I’m often asked what makes a great ad. For anyone managing a business, they would often tell me that a great ad is one that customer would stop’s their routines and direct their attention too. This change in routine may only takes a split second to happen. This split second can truly transform consumers shopping activities and buying cycles. Once this action takes place with the consumer, their concentration, their energy and the effect on their perception of time changers. Engagement with the customer, the call to action must be the behavior that we inspire too. Product, brand awareness and education are the keys of our mission. Driving sales for the brand and while driving sales is usually the business objective, I think many of us would agree as consumers, that a lot of the ads we see are effective but they are not truly great and worth devoting much time too. At times, we discover an ad that helps build the brand, drive sales or educates and inspires something deeper and more meaningful in the world in which we live.

“Digital media has the ability to make a positive brand impression and create a call to action”

We offer you seven important tips in getting started with your Digital Signage project, hopefully they can assist you or your company in taking on this new exciting media that we can enjoy and all benefit from.

  • Determine Goals and Metrics. The retailer needs to understand why they are using digital media by setting goals and measurements to determine the project success. This can includes different mix of business objectives, improving brand awareness, education and boosting sales of targeted products, even improving customer service all fall under benefits and goals.
  • Employ a Cross-functional Team. Successful digital signage deployments require a team effort. Marketing, communications, IT and visual merchandising all need to be part of your team. Involving this support early in the project will eventually count on the overall effect and success of the project.
  • Develop a Content Strategy. Retailers need to continually have fresh, bold content that commands attention of the consumers. Digital signage should be part of an overall theme and strategy that address content across in-store, print, mobile, tablet and web channels to provide a consistent brand promise. Also link your content to meaningful messages that address exactly what shoppers are looking for in the store. Content that can be used consistently, updated price changers, store promotions and cross selling all generate more sales. It’s a good cost management practice to have in-house content production resource for fast turnaround of  quality content. Selecting the right platform from the start is just so important!
  • Content Creator ”Flypaper”
    You know how they say“content is King” well you need to capture the audience attention. Flypaper gives users the tools to create unique and stunning Flash and motion graphics content quickly and easily – no programming knowledge required. There’s no limit to the impactful digital signage content that can be created in Flypaper.This highly developed content creator software using templates, drag and drop stunning graphics. Inexpensive and robust Flypaper can be used with any CMS unit. Control and manage your own compelling and timely content quickly and easily. Download a 30-day free trial of Flypaper 3.7 or Flypaper Express to access the Flypaper Marketplace. See how easy Flypaper is to use, making your Digital Signage Platform work and operate in real time with your select targeted advertising campaign or message.

  • Review Connectivity Options.  Do you want to maintain a content management server in store or deploy Software as a service (SaaS) Will you utilize the Internet or private network infrastructure. These issues provide a great example why having some good quality IT support will greatly benefit.

    Introducing Flypaper Connect for .Net provides a simple solution for Flypaper users to send content directly to their digital displays. This new component provides a simple way to update digital signage displays without republishing Flypaper content to save time. Another benefit of selecting the correct platform.

    Screen options, L.C.D. vs Plasma? Zones? R.S.S. feeds? Live Video? Dynamic content? These are some of the most important considerations that need to be defined.

  • Establish Customer Engagement Levels. Analyse how you want your customer to engage with digital signage. Will they just see it? Touch It? Swipe it? Hear it? Will the digital signage engage all the senses? Digital signage can be part of an interactive store environment that engages today’s connection and enhances the customer experience, truly embracing this technology by creating that shopping experience that combines the physical and virtual, in a bid to successfully compete with the apparent fun and ease of shopping on the net.
  • Plan with flexibility from the start and as the customer engages this new concept you can build onto exciting infrastructure like adding commercial touch screens and multi-screen displays down the track. Your choice of platform should be flexible to grow with the business.

“For a Project to be Successful you need to have Right People Involved and Choice the Right Platform”