digital signage business development plan - prepared by khalid jamal

2015

Khalid Jamal

[email protected]

V 3.0

9/16/2015

Digital Signage Business Development Plan

September 16, 2015 DIGITAL SIGNAGE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT PLAN

Page 1 of 25 Khalid Jamal | [email protected] | +971 50 806 2768

Fail to plan is a plan to fail



Table of Contents

Digital Signage Markets (Vertical Customers) .............................................................. 3

UAE/GCC Digital Signage Markets ................................................................................ 4

Know each market needs and capabilities ................................................................... 6

Digital Signage Solutions .............................................................................................. 7

Digital Signage 7 Key Elements .................................................................................... 9

Digital Signage Selling Challenges .............................................................................. 12

Major Challenges ............................................................................................... 12

How to overcome the digital signage selling challenges..................................... 12

Full Awareness of the Market Needs, Solutions, and Technologies ........................... 13

Why Digital Signage? ................................................................................................. 15

Digital Signage Selling Points...................................................................................... 16

Be a Digital Signage “Mythbuster” ............................................................................. 17

Be Prepared To Talk Value ......................................................................................... 19

Understand the Business Objectives, Issues, and Values ........................................... 20

Tailor your message to your audience ....................................................................... 21

Digital Signage “Brief” Sales Plan ............................................................................... 22

Digital Signage Project Deployment Process in a glance (e.g. Wayfinder) .................. 23

Appendix A: Digital Signage Main Suppliers ............................................................... 24



Digital Signage Markets (Vertical Customers)

Different markets are available to hit by digital signage solutions, the followings are the main USA markets arranged by the market share as per Figure (2):

- Retail (65%) - Entertainment (15%) - Transportation (6%) - Hospitality (5%) - Corporate (3%) - Healthcare (3%) - Banking (1%) - Education & Government (1%) - Other (1%)

Figure (1): Market share of Digital Signage Markets (Vertical Customers)



UAE/GCC Digital Signage Markets

UAE/GCC digital signage markets little different than USA markets, it is difficult to determine the market share of digital signage markets in UAE and GCC, but according to PARC, $4.2 billion was spent on advertising in the GCC in 2013 with 14% attributed to Out-Of-Home (OOH), which provides some indications to digital signage potentials.

In the following a list of UAE digital signage markets:

Retail o Shopping Malls o Hypermarkets o Boutiques o Specialty Stores o Gas Stations

Entertainment o Cinemas o Theaters o Museums o Theme Parks o Night Clubs o Gyms o Sport Stadiums o Race Tracks o Campaigns o Events o Exhibitions o TV Channels

Transportation o Airports o Ports o Highways and roads o Metro Stations o Bus Stations o Car Parks

Hospitality o Hotels o Resorts o SPAs o Lifts

Restaurants o Fine Dining o QSR (Quick Service Restaurants)



Government o 41 Dubai Government Authorities o Federal Government Authorities o Ministries

Corporate o Semi Government Authorities o Telecom (Etisalat, Du) o Commercial Buildings o Building Lobbies and Lifts o Holding Companies o Branding

Healthcare o Hospitals o General Medical Clinics o Dental Clinics

Finance o Banks o Exchange o Stock Markets

Education o Schools o Universities

Manufacturing o Factories o Warehouses o Oil and Gas o Power Plants

Other o Military Facilities o Worship Places o Residentially



Know each market needs and capabilities

It is important to Digital Signage Sales person to know each market needs and capabilities to choose the appropriate solution from the constantly developed digital signage solutions that cover the customer requirements.

Retail Needs Shopper experience Promote sales effectively (Advertising) Simplify directions/wayfinding Personalize the customer experience Upsell, cross sell Drive inventory turn: overstocks/out of stocks

Bring “online experience” into the store

Entertainment Needs Interaction with customer Promote sales effectively (Advertising) Simplify directions/wayfinding Excitement customer experience Reduce waiting queuing time Encourage return visit

Delivering the “WOW” effect

Transportation Needs Travelers updates/scheduling Weather/News Simplify directions/wayfinding Entertaining while waiting/queuing Security monitoring Emergency alerts Advertising

Hospitality Needs Enhance guest reception/guest experience Updates on meetings, events, local activities Simplify directions/wayfinding Drive traffic to facilities (spa, restaurants) Menu Boards Ad revenue Security/Emergency alerts

Restaurant Needs Menu Boards Ease of menu changes Upsell and promote new items Centrally changes of different geographic areas Schedule menus: breakfast, lunch, dinner Reduce waiting queuing time Saving printing costs

