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Checklist for digital signage content

As so many in the industry state: Content is king with digital signage. But what questions need answering when it comes to planning and developing a digital signage content program?

July 5, 2011 by Ben Stagg — CTO, Vital Media, Inc

As so many in the industry state: Content is king with digital signage. But what questions need answering when it comes to planning and developing a digital signage content program? You may have digital signage in place or be considering it, or maybe you work in the digital signage industry. Whatever your connection to digital signage is, the questions below reflect what we have learned over a thousand digital signage deployments in the independent retail channel.

When it comes to segment and loop timing, take these questions into account:

• Who is your audience?
• What is their dwell or queue time?
• How many words are read by your audience?
• How long does it take for a message to be recognized as relevant?
• How much content is too little?
• How long is too long?
• How much of the message can be communicated via images?

What's the content goal? Retention of the message or reaction to an offer? When deciding, consider the following:

• What is the purchase life cycle? If it's long, you'll want your audience to retain and share. If it's short, you'll want them to react.
• Is it a limited time offer? If it is a long-term offer, you'll want the audience to retain and share. If short, react and share immediately.

What creative assets will be available?

• Will full motion assets be provided? Or will they need to be developed?
• Have brand standards been provided? And are they fully understood by the creative team?

When prioritizing how to best utilize creative talent, allow your creative department to designate a creative director for the project, and then review these questions:

• Is there a clear vision?
• Have you clearly documented parameters, including a timeline?
• Do you have enough information? Remember, too much information for planning is good, and allowing creative to determine its own best path helps.

Are you trying to decide whose responsibility your project is? Consider these questions:

• Should creative do everything?
• When is industry knowledge crucial?
• How can consistent communication with brands and/or clients make or break your project?

While this is not an exhaustive list of questions, it's a good place to start your own list. Ask any digital signage content developer and they will all agree. The more you know before you start, the better the product and the more effective the message.

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