors 2009". DailyDOOH. Retrieved 2009-03-02.
  13. ^ "Should you use PowerPoint for digital signage?". DigiSHOW. Retrieved 2009-03-02.
  14. ^ "Content Manager". Scala. Retrieved 2009-03-02.
  15. ^ "Global Media Manager". Beaver Group. Retrieved 2009-03-02.
  16. ^ "Digital Signage Display Costs White Paper" (PDF). Projective Marketing LLC. Retrieved 2008. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  17. ^ "The OnSpot Digital Advertising Concept" (PDF). Arbitron. Retrieved 2006. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
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