Government/Corporate Needs Weather/News Ad revenue Emergency alerts Tenant experience Menu Boards (cafeteria) Reduce waiting queuing time

Healthcare Needs Patient experience Medical advice

Entertaining while waiting New doctors announcements Ad revenue Hospitals: directions/wayfinding Emergency alerts

Finance Needs Client experience Promote offers

Branding Reduce waiting queuing time Cross selling Stock/Exchange prices

Education Needs Student experience/education Campus schedules Event information Directions/wayfinding Weather/News Emergency alerts Security

Manufacturing Needs Safety guidelines Real-time production figures Production scheduling Branding Emergency alerts Circulating updates

Regulations/Newsletters



Digital Signage Solutions

Digital Signage is primarily offering a luxurious service to the customer and audience, a piece-of-art that utilizing the cutting edge available technology in the market, because of this, the successful digital signage solution is based on the innovative and creativity design that makes the customer requirements achievable in artistic user-friendly way.

The main digital signage solutions can be classified to:

Classic informative digital signage o Informative o Advertising

Interactive digital signage o Touch interactive o Moving gesture interactive o NFIC Interaction o Interactive Tables o Virtual Shelves o Fitting Mirrors

Video walls o Informative o Interactive o Mosaic

Digital Menu Boards (DMB)

Wayfinders o 2D o 3D

Kiosks o Interactive o Payment Kiosks o Informative

Augmented Reality

Smartphones Interaction

Meeting Rooms Management Systems

DOOH (Digital Out Of Home) advertising o Fixed o Mobile

Façade Lighting o LED Lighting Walls o Washing Lights o Spot Lights o Mesh



Projection digital signage o Projection Mapping o 3D Projection o Interactive Projection o Hologram

Special Unique Solutions o Moving LEDs o Outdoor Sphere LED (Globe Map) o Outdoor Square LED o Oculus Rift Simulations o Others



Digital Signage 7 Key Elements

Any complete digital solution must contain the following 7 key elements but not necessary all of the sub-elements and technologies, it is important to understand different applications of the technology because different customers use the same technology in different ways.

1. Design o Solution Objective o Interface o Purpose o Size o Innovative o POC (Proof Of Concept)

2. Content o Existing/New o Source o Special Approvals o Media

Graphics Animations Movies HTML5 Flash Streaming RSS Feeds XML Feeds 3D

o Audio Regular Directed (Audio Shower)

o Resolution o Aspect Ratio o Emergency Alerts o Audience Engagement o Scheduling o Interactive o Generative Art o Update o Kick-Of-Content

3. Connectivity o Wired o Wireless o Internet o Bandwidth Limitations o Network Security o Connectors

HDMI DVI DiplayPort Mini Display



VGA RCA HDMI Extenders Splitters Convertors

4. Operations o Site access approvals and permissions o POC (Proof Of Concept) o Installation

HW SW

o Technical Support o AMC (Annual Maintenance Contracts)

5. Software o CMS (Content Management Systems)

Premises (Single Purchase License) SaaS (Software as a Service)

o Media Designers o Integration with 3rd party existing applications (PoS, Queuing, .. etc) o Supporting Video Wall Processing o Interactivity Support

6. Hardware o Displays

LCD/LED

Commercial

Videowall

Outdoor

Built-in Interactive

Transparent

Stretched

Double-Sided

All-in-one

Industry

Frameless LED

Outdoor

Indoor

Curtains

Fixed

Rental

Mesh

Circular Mirror Free-Glasses 3D

o Players Media Players

Single Output

Multiple Independent Outputs



Video Processors Special Graphical PCs Servers

o Mounts Fixed Mobile Wall Ceiling Floor Others

o Infrastructure Frames Kiosks Power Environmental Protection (IP Code) Safety Consideration Ventilation Others

7. Business o Revenue Generation, ROI (Return On Investment) – Quantitative Measurements o ROO (Return On Objective) – Qualitative Measurements o Partnering o Suppliers o Shipment and Delivery o Warranty o Training o Payment Terms o Subcontracting

Figure (2): Seven Digital Signage Key Elements



Digital Signage Selling Challenges

Even in a growing market every sale can be a challenge.

