Digital Signage Expo 2009: Key Retail Trends
In spite of recent economic woes, last week's 2009 Digital Signage Expo appeared to be a rousing success -- both the show floor and educational sessions were packed. This bodes well for the Digital Out of Home (DOOH) industry, despite the surprising news that the 2009 OOH show has been cancelled for the first time since its inception due to poor support.
Specific to retail, the trends that emerged from the show floor were encouraging and pointed towards industry maturity. The most consistent themes:
Forget content is king...it's now
relevancy is king.
In
the years past, retail digital signage efforts were most often espoused
as a method to capitalize on captive audiences to disperse advertising
messages. This year's theme warned of the dangers of this, highlighting
time-starved, stressed-out consumers who had little time for any type
of message that is not relevant to their needs.
Measure or be gone.
The Out-of-home
Video Advertising Bureau (OVAB)
shared the details of its measurement standards and many panelists discussed
both qualitative and quantitative approaches to monitor the effectiveness
of various in-store digital media. All agreed that it is no longer an option
if one is to be successful with in-store digital.
Valuate based on reality, not old
media thinking.
In
sync with a desire for measurement, it was clear that most agree that
the value of in-store digital media (ISDM) messages increases in line
with the level of accountability that could be provided. Thus, the CPM,
or cost per thousand valuation approach employed by more traditional
media was agreed to be sensible for now -- but that it is necessary to
move beyond with the help of better measurement and message accountability.
Customer-centric
"path planning"
We
heard often that digital signage and ISDM are not a standalone draw, but
a critical part of the path to purchase. Done right, it can be very effective
to move a consumer from one decision point to the next, inching them closer
to a sale. However, the content on the screens must be strategically planned
to cater towards the viewer audience, store location and necessary message
intent to support the shopper experience. It must also be planned in sync
with the marketing calendar to support customer-centric messaging.
Retailers want to provide unique
digital experiences.
While
DOOH in general is satisfied to have various screens sending along standard
general messages, retailers want their ISDM activations to be unique.
They have no desire to have the same digital experience in their stores
as the competitor across the road and are hoping that the industry embraces
this and supports their efforts accordingly.
Agencies are slowly getting on
board.
There
was a huge leap in attendance from agencies this year seeking information
about DOOH. Some were clearly far along the path of strategic understanding
of this media and some were satisfying a general curiosity. Regardless,
the spike in interest clearly points towards more acceptance from
Madison Avenue.
Digital signage is not the only
game in town.
Finally,
show attendees seem to have embraced that digital signage is one of many
exciting DOOH tools that can be applied to retail stores. Mobile and
new flavors of interactive devices are on the rise, either as standalone
tools or ones that can snap into a digital signage network for various
reasons.
The most important trend to note is one that has been consistent since this show's emergence in early 2000. That is that we by no means have the answers to how to make digital media in stores work in a consistently successful manner, as each installation will have its own unique challenges and potential solutions. But, we are all on board to keep working together and challenging each other to find them.
Discussion Questions: Which issue is most critical for retailers/brands/digital signage vendors to address collectively for the media to achieve its full potential in stores? How will greater acceptance of digital signage by Madison Avenue affect the development of shopper marketing in stores?