» Digital Signage - The Growth and Reach of Narrowcasting Technologies

By Dennis Goddard

We've all seen the proliferation of digital signage popping up in retail outlets, department stores and gas stations everywhere. You know, the ubiquitous screens that range in size anywhere from the small display screen right above the gas pump to the big, LCD monitors that overhang the aisles in department stores and big retailers, like Wal-Mart or Sears. Ever increasingly, or so it seems, we see these digital signs running messages outside store doors, in parking lots, office lobbies and train stations, between product shelves inside stores and mostly, perhaps most most effectively, near checkout counters in both small and large retailers.

It seems that digital signage is popping up wherever we, as consumers, have time on our hands while we are busy doing other things - or, even better, not doing other things. Whether it is a few minutes while we are occupied (but not preoccupied) filling our gas tank, or for many minutes - that can seem to stretch into hours - while we patiently (or impatiently) wait our turn in a medical office, nowadays it is typical that we can just turn our heads and tune into a stream of news, sports scores, financial tips and human interest pieces that entertain us, while what draws our eye is interspersed with focused advertising that delivers an advertiser's message. Welcome to the world of digital narrowcasting!

Unlike a human salesperson, digital signage is intended to be non-invasive of our privacy, or at least less invasive and more welcome than traditional sales pitches. A salesperson is not, whether welcome or unwelcome, right in our personal space demanding our attention. Rather, we are already in a space and location where an advertiser can give us the opportunity to pay attention to his or her message - or not. In turn, we are given a mixture of entertainment content and commercial messaging, and we can choose whether to be entertained by the content and listen to the advertiser's message. Alternatively, we can choose to completely ignore the "salesperson", the product and the pitch altogether.

With innovative, entertaining content planning and well thought-out positioning, most customers will actually pay attention to strategically placed digital displays, and will be receptive to the narrowcast content and messages that are delivered. The truth is that there are times and situations where the consumer craves distraction. We've heard of instances where digital signage in dentists' offices has been displayed to the patient while he is in the dental chair itself, and not in the waiting room.

Advertisers can utilize this new media to deliver older, tried-but true ad strategies. (Think of Coca-Cola's now century-old formula of "branding - putting the Coke brand name in front of the public eye irrespective of whether or not the customer is going to actually buy a soda at that time. Coca-Cola isn't particularly interested if the person pumping gas and seeing the Coke brand at the pump goes in and buys a Coke. It knows that later, at a restaurant perhaps, the person who pumped the gas will order a Diet Coke, and if they don't sell Coke's brand the waitress will be forced to ask if a Diet Pepsi will do.) But the true worth of digital signage is in the adaptability of its message to the place, situation and time where the programming is displayed. Take the checkout counter, for instance. A customer lining up at the payment counter has idle time, and a proper combination of useful information and product advertisements will focus their attention and create receptivity to the products and services being offered right at the checkout. (It is the same reasoning that prompts retailers to place chewing gum and candy bars right at a child's eye-level, so that he or she will beseech an already impatient parent to purchase gum or a Mars bar just to get through the checkout line without a hassle.) Studies confirm that the checkout counter is an area where customers are most receptive and most likely to buy impulsively. Parents are on to this, yet digital narrowcasting aimed at simplifying their lives and their shopping experience are nonetheless effective in influencing even this group to make the spontaneous, unanticipated purchases that drive up revenue.

Unlike static posters and standup displays, digital advertising software gives the customer a dynamic experience. An almost endless number of messages can be played on it. And unlike human salespeople, it never gets exhausted and does not commit the faux pas that a tired seller who has spent a tiring day with demanding customers might. Each sales pitch is delivered with as much enthusiasm as the first time. Therefore, the quality of its performance, which can be quantified and optimized, is uniform come hell, high water or demanding customers. By directing customers to what it is they are likely looking for in a particular area of a store, the capabilities of the most up-to-date digital advertising software can, in fact, soothe demanding customers by making their shopping experience less challenging,

Unlike printed materials that show the same ads for all areas of a store, digital signage is completely programmable and can follow different sequences or run completely new presentations in every section or strategic area within a location. It is even time-sensitive and can pitch different products according to time of day and the shelf-lives of products that are themselves time-sensitive. Should the competition comes up with new strategies, digital signage can quickly be reformatted to immediately respond to a competitor's marketing strategies.

Last but not the least, the presence of digital signage and narrowcasting technoiogies in-store conveys an image of a company that is modern and dynamic. In a time where change has never been so pronounced, a company that imparts an image of being at the leading edge of technology, and even pushing the envelope, sends a subtle but important message that it has the latest and best goods or services that consumers are looking for.