Major Challenges

Lack of research

Lack of Ad research

Supply chain confusion

No clearly defined plan

Lack of commitment to content

Lack of ROI

Lack of investment

Running costs

Figure (3): The customer resists buying

How to overcome the digital signage selling challenges

Full awareness of the Market Needs, Solutions, and Technologies ()

Why Digital Signage? (Page 15)

Digital Signage Selling Points (Page 16)

Be a Digital Signage “Mythbuster” (Page 17)

Be Prepared To Talk Value (Page 19)

Understand the Business Objectives, Issues, and Value (Page 20)

Tailor your message to your audience (Page 21)

He resists change:

"Our current signs and

posters work just fine"

He's in IT and not happy

about another project

He's done alot of

homework:

"I know what I want"

He thinks they are just diplays for

showing ads

His company in flux and

struggeling to figure out its

next step

He's NOT in IT - and NOT

want IT involved



Full Awareness of the Market Needs, Solutions, and Technologies

As a Digital Signage Sales person you have to fully understand the relation between Market (Customer) Needs, Solutions, and Technologies. This is a list of suggested solution and technologies for each market:

Market Solution/Technology

Retail Informative/Advertising Screens

Indoor LEDs

Videowalls

Wayfinders

Kiosks

Fitting Mirrors

Virtual Shelves


Entertainment Informative/Advertising Screens

Indoor LEDs

Videowalls

Mosaic Videowalls

Wayfinders

Interactive Screens

Interactive Tables

Hologram

Interactive Projection

Augmented Reality

Free-Glasses 3D Screens

Mobile Outdoor LEDs (Events and Exhibitions)

Transportation Outdoor LEDs

Informative/Advertising Screens

Indoor LEDs

Wayfinders

Ticketing Kiosks


Hospitality Informative/Advertising Screens


Mirror TVs

VoIP

Digital Menu Boards

Interactive Tables

Wayfinders

Lift Ad Screens (All-in-one)

Kiosks



Restaurants Digital Menu Boards

Advertising Screens

Glasses-Free 3D Screen

Interactive Tables

Government

Corporate

Buildings

Informative/Advertising Screens


Lift Screens

Videowalls

Kiosks

Façade Lighting

Projection Mapping

3D Projection

Oculus Rift Simulations


Interactive Tables

Outdoor LEDs

Healthcare Informative/Advertising Screens

Interactive Tables

Wayfinders

Finance Informative/Advertising Screens

Videowalls

Interactive Tables

Kiosks

Indoor LEDs

Education Informative Screens

Videowalls

Interactive Videowalls

Interactive Tables

Interactive Projection

Wayfinders

Indoor LEDs

Class Room Management Systems (customization of MRMS)

Manufacturing Informative Screens

Industrial Screens

Interactive Videowalls



Why Digital Signage?

Are you spending a lot of money printing

posters, flyers, and other paper-based

signage that have to be updated or

changed on a periodic (weekly, monthly,

yearly) basis?

Do you have to distribute marketing and

communications materials to multiple

departments, offices, or stores on a

regular basis—and are you often unsure if

these materials are being promptly

displayed or distributed?

Do you feel you’re missing opportunities to educate visitors and passive audiences (i.e., those in your

lobby, waiting areas, or other areas where they wait) about what you have to offer?

Do you often feel your target audience

(internal or external) is beginning to ignore

existing traditional methods of

communications?

Do you feel your existing channels for

emergency notification are lacking and if a

critical situation arises, warnings will be

ignored?

Do you feel all of these deficiencies will only

worsen over time and that by not

embracing newer forms of

communications, you’ll be perceived as

being out of touch with customer needs?



Digital Signage Selling Points

COST-EFFECTIVE

Eliminating the need to print and distribute static signs each time your message or campaign changes saves on costly printing and distribution fees. Operations can be done in house. No heavy logistics. No more hours lost reprinting outdated or erroneous materials.

CENTRALIZED Control all of your screens from one central location, ensuring quality and consistency, while requiring minimal resources to operate your digital signage network.

FOCUSED Your content dynamically changes to deliver a focused message to your targeted audience at each point of playback (location).

DYNAMIC Digital signage can be interactive and dynamically changed to meet the demographics of your audience.

VERSATILE From menu boards, to banks and corporate lobbies, to airports, to schools and universities, to dental and medical offices – digital signage offers a versatile solution for you to communicate your message to your audience.

ATTENTION GRABBING Getting the attention of your audience is the most important part of any display. With “video-like” digital signage, viewers are not only more likely to notice your dynamic sign but research shows they are more likely to receive the message and act on it.



Be a Digital Signage “Mythbuster”

There are many myths and misconceptions concerning digital signage, therefore affecting the adoption of this technology.

MYTH #1: Digital signage is just a screen Digital signage is more than an electronic screen - it is a digital canvas for customer engagement.

Digital signage gives organizations the opportunity to create and manage promotional materials on specific dates, times and months, based on data delivered by customers.

