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Digital signage lights up tourism

It makes sense to combine our culture's love for digital communications with your theme park, zoo or museum, to guarantee an experience that will inform and entertain large numbers of people on a cost-effective budget.

September 22, 2015 by Laurie Marshall — Writer, Contractor

On tablets, smartphones and high-definition screens at home, the American public is begging to be entertained. As a tourism professional — that's exactly what you are paid to do every day. It makes sense, then, to combine our culture's love for digital communications with your theme park, zoo or museum, to guarantee an experience that will inform and entertain large numbers of people on a very cost-effective budget.

Interactive displays and tablets are being used more and more at museums around the country, in an effort to engage patrons who are used to learning on a screen. Why simply read the description on the wall next to the painting when you could tap a screen and be introduced to a much larger amount of information, along with relevant surveys, videos and sound clips?

In your own venue, there are infinite ways to appeal to the digitally-aware and create a user experience that will set you apart from your peer institutions. Here are some examples of marketing and other communication that can appeal to and impact visitors when displayed on digital signage:

• Personalize your welcome message to large groups and families entering reception areas. Everyone loves to see their name in lights.
• Engage with patrons standing in long lines for attractions. Share some "did you know?" info about your venue: What's going on in the zoo nursery this week? How many pounds of fruit does a family of chimpanzees eat in a month?
• Intersperse information-heavy messages with videos from patrons talking about their first visit to a museum and why they support yours;
• Post park maps on screens and cut down on paper printing costs;
• Share answers to frequently asked questions at facility entrances and cut down on the time visitors spend in line at the guest services desk; and
• Advertise your venue's restaurants, gift shop and book store — offer a discount for anyone who mentions seeing the ad on one of your screens to help you track the ROI on your system.

About Laurie Marshall

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