Enhance Customer Engagement with Digital Displays

You’re driving on the highway; look to your left or right and over yonder. Did you notice anything? Any visually attractive media hung on a massive platform, you’d probably be able to recall some of the taglines too. Now you’re in the urban cityscape, looking up at the skyscrapers, some bearing impressive automation displays and embedded dynamic led screens on the overpass.

All these are classified and identified as out-of-home (OOH) display advertising, while digital adaptation of billboards and signages is identified as digital out-of-home (DOOH) display advertising. With the emergence and popularisation of DOOH, marketing has never been more efficient. 

Businesses can now make adjustments, improvements and more without going through a laborious process. That being said, DOOH allows unlimited potential with the variations of interactive LED video walls, 3D dynamic LED displays, rotating towers and waypoints, digital kiosks, digital standees, digital menu boards, and more. 

Does that mean digital out-of-home (DOOH) marketing is better than traditional out-of-home (OOH) or social media marketing?

Each marketing strategy has its benefits, depending on your goal. Social media advertising has been known for its invasive approach, and users are now facing ad fatigue. More and more social media users tend to leave high impressions on ads without engagement or CTR. Some even implement ad-blocker plugins on desktops and platforms that display ads. 

On the other hand, digital signage is typically placed strategically to attract the most audience, achieve the desired performance, and act per marketing objectives. It blends seamlessly into the landscape, making it less exhaustive while offering the public a different perspective of the advertising regime.

Key Customer Engagement Metrics

According to Hubspot, “Customer engagement is interacting with customers through various channels to strengthen your relationship. For many businesses, this process begins with the first interaction and extends beyond the point of purchase. Companies can engage with customers via social media, email, websites, community forums, or any other space where they communicate or consume content.” 

Since digital signage advertising displays are unlike traditional digital marketing, how do you measure their effectiveness? Below are the metrics used to measure out-of-home (OOH) display advertising performance according to the Outdoor Media Association’s industry standards (2022):

• Advertising recall: The estimated number of people who remember the advertisement within days of exposure.
• Awareness: The extent to of consumers is familiar with the brand or product.
• Purchase intent: A measure of the probability that a consumer will purchase a service or product.
• Conversion window: The number of days after exposure where a media will attribute visits to a campaign. This can vary by business and category.
• Brand health: How a brand is viewed by its customers and how your audience feels about it. Also known as ‘brand equity.’
• Brand uplift: Measuring an advertising campaign’s effectiveness drives a positive shift in customer awareness and perception of a brand.
• Consideration: The extent a consumer will consider a brand for purchase.
• Favourability: Measuring an advertising campaign’s effectiveness drives consumer perception of a brand.

Combine OOH metrics with metrics such as Net Promoter Score(NPS), Customer Satisfaction (CSAT), Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) and Customer Stickiness Factor in order to properly and sufficiently measure customer engagement rate. To accurately measure customer engagement rate, NPS and CSAT require direct customer feedback through polls or surveys, which can be displayed on digital signage (typically during checkout).

Personalising Digital Display To Boost Engagement

The size and characteristics of social media or digital marketing content are mostly standardised. You don’t have to overthink the content. There are already tons of them online! Hence the term is copywriting. As a copywriter, the main task is to research the industry’s niche, feature content and produce copies that reflect the said attributes. DOOH media and displays come in various sizes, shapes, functionalities and features.

For example, video walls are unsuitable for outdoor usage, nor is it functional to be used in small spaces, tight-knit cafes or restaurants. Meanwhile, if used in shopping malls witnessing a lot of passersby, video walls can display interactive targeted advertisements that can capture, hook and win prospects’ interests. 

Interactive digital signage can secure fewer leads if placed on busy walkways with heavy traffic and people rushing to their destination. Still, it is effective in areas where people are more leisurely. Businesses have to experiment to see which DOOH media works best and which fits the business objectives best. 

1. Promote Best-Sellers, Promotions and More.

Digital displays boost customer satisfaction by 46% and increase the average purchase by 29.5% (source). It shows that whatever is promoted or displayed in an LED display screen tends to be retained and highly influential as the brain can process images and videos 60,000 times faster than text. Make the content attractive, engaging, and informative. Show, don’t tell is a principle that DOOH advertisers should adopt. 

What are the customers entitled to? Cafes, restaurants and fast food chains should use digital signages or digital menu boards to promote their seasonal item or menu. For example, Starbucks digital signages opt to promote their seasonal drinks, special promotions and more to boost customer engagement by helping customers make more informed decisions. 