Reach more people

Showcase dynamic content

Save on print costs

Influence sales and ROI

MYTH #2: Digital signage installation is complicated Many customers believe that implementing digital signage of a large scale will be disruptive to the store and complex to set up.

Cloud based technologies combat these problems by offering an easy configuration process, which can be executed by anyone in any business.

Media players now are small and compact, and deliver 4K graphics out of the box. The Players can be configured using a remotely via Wi-Fi connection which means users can be up and running in seconds.

MYTH #3: Managing content One of the biggest concerns of implementing a digital signage system is the strain it can have on resource.

However, customers can manage, edit and create content with ease by investing in a low-maintenance web-based platform that easily allows for simple signage creation and zone-based deployment.

What’s more, managing printed content like printed newsletters, posters and promotional material can put lots of strain on time and resource compared to digital signage.

Digital signage offers a greener, more environmentally-friendly approach to marketing communications, as well as reducing print costs significantly and maximizing workflow.

With digital signage, customers can also update content in realtime so that marketing communications are dynamic.

MYTH #4: Digital signage is expensive Making information available via digital messaging helps businesses reduce the cost of traditional campaigns by saving money on printing, distribution and wasted materials that will be discarded after the promotion has ended.

Dependent on the solution, digital signage can be fairly inexpensive in order to communicate messages and promotional material effectively.

Multiple screens can be used to create different environments and manage a budget to acquire the relevant effect.

If you do opt to purchase large LCD screens, it’s a one-time investment, not a recurring cost. Low-cost videowalls are also becoming an affordable, obtainable solution.



Digital signage benefit almost appears immediately. This user-friendly medium will help increase revenues by displaying information about impulse buys, promotions and other specials to customers while customers are in the store.

By providing additional information directly to customers via digital signage, business owners can generate additional sales revenue, recruit new people for their loyalty programs and even display digital endorsements from Facebook and Twitter.

The return on investment (ROI) can be easily justified, especially if customers edit the correct message with the consumer in mind.

MYTH #5: Digital signage isn’t effective By using digital signage, organizations can effectively promote their products and services to customers and therefore influence in-store purchasing decisions, increase brand awareness and encourage repeat sales.

Increasingly, digital signage is becoming an integral part of the marketing mix.

MYTH #6: Digital signage SaaS may be insecure Technology can be unsafe and to protect our systems from online bugs encryptions are used on all pages of transaction.

This way the whole digital signage networking system is secured and runs safely all across the web.



Be Prepared To Talk Value

As a Digital Signage Sales person, you have all the tools now to start your selling process; you have to speak with your customer about the values he’ll gain of the suggested digital signage solution:

Replace Posters Sales Promotion Ambience - Streamline communications - Lower costs - Respond faster to market

changes - Centrally control

- More promotions based on seasons, demographics, inventory, price, changes, etc.

- Enhance customer experience - Support sales - Entertain while queuing

Branding Customer Support Targeted Promotions - Continuous support for brand

via sign placement, content, and interaction

- Enhance service by providing more ways to learn, engage, and interact

- Support live sales

- Drive sales of overstocks, upsell customers with related products

- Link signs to inventory/PoS

Advertising Personalizing Experiences Product Demonstrations - Earn additional revenue by

carrying 3rd

party ads - Use interaction and analytics

to target information and offers that enhance and build loyalty

- Use education/demos to drive sales, enhance support and services

Directions/Wayfinding Customer Demographics Monitor Operations - Simplify the customer

experience - Drive traffic to increase sales - Opportunity for interaction

and ads

- Know patterns by age, gender, time

- Use info for sales, operation, traffic flow

- Get accurate counts, monitor traffic flow, behavior in key locations

Security Emergency Alerts Employee Communications - Instantly know if activity is

taking place “off limits” - See patterns of illicit behavior-

i.e. , shelf sweeping

- Use strategically placed displays for alerting

- Enhance safety, comply with regulations

- Use sign network for internal updates, training, security alerts, etc.



Understand the Business Objectives, Issues, and Values

Business Objectives Business Issues Business Values

More sales

More customers

More sales per customer

More sales per location

More higher margin sales

Lower operating costs

More productivity from sales/support associates

High cost of marketing

Getting “mindshare” of customers

Standing apart from competition

Tailor messages to demographics

Lack of brand differentiation

Fast moving product cycles/inventory turn

Products are poorly understood

Enhanced customer experience

More brand/marketing exposure at lower cost

More opportunities for personalized messaging

More sales, more sales per customer/location

Fewer inventory write-offs

More demonstrated instances of cross-selling

Lower rates of shoplifting, security issues



Tailor your message to your audience

Focus Your Communication. To tailor your communication messages and materials, you must first know your audience, then your product.

