Digital signage and digital out-of-home is not in itself a technological breakthrough, but rather the ongoing incremental improvement of technology integration that exploits "digital" in a supply chain that includes digital content creation, management, connectivity, playout, display and measurement.
This incrementalism, which continues its rapid acceleration, means that neither ad revenue achievement or "infrastructure" come first, but are concomitant — both effected by, and effecting each other simultaneously. The presence of either of these elements supports and triggers the other.
It was never an option for a single DOOH firm to "cross the chasm" with others rapidly following as is characteristic in technology breakthroughs. Instead, a critical mass and momentum by a larger number of firms has had to be achieved almost simultaneously over the past several years, which in itself has fueled growth.
Digital signage is a vortex, accelerated by the internal forces of enabling technologies, better technology integration and scalable operations along with the external forces of the increasing pressure for communications and marketing cost effectiveness.
The growing numbers of networks and displays reflect the broadening at the top of the vortex, while the vortex seeks to gather up and integrate technology elements and processes with integration into other systems for better message targeting, impact measurement and other points of operational optimization and cost savings.
The growth in the number and locations of displays motivates increased advertising which enables greater infrastructure investment, resulting in an upward spiral, rather than a "chasm crossing."
The great benefit is that all end users, location providers, technology providers, system integrators and operators, and content providers "win" through participating in this upward spiral.
The genesis of DOOH has not triggered an exodus from TV or other advertising devices, but enabled the revelation that media more optimally applied means more effective communications spending. Digital signage has found its place, incrementally, into the communications continuum and is on its path in wealth creation, in the same way that every other high-value application of managing light has found its economic success since the beginning of time. DOOH allows demographic targeting at points of purchase, long dwell times and high traffic.
The expanding infrastructure of digital displays proliferates message presentation in the "digisphere," the global environment of digital addressability and connectivity where media and messaging serve people, organizations and society.
People live on the lithosphere of earth, as part of its biosphere in its atmosphere while looking up into its troposphere, stratosphere and mesosphere. The digisphere enables human success through connectivity in all these areas.
Within the digisphere, communications can be increasingly granular — in the case of digital signage and digital out-of-home, improving the message targeting to audiences and individuals by location, interest, demographic and intended action to improve the level of relevance and engagement leading to the outcome intended by the communicator.
Lyle Bunn is a highly regarded independent advisor and educator in North America’s digital signage/digital out-of-home sector.