2. Show Your Audience How To Use Your Products.

With duplicates of products and services, improve customer engagement by demonstrating to customers how to use your products or services in ways they’ve never thought of! If you’re in the retail business, say fashion and apparel, demonstrate how you want customers to feel in your clothing. Your digital billboard could display outfit inspirations based on different types of aesthetics.

Do you want them to feel empowered? Confident and sassy? Or comforting? Do you focus on the practicality and utility of your products? Are they niche? What are the inspirations? Help customers feel more connected to your brand by exploring ways to tell a story and present it to them in a tangible way, where the customers can be a part of it too. Brands such as Adidas, Puma, Decathlon and UNIQLO are prime examples of this. 

3. Feature Membership and Loyalty Programmes.

What better way to help customers make more informed choices than to entice them with membership rewards and loyalty programmes? A digital kiosk can help customers quickly sign up for a membership in a hassle-free experience. IKEA demonstrated this effortlessly with IKEA FAMILY Kiosk. Customers are constantly updated by the indoor displays placed within the warehouse regarding membership benefits, promotions and how to accumulate and redeem points.  

Implement an interactive digital kiosk or standee that displays membership and loyalty programme information. It could allow customers to register as members on the spot or display a QR code to help them register at their convenience. The marketing strategy has to make customers feel they would benefit more by purchasing as a member without overselling or pressuring them. 

Gather Data Through Interactive Digital Displays

1. Find Out What Your Customers Are Thinking.

The keyword here is to hypothesise and back it up with data-driven research. A good business asks its customers the right questions. Start jotting down potential questions your customers will likely ask and display them on digital signages. The internet stores endless data and resources you could use to achieve this. Like A/B testing, start displaying various questions and answers you believe would improve customers’ buying experience.

Are they more likely to inquire about the source of the manufactured products? Do the services and products seem too convoluted or complicated for older customers? You’ve won their sensibility point by understanding your customers and offering them an answer to their questions. It shows that you care and consistently ensure your business fits their wants and needs.

2. Improve Customer Experience Through Surveys.

Feedback and complaints are invaluable sources of information. Want to know how customers perceive your business? Setting up a QR code for a poll/survey or interactive digital signage display that allows customers to leave their rating on customer service and experience is a way to map customer satisfaction. Not only do businesses find ways to improve customer satisfaction, but they’re also letting customers know that they’re driven to improve.

On-site surveys using interactive digital signage at payment counters or areas you wish to improve work more effectively than online polls. Customers are present and can give genuine direct feedback with new information or opinions that they may have. Businesses that care earn customers that care. Nurture this synergy by allowing customers to leave fresh batches of personal feedback.

Enrich Customer Experience Through Creative Digital Display Solutions

Don’t do it like everybody else, as it can be repetitive and predictable. You should note that OOH advertisements have a high recall rate. KEVANI’s recent neuroscience study on cognitive load in DOOH at Digital Signage Today with founder and CEO Kevin Bartanian explained the method and implications of the analysis, along with the power of location in DOOH, the importance of science in intelligent marketing and core success strategies.

The study involved 104 participants divided into two groups and exposed to two sites: OOH and DOOH. They then measured the brain response using EEG (Electroencephalography), whereas the lower the brain load, the higher the recall rate, as there’s less for the brain to process and sort through. It shows that all participants have a low brain load compared to when exposed to other media forms.

You have an enticing and effective platform for window shoppers, movie-goers, cafe hoppers, and pedestrians overlooking a gigantic, medium-to-small interactive digital signage advertising display. Whether people will take your brand seriously, perceive your business in a humane and positive light, or the opposite, the outcome is in your hands. Invest in quality graphic designers and display visually attractive designs for the best possible outcome. 

Future Of Digital Signage: Content Is Still King!

Here’s the thing: the age of consumerism is not only anxiety-inducing but also a sensory overload to the general public. How to market your business in a way that won’t repel prospects? Do so by keeping the prospects’ best interest at heart and in mind. Acknowledge ad fatigue and consumerism culture by addressing their pain points accordingly. 

Offer problem-solution awareness without overselling and overusing CTAs. The most effective strategy for improving customer engagement is not only through foolproof plans, a technical approach, and 100% objectivity. Empathy and compassion go a long way when it comes to winning the hearts of people. Digital billboards or signages are a great way to market your products without being perceived in the same way most ads are. 

Their strategic location and placements allow them their individuality. Take advantage of this by thinking outside the box regarding the CTA, tagline, headline and advertising plot and learning how to form long-lasting, genuine connections with customers through digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising.