Retail
Uses
In-store kiosks, restaurant and store displays, and digital menu boards.
Presentation Tips
California manufacturer BrightSign offers a non-PC digital signage 1080p controller that includes software embedded in the player. It typically launches its digital signage agreements as short trials, about two or three months, with content changes every couple of weeks. CEO Jeff Hastings says he steers clear of analytics like how many times someone touched a screen and the like, and focuses on whether the retail merchant sold more product with digital signage in place than it had before installing it.
“Our best marketing tool is to give them data to show it will improve their sales,” he says. “They want to see how they’re going to get some return.”
BrightSign will cater the presentation to the audience, often bringing in an outside agency to build custom content for the pitch meeting. “When people see their content and their logos, they can relate,” he says.
Cost
“The biggest obstacle is the expense,” says Hastings, even with process ranging from about $300 to $700 per unit. “Most retailers have heard of digital signage, but they don’t realize the capability, so the content is very important.”
Unforeseen Obstacles
It’s usually easier to sell digital signage to mom-and-pop single-location retailers than larger chains where the cash outlay would be much more significant to outfit all stores with the same technology. “At the bigger operations, there’s a whole lot of people who need to be convinced,” says H
astings.
