Digital signage is a wonderful tool for businesses, but ultimately, it’s an investment that must deliver results. So how do businesses know if their digital signage is effective? It’s a simple question, but the answer depends on a few deciding factors. To put it simply, it’s contingent upon how the business defines digital signage success.
This blog will explore how to determine what digital signage effectiveness means for your business, then how to measure and observe that effectiveness in action. Keep in mind that success can take many shapes and forms, and what it means to your business may mean something else to another.
What does “effective” digital signage mean for your business?
Any time a business implements a new tool, that tool is meant to address a certain pain point. With this in mind, think about the pain point(s) you’d like digital signage to address. In other words, what would you like digital signage to achieve for your business? Suffice it to say that if your digital signage succeeds in achieving those things, it’s been effective.
Your digital signage goals may also be quantitative or qualitative. Quantitative goals are fairly straightforward and easy to understand – they’re measurable in numbers.
Qualitative goals, on the other hand, are much more arbitrary. Possible examples include:
- An increase in foot traffic to your retail store
- More informed customers who ask less questions of your staff
- A more connected, aligned workplace
- More engaged employees
- Lower perceived wait times
Your goals can be quantitative, qualitative or a little of both. It’s up to you, but you’ll need to have goals in order to define what effective digital signage means for your business.
Now let’s dig deeper into some common indicators of digital signage effectiveness, and how to keep an eye out for them.
Increased foot traffic
If you’ve installed digital signage in your storefront windows or somewhere visible from outside the establishment, you may notice more customers coming into your space. Unless you’re counting the number of people coming in and out – which we highly doubt you are – this won’t be a quantitatively measurable goal. It will be obvious, however, if there’s been a significant increase in foot traffic. This is a significant sign of effectiveness, because it shows your digital signage is eye-catching and getting passers-by intrigued enough to enter.
People engaging with your screens
This one’s a no-brainer: if you notice people stopping to watch your screens, your digital signage is effective at grabbing and maintaining people’s attention. Take it from CrownTV client RE/MAX, who noted to us that “People love to stand and watch our displays.” Simple as that! Because how could your digital signage be effective if people don’t even engage with the displays?
“Our displays have been eye-catching and informative. It shows that we do have ‘Million Dollar Listings’. People love to stand and watch our displays.” –CrownTV client RE/MAX
Better sales of promoted products
If you promote specific products on your screens, sales of those products increasing is a good sign your digital signage is effective. It’s impossible to determine how much the digital signage is responsible for any uptick in sales, but that’s the inevitable nature of sales and marketing. Whatever the actual effect is, it’s worth celebrating.
More informed customers
Do you share basic information on your digital signage screens, like maps, directories and opening hours? If you’re a hotel, perhaps you show information like the local weather, nearby transit information and recommended local attractions. Whatever you display, hopefully your customers are becoming better informed as a result. And what do informed customers do – or rather, not do? Ask as many questions. If you observe this, it’s a good indicator that your digital signage is effective at informing customers. Your customers and staff alike should be grateful.
A rise in social media engagement
You can measure this indicator of digital signage effectiveness quantitatively or quantitatively, depending on how precise you’d like to be. If you broadcast your brand’s social media feeds to your digital signage (and if not, why aren’t you?), you should be seeing more social media engagement on your pages – particularly follows, likes and mentions. That’s because you’ve made it easier for your customers to find you, and you may have even prompted them to engage with your brand on social.
Speaking of prompting customers…
Customers following your Calls to Action (CTAs)
If you use your digital signage screens to ask your customers to do something – follow you on social media, try out a product, ask your staff about a special deal – are they doing those things? If yes, your CTAs are effective, and so is your digital signage.
A drop in perceived wait times
“Perceived wait time” refers to how long customers feel like they’re waiting in your establishment, not how long they’re actually waiting. You want their perceived wait time to be low relative to how long they actually wait, and digital signage can help you achieve that by keeping customers occupied as they wait. You can’t read your customers’ minds, of course, so if you’re curious if your digital signage is having this effect, survey your customers on how they feel about the wait times in your place of business. This is particularly useful for medical offices. The survey results will tell you a lot about whether customers are feeling entertained by your digital signage.
Improved internal communications
One use of digital signage we haven’t touched on yet in this blog is internal communications. If your business uses digital signage internally to connect your team, this one’s for you.
Do your workplace and employees seem to be communicating and collaborating better? Is everyone on the same page? Are employees better informed about company news and office announcements? These are all signs of improved internal communications. Since this is a highly qualitative matter, an employee survey is a great way to measure your company’s internal communications performance.
Conclusion
In order to use your digital signage to its full potential, you have to know what’s working and what needs improvement. The indicators of effective digital signage mentioned in this blog are sufficient, but by no means comprehensive. Think about what you want digital signage to do for your business, and how to tell if it’s doing those things. Digital signage success is real, but it’s also relative.
Don’t yet have digital signage for your business? Contact us today to learn more and get started.