10 Business New Year’s Resolutions for Your Digital Signage
The year’s end is the right moment to evaluate your digital signage strategy and identify areas of improvement so that you fully maximize your ROI. Digital signage has become a must-have communication tool for enterprise businesses, with 60% of businesses without the technology planning to invest in it. With the ability to captivate an audience and delivered clear, efficient messaging, digital signage has proven to be the best solution to have around the office.
Similar to personal new year’s resolutions, corporate resolutions for digital signage are ways to do things differently in the coming year. The process includes evaluating strategies and campaigns from the previous year and establishing goals to enhance your digital signage efforts. Constantly creating new and engaging communications tools will gravitate your audience towards your screens and each year, you should aim to grow in these efforts.
If this is your first year evaluating your digital signage strategy or you are looking for inspiration for the new year, here are 10 business resolutions for digital signage.
1. Embrace Interactivity
Add an interactive element to your digital screens if you wish to revamp your marketing efforts in the new year. Interactive screens are as sensitive to touch as smartphones, which means that people will be more willing to engage with your content.
Interactive screens have many applications and advantages. For example, wayfinding kiosks in airports, schools, hospital complexes, and shopping malls ease navigation. Usually, these kiosks have virtual maps that allow people to search for their destination and receive personalized directions. Moreover, interactive kiosks simplify queue management in hotels and hospitals, as visitors can quickly check in and fill in their registration information.
Small business owners can leverage interactive screens to engage customers through dynamic content. Product demos, FAQs, brand stories, and promotions are some great pieces of content for your displays.
2. Improve Accessibility
Enhancing inclusivity and accessibility for digital signage should be at the top of your business new year’s resolutions to ensure you comply with ADA regulations. The Americans with Disabilities ACT (ADA) protects people with disabilities in different areas of public life. With a few adjustments, your digital signage will engage all viewers.
First, use large font sizes and text colors that highly contrast with the background. Then, offer generous margins for images, texts, and other content to enhance readability. Further, include audio and text options for your digital content to cater to partially-sighted and hard-of-hearing people.
Your interactive kiosks and displays should also be accessible to persons in a wheelchair. In addition, check the ADA guidelines on height and slope to ensure you comply with the law.
3. Recognize Employees
Employees need consistent recognition to flourish in any small business, startup, or multinational company. When employees are praised and recognized, they are more enthusiastic about their jobs and are less likely to leave. Unfortunately, only 19% of managers and leaders prioritize employee recognition.
Digital signage is the perfect platform to appreciate staff because it grabs attention with dynamic content and it should be included in your business resolutions. Employee-facing screens can appear in the lobby, break room, meeting rooms, and hallways and broadcast compliments for a job done.
If a team has surpassed its targets, showcase a team photo and acknowledge the efforts of each member. Moreover, recognize birthdays, weddings, and anniversaries to show staff that you care about their personal lives. Lastly, welcome new hires with colorful displays that make them feel like part of a team.
4. Display Customer Reviews
58% of customers report that they would pay more money for a brand with positive reviews. Hence, displaying customer reviews on your digital screens should be part of your to-do list for the coming year.
User reviews are essential because they tell a customer if your products offer value for money. Moreover, customer reviews establish credibility, build customer trust, and enhance brand awareness.
So, prominently display reviews and highlight what new customers can expect when they purchase your products and services. Fortunately, digital signs are easy to update, and you can stream the latest reviews as shoppers browse.
5. Advertise Growth Opportunities for Staff
One of the primary causes of workplace disengagement is the lack of opportunity for development. Often, the HR department has numerous growth opportunities but ineffective communication channels.
Digital signage is a great tool to make your development programs visible to everyone in the firm. Use vibrant graphics for advertising employee-subsidized degrees, management training programs, job openings, cross-departmental training, and mentorship programs. Further, display training videos at different times of the day that equip employees with new skills to do their jobs more efficiently.
6. Collect Data
Many entrepreneurs love digital signage because it is impressive, cost-effective to run, and easy to update. But, people typically overlook that the technology can capture data that inform critical business decisions.
By leveraging sensors, facial recognition software, touchscreen, artificial intelligence, and other technologies, you can learn more about your customers and adjust your marketing plan accordingly. For example, sensors can identify a user’s gender, age, and other demographics and calculate the dwell time, that is, the time they spend interacting with kiosks or looking at screens.
Invest in analytics software to track in-store conversions, number of QR scans, foot traffic, average wait times, and other quantifiable activities. Then, use the data to determine the most searched products, peak business hours, and high-performing content. Ultimately, digital signage data will help you put out the right messages to increase sales and boost brand loyalty.
7. Launch a Social Media Wall
If increasing your online presence is part of your new year’s marketing plan, consider installing a social media wall in your building. Essentially, a social media wall is an assembly of social media content displayed on vibrant digital screens. Platforms like Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and YouTube will help you feed your social walls.
These displays have many applications, including running live contests and polls during product launches or creating buzz around your events. If you run charity programs in your community, showcase social media videos and photos to encourage dialogue about the things you care about. After all, customers gravitate toward brands that give back to the community.
8. Incorporate Branding
A strong brand differentiates you from competitors and helps you build customer relationships. So, enhancing your brand recognition should be among your top business resolutions for the new year.
A robust digital signage software with customizable templates will have everything you need to create branded content. Pay attention to the brand colors, as color improves brand recognition by 80%. Then, find your font, incorporate your logo, use custom images, and create a consistent theme. You want your customers to immediately recognize your brand when watching your digital screens.
9. Sell Ad Space
Selling ad space on digital signage may be among the best financial decisions you make at the start of the year. A good software solution will let you incorporate third-party ads into your digital screens easily.
However, the ads should be relevant to your audience. For example, a real estate company can partner with banks to advertise mortgage loans, movers, property lawyers, landscape companies, and HVAC specialists.
10. Broadcast Safety Messages
The COVID-19 pandemic emphasized the importance of public safety in businesses, transport hubs, schools, hospitals, and retail stores. Fortunately, digital signage is an effective way to broadcast real-time emergency feeds and safety instructions for employees.
Since digital screens update instantly, leverage them to get everyone to safety in case of fires, mass shootings, chemical leaks, and extreme weather. Furthermore, reinforce safety protocols on the production floors to keep staff safe at all times. Lastly, share your safety audit findings and recognize team members who improve safety to enhance employee engagement.
Ready for a Successful 2023?
Digital signage is an excellent platform to elevate the customer experience, stand out from other brands, and engage employees. However, many companies don’t fully use the technology to their advantage. As the year wraps up, evaluate how you used your digital screens and set goals to maximize the effectiveness of digital signage for your businesses’ resolutions.