From Digital Signage to Digital Experience
Redesigning the Future of the Customer Experience
Basic Digital Signage advertising is old news. The future of the industry will be found by connecting Digital Signage with other modern technologies.
By linking Digital Signage with mobile and other online tools, such as, IoT, Big Data or Artificial Intelligence, it will fundamentally change the traditional way of doing business over the next few years. These changes present real opportunities for the entire industry.
The future of retail begins today 🙀
Change is the only constant in today’s business world. Additionally, the entire framework of industries are undergoing monumental changes. But the retail sector is particularly facing challenges in the wake of the growth of e-business. Retail has to change or it faces extinction.
The result is that the shopping experience of the future will look very different than today’s malls.
To survive, retail will have to offer something that the online world is struggling to provide.
To try to compete, retailers have been expanding their online offerings with a focus on providing an integrated customer experience.
“When using new technologies at the POS, the needs and benefits of the customer are the most important considerations. A concept that uses new technologies in an effort to show off, is nothing more than expensive showmanship with any added value for the customer.”
– Sebastian Scheid, UX Evangelist @viewneo
However, too often the result is that the two worlds (online and offline) remain isolated. So instead of playing to their strengths, retail is trying to compete head-on with some of the internet heavy-weights.
It is better to fight against Internet competitors with something that is easier to master: Experiences 🚀💥.
Retailers have the ability to create and provide a shopping experience, get feedback directly from the customer on their wants and needs and then react.
But technology shouldn’t be entirely left out of the equation. Customer data that can be recorded as efficiently and inexpensively as in the online world is a prerequisite.
Then the question is, how to get a hold of this data? 🤔
Digital Experience
It’s about creating a Digital Experience that is based on modern technologies and the Internet. This results in companies being able to offer services that go beyond just digitizing paper processes — and beyond traditional Digital Signage.
Digital Experiences provide connections between companies, partners, employees and customers. It is about more than just selling a product.
Internet of things
Meanwhile the latest inventions from Silicon Valley, such as smart street lamps that are able to find free parking spots, are being rolled out in communities around the country. One of the main reasons for the spread of technologies for the internet of things is the rapidly falling prices.
Internet-enabled devices such as sensors and actuators are becoming more cost-effective, smaller and more powerful.
This allows for the development of projects that only a few years ago would have been viewed as blowing the budget.
But even though these technologies are becoming more readily available, there are only a few companies that have learned to take advantage of them.
Smart solutions through system networking
With Cloud Services, Artificial Intelligence and the Internet of Things, even the most demanding projects can be implemented. However, in order to make it a “smart system” it needs to be networked with adjacent systems.
The resulting communication between the isolated solutions creates value which is greater than the sum of the individual solutions. A self-contained solution.
When systems are intelligently linked, everyone involved benefits: An electronic cash register benefits when it receives data from networked third-party systems. Smart solutions arise when all of the system participants benefit from each other.
Solutions whose mutually influencing system participants can also optimize themselves.
All for one purpose: Digital Experience.
Where does the data come from?
The first step for both artificial and natural intelligence is to get the data that they want to analyze. What has long been standard on the Internet; however, is much more difficult offline: collecting data about the user.
Now thanks to the IoT industry, the playing field is being leveled. Usage data at terminals can be recorded as well as placed into categories, such as the visitor’s age and gender.
And with this data, which was previously unavailable, customers can be more narrowly targeted than ever before.
But it’s not just about collecting data on customers and employees to streamline processes.
Make it simple
The focus should be about making things easier by getting rid of as many customer pain points as possible. One example of this thinking is Amazon Go.
The online giant has realized that the current checkout process is obsolete, and have focused on removing it as a pain point.
It is about providing a comfortable, line-free experience for customers that also saves the company money.
The shopping experience is changed to focus on providing a positive customer experience by improving or — if they were unpopular — removing customer roadblocks.
Industry 4.0
The number of technical possibilities continues to grow.
However, the direction of the Fourth Industrial Revolution still has more questions than answers. But even without knowing all of the answers, entire industries are undergoing changes and disruptions.
There is no question that the trend of ever-increasing technology use in the business world will continue. The advantages offered by technology have grown so large that if you don’t find a way to incorporate them, you can rest assured that your competitor will.
But those who aren’t experts in the field of digitalization often lack the necessary knowledge to see the big picture.
Nobody can predict what the future will hold.
However, one thing that is certain is that companies who are able to exploit new opportunities will find themselves in a better position in the long-run.
Either you get with the program or you get left behind.
Digital Signage, IoT and AI
How can companies prepare themselves? The current Digital Signage market is a hodgepodge with
- manufacturer A offering Digital Signage, while
- manufacturer B sells sensors and facial recognition,
- and data analysis is only offered by company C and D.
It’s frustrating enough to make you want to give up before you even get started. 😩
But… guess what? Your prayers were heard: There is a solution to all these problems! 🙏👏
The bad news: To find out what this is, you need to read the following section with the subliminal surreptitious advertising* — you have been warned…
*in case you prefer to skip this section and continue with some practical project planning tips, I would recommend that you now quickly scroll down to the bottom of the text.
viewneo is an interconnected system that allows you to integrate components when you need them, all from one source. And you can rest assured that everything will work together seamlessly.
The cloud-based Digital Signage system viewneo allows you to get started with just the components you need and adjust components as the needs of your business change.
Since the only thing constant in life is change, having a system that can keep up with changes in your business is important.
This means that viewneo is a great solution whether you are starting out or looking to scale up a complex enterprise solution.
Enterprise solution at an Entry-Level Price
Interconnected, adaptable and forward-thinking technologies are just some of the important aspects that you should consider when looking for an enterprise partner. But also finding a solution that fits your budget is the cherry 🍒 on top.
Modularity, adaptability and future-proof technologies are just a few important aspects.
The costs associated with the roll-out and operation of a project are another. When the costs are too high, not only do you risk blowing your budget but also find you might not get everything you are looking for.
Trying to be too cheap with a project can also fail due to a lack of reliability or functionality.
viewneo offers a scalable, cloud-based solution that’s both easy to use and affordable, starting at an entry-level price.
If you need to change the configuration of your system, components are easy to add and remove.
This makes viewneo suitable for a simple, Digital Signage installation with just a few screens at a single location, as well as for a global Enterprise Digital Experience solution.
Integration with Third-Party Systems
The existing API enables data exchange with third-party systems in viewneo. So warehouse, cash or other software systems can be easily connected and turned into a complete, digital solution.
Take Away: Your Checklist for Project Planning
- Use modular systems ✅
- Choose innovative, forward-thinking partners ✅
- Only solution with application interface (API) ✅
As I mentioned before, the digital poster was yesterday. Those who want to make the journey into the future need to partner with companies that are focused on developing new and innovative solutions that utilize the latest technological solutions.
viewneo is the leading interconnected Digital Experience solution that allows you to enter the market quickly and at an affordable price point.
The viewneo system is also flexible, so you can add and remove components at any time. The result is a system that fits your needs.
You liked this article and want to know more about digital out of home marketing and the possibilities with viewneo? Get a free PDF-version of this article including product information here or visit our website at viewneo.com.
