These days, no one relies on brochures, flyers or newspaper ads for increased sales. Digital marketing, social media marketing and use of digital signage have been on the rise to increasing sales and create an effective marketing strategy for businesses.
Companies are capitalizing on this, offering the best solution for digital signage for different industries. There are many digital signage companies available online and locally.
Before settling on a provider keep in mind features such as:
- Pricing
The prices for products and service will always differ, even when a similar product is on sale. Once you have short-listed a set of companies offering digital signage solutions, compare their pricing.
Always keep your budget in mind and work with a company that will provide digital signage at a reasonable rate. Remember the pricing model issued by the firm. The best offer usually includes one-time upfront costs, with an optional extension of technical support. The major advantage of this is that you will have low long-term operational costs. A provider offering free software upgrades is highly recommended. It is even better when they offer technical support services for the first year; this way you can get the hang of how to use the system.
- The software utilized for displaying digital signage
Different software options are offered for digital signage. For running the systems efficiently, you must use a signage with the highest security setting and the best user account control system.
The software must be easy to use, and it must come with an intuitive dashboard that will allow simple and real-time monitoring of performance. The type of content management system used is also critical. Having an easy to use, content manager is imperative.
- Resource pool
What is the company offering in their package? The best companies offer media players, and content management software as the primary items in their boxes. However, besides these resources, you should consider companies that can provide setup tools as well as a content management tool. The latter will help in creating the best content for your business at a lower cost. An image editor, layout customizer tool as well as a data integration tool should be incorporated to simplify your work. In addition to media players, software and content management systems, doPublicity also offers over 1,000 ready to use customizable templates that can be setup, previewed and displayed within minutes.
- Hardware costs
Hardware for the digital signage is also a necessary tool. The most common hardware provided for digital signage is the media player. The cost of the media player, configuration and the installation fees should be consolidated as one, rather than separately. Media players that are easy to setup and require few steps to get operational are the best way to go. Companies that offer complex server hosted solutions get expensive as they have high initial capital cost and require specialized staff with ongoing software maintenance contracts.
- Installation costs
Setup and installation costs have to be factored in when looking for digital signage solutions. In most cases, service providers of digital signage partner with other companies that offer installation and setup fees. Some businesses give you a packaged price list that has hardware, software, templates and service cost summed up as one, regardless of the installing partners. This will save you extra up-front investment money.
- Contract
Sometimes you will want to go with a company that does not force you into a binding contract. In this situation, you will want to go with a one-time cost firm. Some businesses offer contracts which last for at least two years. During this period, you may be unable to get the maximum benefits from the digital signage. It could also be non-lucrative idea later on after signing the contract. It is recommended that you go for companies offering no contracts to deliver services.
- Training costs
What is this company offering besides free demos and the free trial period? Are they providing any training for the use of their digital signage program? How much do they charge you and your employees if they train? You should ask these questions and get concise answers.
To use the content management system of a company, they should be able to train you with using the software and hardware. You will want to ensure that the training cost (if any) is included in the price of the digital signage solution.
- Features of the system
The best digital signage system must come with advanced features to make the content displayed in the best possible manner. Before agreeing to the services of a digital signage company, ensure that it has features such as an advanced scheduling module, digital advertising services, playback reporting, tracking, customized screen layouts, variability in timelines for control of signage in different locations, and top-notch support.
- Location and use
There are numerous digital signage solutions for various locations and type of businesses. Your chosen digital signage at your place of business should be tailored and branded accordingly. The brightness and the sound quality should be subtle so as not to cause any disturbances. Signage used in malls and billboards are big and should be able to accommodate more data, in videos, texts, and images.
Some of the common uses for digital signage include events, real estate, office, retail, hotel, restaurant, menu boards, or schools. There are many other places where signage is used, but it should provide the best response by reaching the target audience for that particular location.
- A possible DIY project
The best digital signage should be straightforward and easy to use or learn how to use. Go for a digital signage platform that is installable as a possible DIY project. The truth about digital signage is that you can setup the package yourself and don’t need any specialist for installing the media player or creating content. You might want to get a professional audio-visual installer for installing the TV screen.
In conclusion, the best digital signage provides the best way of displaying information in a unique manner. You must invest in the best hardware in terms of high quality and a high definition LED TV screen. You also need the best media player, which should be plug and play, digital signage software and content management system. Lastly, ensure that you have power and a high-speed internet connection for fast and continuous creation and publishing of content.