Owners Sales

Overall support for

the business

ROI

Reliability

Scalability

Speed

Availability

Customizability

Personalization

Measurement

CFO IT Manager

Initial Cost

Ongoing Costs

Savings

Revenue Potential

Overall ROI

Performance

Reliability

Integration

Upgradeability

Easy to administer



Digital Signage “Brief” Sales Plan

- Create an eye-catching presentations related to each digital signage market

- Create case studies/success stories

- Reference installations

- Determine targeted project sizes:

o Small: less than 100,000 AED

o Medium: from 100,000 AED to 400,000 AED

o Large: Over 400,000 AED

- How to reach right customer

o Email marketing newsletter

o Categorize customers under digital signage markets (Page 4)

o Cold calls

o Create relationships with construction consultants

o Create strong relationship with technology representatives/suppliers in UAE/GCC

LG, Samsung, Sharp, NEC, Philips, Panasonic (Displays)

Scala (CMS)

RMG Networks (CMS)

AppSpace (CMS)

Four Winds Interactive (CMS)

Navouri (CMS)

OneLan (CMS)

Daktronics (LED)

Absen (LED)

AOTO (LED)

Arch (Customized LED)

Projen (Mesh)

Epica (Glasses-Free 3D Screens)

Physux Labs (High-End programming)

Ad Notam (Mirror TV)

Kahlner (Circular transparent LED)

EMCS (Integrator)

AlphaData (Integrator)

Omnix (Integrator)

Its the 1 (VoIP)

- Contact Advertising/Media companies

- Contact Events companies

- Contact exhibitions booths contractors

- Visit specific exhibitions in Dubai/Abu Dhabi to do marketing

- Create new innovative solutions



Digital Signage Project Deployment Process in a glance (e.g. Wayfinder)

Store Installation

Installation of players, to the kiosks, and

connecting the network and testing the connection, as well as the running of the content correctly on the

screens.

Players

Installation of the kiosks, including cables, connection etc.

Kiosks

Handover

Handing over the site for the employees and training them on the usage of the

system

Handing Over

Production

Creating variable integration

with Advertising system.

Integration

Creating the look and feel of the Map according to the corporate guidelines.

Tailoring the unique design for kiosk.

Design

Content Upload

Uploading of content to the central management

system, and download it to each player.

Upload

Floor/Buildings Maps material required as per the

sites survey

Material

Very important step to asses, points of interest,

entry points, power requirements, kiosk mount type, network connectivity.

Site Survey

Preparation



Appendix A: Digital Signage Main Suppliers

Product / Technology Supplier

CMS Scala

PADs

RMG

FWi

AppSpace

Navouri

OneLan

Broadsign

BCN Craneworks

Displays (LCD/LED) LG

Samsung

Panasonic

Sharp

Philips

NEC

Planar

Benq

Media Mea (Customized)

LED (Indoor/Outdoor) Daktronics

AOTO

Absen

Retop

Uniview

LED (AirCondition free Outdoor) Arch

Transparent LED (Indoor/Outdoor) GWS Tech

Portable natural human size LED Foreground

Mobile LED Yeeso

Mesh LED GKD

Projen (Palami)

Underwater LED Projen (Palami)

Circular Transparent LED Kahlner

3D Display Glasses-Free Epica

All-in-one Display Shuttle

iBase

DT Research

Built-in Touch LCD/LED ELO

Touch Overlay PQ Labs

ZaagTech

Wavex



Media Players Intel NUC, Intel Compute Stick

MediaVue

iBase

AOpen

Lenovo

Giada

Mirror TV Electric Mirror

Ad Notam

Fitting Mirror Memomi

Projection Interaction Multi Taction

Projection Videowall Cyviz

Mounts Peerless

BTech

Wayfinders (2D) FWi

Wayfinders (2.5D, 3D) Craneworks

3D Berlin

Meeting Room Management Systems Evoko

Projectors Christi

Panasonic

BenQ

Epson

Sony

Projection Mapping Physux Labs

Hologram Fractal

Physux Labs

Augmented Reality Appshaker

Indoor Kiosks (Informative/Interactive) Saubag

TeckFlow

Media Mia

Outdoor Kiosks (Informative/Interactive) Infinitus

Saubag

Payment Kiosks MBME

VoIP iLumio

Its First 1

Samsung

Smartphones Interaction Physux Labs

Façade Lighting AHL (Media Façade)

Projen

Arch