Article
Framing low-cost digital signage
As digital signage users look to save money, smaller screens present some big advantages.
December 10, 2008
The economically recessive climate is affecting digital signage users as much as anyone, leaving first-time deployers looking for ways to save money while still communicating their messages effectively through digital signage networks.
The savings could come from using smaller screens, such as digital photo frames, instead of large format LCD and plasma screens. Technological advancements in digital photo frames, such as wireless connectivity, enable tailored content delivery at a fraction of the price of conventional digital out-of-home solutions.
And since they operate on the same kind of Internet/Wi-Fi networks, they enable businesses to manage and communicate their own customized content to individual displays that can be located virtually anywhere there is Internet access.
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A screen shot from one of the frames being tested with Kia Motors. |
In addition, many more major consumer electronic companies will soon have such products available. A recent IDC study predicts that almost 100 million digital picture frames, capable of being used for digital signage applications, will be sold by 2011.
Currently, wireless digital photo frames are operating virtually everywhere that conventional digital signage is located — in physician's offices, veterinary clinics, real estate offices, health clubs, restaurants, hospital waiting rooms, banks, auto dealerships, just to name a few.
Consider the following applications, where using networked digital photo frames may be cheaper and even more effective than large-format screens:
Healthcare
A patient waiting for minor outpatient surgery learns about recent cosmetic surgery methods through digital signage displayed in the waiting area. She sees immediate proof of dramatic positive results through "before and after" pictures of various procedures offered.
She soon becomes a regular patient of the physician's associated spa facility and begins purchasing the displayed skin care products recommended by her physician that are not available elsewhere.
Display content can be provided by pharmaceutical companies including information about various medications, their usage, and benefits. Content can also be developed and managed solely by the administrative staff within the office.
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Hospitality
A hotel guest checks into his room to see a personalized welcome message on a digital photo frame on the night table, complete with weather conditions and regional news headlines from his hometown. The hotel's restaurant and bar promote their nightly specials and the hotel derives ad revenue from other local restaurants and attractions that are encouraged to display ads in rooms. All content can be provided and managed by local hotel staff and hotel chain marketing.
Automotive
Auto salespeople can be simultaneously kept up to date with the latest product information through digital photo frames placed around the dealership. Prospective buyers are alerted to key new features at the salesperson's desk that entice them to upgrade to a more expensive model.
Customers and salespeople learn immediately about the latest local financing packages that enable them to increase their purchase price without increasing their monthly payments. The affinity for doing business with the dealer improves when pictures of the local organizations the dealer supports appear on the displays. Display content is provided by auto manufacturers, affiliated financial institutions, and local organizations. Content can be provided and managed by local dealers.
Veterinary
A worried pet owner enters the local animal hospital with her ailing dog during off-hours. She is immediately comforted by the images on a digital sign, placed in the waiting room. On it, she sees the credentials of the attending staff physician, a funny photo of her own pet, and a reminder that she should order medication because deer tick season has arrived. All the content displayed on the sign is managed and customized by local staff.
Tom Wetmore is general manager, applications, ofFrameChannel, a provider of dynamic, personalized content to wireless photo frames.
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