The global advertising landscape has seen a dramatic transformation over the past decade. While traditional print advertisements in newspapers and magazines have witnessed a decline that threatens the existence of some print news media outlets, market share and interest in interactive advertisement on web, mobile and other innovative media has skyrocketed.
The advent of affordable, interconnected, high-definition flat digital displays has enabled content providers, including advertisers, to replace static screens by timely targeted content delivered to the audience.
The demand for digital signage is rising due to increasing marketing expenditure, growth of high definition (HD) market, interactive communication, animations, growth of Out of Home (OOH) advertisement, etc. Further, market growth is also being supported by expansion of organized retail sector, shopping malls, tourism, airports, etc.
Many of them are part of extensive networks of connected displays that are managed centrally and addressable for targeted information, entertainment, merchandising and advertising – an emerging medium described as digital signage.
The content either follows a pre-arranged linear playlist with clearly defined time slots for different content elements, or a dynamic playlist evolving according to many criteria including user inter-action. Content changes can also be triggered by location information or environmental sensors.
Digital signage incorporates different technologies relying on a set of standards: displays, network infrastructure for content delivery, communication protocols, and software and hardware for management and playback of content.
Propelled by advances in the field of display technologies such as Interactivity (e.g. touch-screen), mobile integration (QR codes), Augmented reality (done using by a transparent digital signage screen to show the normal streetscape before augmenting reality with animated scenes), mirror displays, glass free 3D display, as well as 3D with holographic display cases (presenting a floating 3D image projected), door display (transparent LCD display panel embedded in the glass doors of retail cold cases, standalone coolers, and walk-in refrigerators), radiofrequency identification (RFID) and near-field communication (NFC), personalization of content and user interaction have become increasingly relevant.
Other trends include customized application programming interfaces (APIs) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) models that allow digital signage network operators to set up their networks and control and monitor campaigns via a remote location or the web.
To get the desired result from a business project, you need to know exactly what you want to achieve. It often helps to break down larger projects into smaller manageable stages to ensure effective project management.
Decide what needs to be done, by who, by when and with what resources. You also need to identify which activities need to be completed before others can be started — and those that can be undertaken in parallel. This will give you a clear idea of the timescales you will need to work to.
Next, you need to identify key risks, such as unexpected costs or technical issues, and do what you can to minimize their likelihood before they happen.
The following trends will pick up in the near future
One of the most important things to remember when considering the adoption of new technology is to make sure the choice is driven by a problem technology can address as opposed to being driven by the technology itself.
No longer limited to New York’s Times Square, the London Stock Exchange or the commercial areas of Shinjuku, Tokyo, digital displays are becoming increasingly omnipresent at Points-of-Wait, -Sale and -Transit.