How Retail Digital Signage Works

Digital signage software fulfills three main needs:

• Retail digital signage helps greet shoppers as soon as they step in the door. In fact, this effect can be extended outside retail premises via exterior LED signage, bringing in more customers who may have just passed by. Subsequently, digital signage displays help you set the customer’s expectations.
• Digital signage sets the mood and enhances the shopping experience. Hence, well-executed digital signage supported by appropriate content can help take the drudge out of shopping. This effect extends across all retail industries whether it’s automobiles, fashion, home décor, tools…
• Digital signage helps retailers shape and adapt their offerings continuously. There are no delays when setting prices, listing features, or changing any of the content regardless of the number of screens in a location.

Here are a few examples illustrating where digital signage can help retailers in their day-to-day operations.

Automobile parts stores

Digital signage solutions are helping new and pre-owned vehicle stores increase sales and improve their overall customer image through useful product information. Digital displays can be installed throughout the sales floor and in lounge areas to present car inventories to visitors. Since many pre-owned car dealerships advertise on the internet, the same information can be reused and repurposed for customer consumption inside the store.

Moreover, not every car store has a large enough showroom to feature every car. So, it makes sense to show some of the cars in the lot on screens that can be viewed in the comfort of a lounge. Certainly, digital signage displays can assist salespeople and help walk a potential customer through a range of vehicles and features in a very short time. Either through touch-enabled screens or by interacting with the display using a smartphone.

Sports equipment stores

Selling sports equipment is a huge business and it’s becoming increasingly difficult for stores to compete with e-commerce retailers. With e-commerce sales booming, brick-and-mortar retailers have it tough. To fight back, many stores try to create destinations where the shopping experience is part of the mix. Digital signage has been playing a major role in creating a more inviting and enticing environment for shoppers.

Displays scattered throughout the store can display dynamic videos featuring extreme sports and far-away locations. Content can be adapted to match the season with advertising content inserted in the mix. It’s an easy way to liven up the sales floor and compete with large chains and e-commerce retailers.

New and pre-owned vehicle sales

Digital signage solutions are helping vehicle stores increase sales and improve their overall customer image. Digital displays can be installed throughout the sales floor and in lounge areas to present car inventories to visitors. Since many pre-owned car dealerships advertise on the internet, the same information can be reused and repurposed inside the store.

Not every car store has a large enough showroom to feature every car. So, it makes sense to show some of the cars in the lot on screens that can be viewed in the comfort of a lounge. Digital displays can assist salespeople and help walk a potential customer through a range of vehicles and features in a very short time. Either through touch-enabled screens or by interacting with the display using a smartphone.

Fashion retail stores

Fashion stores often follow a similar pattern when they start losing customers to online shopping. Successful traditional fashion retailers actively place screens all around the store, including the front window, fitting rooms, and behind the service counters.

To be seen clearly during the day, digital signs in front of the store need to be very bright, unless they’re inside and shaded from the sunlight.

Fitting rooms have also seen creative uses, like “smart mirrors” and other features to improve the shopping experience. Many upscale fashion shops invest in big screens, video walls with slim borders, and fine LED displays for the interior. These installations aim to boost their brand and attract more shoppers.

Furniture and home décor stores

Many large furniture and home décor chains have integrated digital signage into their retail environments. These chains typically install displays in large stores, where they use them for directional signage, supplemented by wayfinding touch screens. In these cases, strategically positioned displays can actively promote financing, introduce new products and finishes, and assist in guiding customers throughout the store. Digital signage perfectly complements furniture and home décor stores because it seamlessly fits in. For instance, stores can integrate digital signage into various room displays, such as flat screen TVs.

Home appliance stores

Buying home appliances can be daunting. It can be difficult to compare similar looking products based on a few bullet points printed on a small cardboard sign. This is where interactive digital signage can make a world of difference to consumers. Touch screen displays can be set up and connected to a database with each product’s features and benefits. This way, customers can access the information easily without having to chase down a sales associate who may be busy helping someone else.

It’s also important to note that appliances models change constantly. New features are always being added and it’s difficult even for store associates to keep on top of it all. Store personnel can also benefit from digital signage software as they can access the same, up-to-date information as customers.

By empowering customers through retail digital signage, appliance stores can improve the shopping experience at little cost. It’s a win-win proposition for everyone.

Consumer electronics stores

We’ve all seen the “TV wall” at our local electronics big-box store. These massive television displays are always very impressive as they display the same movie over and over across every screen. The effect can be quite interesting, or a bit disturbing depending on the store manager’s movie tastes. To ensure consistency across multiple locations, many large consumer electronics store chains have implemented a digital signage system to program the content shown on each display TV in their stores.

The results have been dramatic. While customers can still compare image quality between units, displays are now used to show current promotions, consumer information and brand-enhancing programming. The same system managing these TVs can also handle other consumer-facing displays, further increasing the efficiency through a common platform.

Another polular use case in this vertical is the use of lift and learn digital signage, where whenever a shopper picks up a product the nearby digital signage screen automatically plays content related to the item that has been interacted with.