Digital Signage Content

Digital signage can prove to be a powerful engagement tool with a significant return on investment when you have a clearly defined strategies and objectives. Ask yourself if your digital content is peaking the interest of your customer. Is your content driving engagement and sales? Or, has your customer tuned out your screens?

A research study done by Intel found that digital signage:

  1. captures 400% more views than static displays,
  2. has an 83% recall rate, and
  3. increases the average purchase by 5%.

As technology advances, so do the capabilities of that technology; however, don’t let that overwhelm you or blur your brand objectives for your digital signage. Today, technology can do so much more than ever before, including animations across multiple screens at one time to eye-catching transitions to image effects such as steam coming off your menu items.

The content on your screen is very important along with the quality of that content. The quality of the imagery is just as important as the context. Blurry images will not do in attracting the attention of your customer and influence their purchasing decisions. Here are some tips to consider to help you design engaging, influential and effective digital signage:

Goals

Your objective and goals need to be the influencing factor for your content. Are you wanting to inform your customer? Are you wanting to influence purchasing decisions? Whatever that goal is needs to influence your digital content strategy that drives customer engagement. This will determine the flow of your content, the tone of the text, and ultimately the perception your customer will have with the content.

Audience

You know the goal for your digital screens and who your target audience is. How does your audience change throughout the day, depending on your industry? Your content must speak to that audience directly for it to be effective; otherwise, your screens will be tuned out. If you’re not sure who your audience is get ready to be a quiet observer to learn.

Attention Span

Let’s be honest here, everyone has a short attention span with lots of content being thrown at you everywhere you go through multiple mediums. Research shows you have less than eight seconds to capture your viewer’s attention. Look to the content strategy, will your message be conveyed in under eight seconds? You must know what that important message is and ensure it will be conveyed.

That said, it’s important to know if you have a significant dwell time. You’ll want to make sure the content is continually refreshing to accommodate that dwell time along with educating the customer to make the time pass quickly.

Contrast and Fonts

Contrast and fonts for your content run hand-in-hand. For maximum effectiveness you need to make sure the text is readable and a clear contrast between color and text. Knowing your audience will also help with this because the visually impaired will need a different contrast than a child but you want to make sure it works for the majority of your customers. For example, white text on a dark colored background will make it easier for your reader to see from a distance and be legible.

That said, your font selection is just as important. The easier to read the more likely your customer will be to engage with your content and get their attention. Visual imagery will be most influential as they can be universal and easy to understand. You just want to make sure you don’t go crazy fancy with your fonts and select one that is easy to read.

Animations

Animations or transitions can gain your customer’s attention but they can also be distracting. You don’t want the transition or content to go away so quickly that your customer cannot read the text or understand the message. That will be frustrating for the viewer. The transition and movement will be attention grabbing when properly executed. Try previewing the content before you go live to ensure the animations or transition fit your message and your audience.

When following these and other best practice tips for your digital signage you should quickly reap the benefits of your efforts by increasing sales, educating your audience, and increasing engagement. If you quickly put content on your screens without careful planning the opposite goal may happen, leading to a negative experience for your customer. In closing I leave you with this:

  1. Digital signage reduces the perceived wait time at checkout by as much as 35%.
  2. Encourages customers to spend 30% more time in stores.
  3. Has a 47.7% effectives on brand awareness.
  4. 59% if people who see digital signage want to learn more about the advertised topic.
  5. 76% of all purchase decisions are made in store.

Where are you marketing?

If you’re not sure where or how to get started, Federal Heath wants to help you deliver content quickly, effectively, and to the right targeted audience. Ask our experts today!