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Educating The Mobile Industry

The digital signage industry is becoming aware of mobility, but the same can't be said about the mobile industry becoming more aware of the digital signage industry. An effort is underway to change this.

November 20, 2010 by Steven Gurley

Many in the digital signage industry are becoming increasingly aware of the impact that mobile technologies are having on signage. A smaller but growing number of people are truly beginning to understand the value and benefits of combining the two technologies. (NOTE: If you’re not one of those who are aware of mobile’s impact digital signage, then you should read my other blog at www.steve-gurley.com.)

The same can’t be said however for the mobile industry’s awareness of digital signage. I frequently attend mobile conferences and events and talk extensively to many conference goers. Most of those to whom I’ve spoken have no more than a superficial awareness of digital signage. Almost none understand the potential benefit that digital signage can bring to the mobile industry.

This represents a missed opportunity for the digital signage industry. It also represents a missed opportunity for the mobile industry to create a closer connection with their customers.

In an attempt to educate the mobile industry about digital signage, I am writing a series of articles that will appear in the online site Mobile Commerce Daily. The first of these articles is to appear on November 22nd and is called: “Putting Context in Mobile.” You will find the text of this article below:

Putting Context Into Mobile

June 2008 ushered in a new era of mobile communications. Apple’s concurrent launch of the 3G iPhone and iTunes App Store were instrumental to the formation of a game-changing mobile ecosystem backed by seamless access to mobile content, applications and e-commerce.

Since the creation of Apple’s mobile ecosystem, hundreds of thousands of mobile apps have been developed, billions of apps have been downloaded and countless numbers of mobile use-cases have been created. The change has been so profound that industry titans such as Google, Research in Motion (RIM) and Microsoft have all begun to pursue Apple-like models of their own.

What has all of this innovation and change meant for mobile commerce and consumers? Simply put: A lot of choice but not much context. The phase “a lot of choice“ can be easily understood, but what is meant by “not much context?”

Broadly defined, context is the match between a consumer’s environment and the optimal mobile experience (e.g. app, campaign, transaction, etc.) for that environment. Before a context can be established however, the consumer needs to know that one or more mobile experiences exist. They need to understand the scope of the experiences, and they need to be able to appreciate the value of those experiences.

Some venues are trying to address the context issue by posting 2D bar codes for venue patrons to scan. Others are attempting to set context by deploying branded apps.  While these are certainly viable approaches, they put the onus on the venue patron to pull out their phone to “see what’s available.” There is however a more proactive alternative that can be used to provide context for the mobile user. It’s called digital signage.  

Broadly defined, digital signage is a system for managing the scheduling and delivery of digital content (e.g. messages consisting of graphics, videos, text, pictures, etc.) to electronic displays (i.e. LED/LCD/Plasma flat panel screens) installed in venues (e.g. stores, hotels, restaurants, sports arenas, etc) for the purpose of educating and/or influencing the behaviors of venue patrons/visitors. Digital signage is one of the fastest growing technologies on the market today. It can be increasingly seen delivering many messages to large audiences in all types of venues and situations.

Although most of those who follow mobile technologies/trends may have noticed digital signage, it is likely that they may have never given a second thought to the systems, processes or technologies behind the displays. It is also likely that they may have never given much consideration to the role digital signage can play in exposing mobile experiences to targeted audiences.

Digital signage represents a tremendous medium for setting the mobile context. It can be used to expose consumers to mobile, it can be used to guide them through the potential complexities of mobile, and it can also be used to articulate the overall value of the mobile experience.

Before one can effectively use digital signage to set the mobile context, one must first understand the digital signage value chain, the ecosystem and the types of networks that are available? Once these elements are understood, one can then begin promoting mobile experiences via digital signage.  

Millions of digital signs are being operated worldwide. These signs are grouped into networks that range in size from one screen to several thousands screens.   A network may be operated by either the venue owner/manager or by a third party.

Most networks are optimized for a given category of venue. For example, certain network operators specialize in retail venues, others specialize in hospitality, still others specialize in quick serve restaurants, and so forth.

In order to promote a mobile experience on a digital signage networks, one must define the audience for a given experience. One must then identify the venues that most closely align with that audience and then identify the networks that service those venues. Once the appropriate network operator(s) is/are identified, discussions can begin on how to best align promotion of the mobile experience with the digital signage network.

In conclusion, digital signage is a great tool for delivering mobile context and promoting the mobile experience. It is however operated within a fragmented market that requires some understanding before it can be intelligently and effectively utilized. Over the coming weeks, we’ll delve more deeply into the digital signage value chain, the typical system architectures, the business models and the benefits of a digital signage/mobile convergence.

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