• There were two 47″ LG screens hanging from the ceiling.
• There was an LG player the back of the first screen
• Connected to the player there was a Telstra USB 3G modem – I’m assuming this was needed for Internet connectivity
• There was also a VGA splitter that connected the Video output to the second screen

Now, in terms of content and what was displayed on the screen seemed quite disappointing. There was only two ads displayed on the screen. One was the company’s own advertisement and the other was just an image.

My initial thoughts were, “How is the company making money?” and “Are the network owners already struggling to find advertisers?”

I believe this is a common issue for digital signage network startups. Most believe that having a network means that they can easily generate advertising revenue but that’s not always the case. Finding advertisers is the biggest challange easpecially if the network only has a handful of screens. Its a numbers game -most of the advertisers want exposure and they are willing to pay for it if the exposure is high.

So before jumping at the chance of setting up a digital signage network make sure you have advertisers ready to buy your advertising space…. and good luck.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2011. | Permalink | 4 comments |
Post tags: Advertisement, advertisers, Advertising Revenue, Challange, digital signage network, digital signage networks, good luck, Handful, Initial Thoughts, Making Money, Modem, Numbers Game, screens, Shopping Centre, Startups, telstra, Vga Splitter, Video Output

There’s not much detail about the number of screens or what they are looking for and good luck to those that are applying for the tender. Here’s the link to the tender information. http://www.hellotrade.com/tenders/details/328898614/

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2011. | Permalink | One comment |
Post tags: 21st April, Company Limited, digital signage, Electricity Generating, good luck, screens, Signage System, Submission, Tenders

There are some digital signage solutions that are just able to automatically rotate and crop the content so that it fits on the screen no matter if it’s landscape or portrait but in the case where your digital signage system doesn’t have this feature, what do you do? To solve this issue you need to have two sets of designs or templates – one in landscape and then one in portrait.Then, when scheduling the content the administrator needs to work out which screens will use the landscape content and which ones will use the portrait content. If you have more than 20 screens with a mix of landscape and portrait screen this can be a very tedious task. I guess if you have setup your screens to be within a group e.g Landscape screens, Portrait screens then this task may be easier but at the end of the day does your network require both screen orientations? If not, I would say stick with one type of screen orientation to minimise administration and design efforts.

As digital signage solution providers we provide consultancy services and help them understand the benefits and pitfalls of maintaining a digital signage solution.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2011. | Permalink | No comment |
Post tags: Colleagues, Confusion, Consultancy Services, Content Creator, Design Efforts, digital signage network, Digital Signage Solutions, Landscape Designs, Layouts, Network Group, Pitfalls, Screen Orientation, Screen Orientations, screens, Signage Solution, Signage System, Solution Providers, System Doesn, Tedious Task, Templates

1. draw more customers into your stores with a christmas theme on the screens

2. showcase special christmas products on the screens

3. announcements and greeting your customers e.g “Merry Christmas and Happy New Year”

4. make more money… don’t worry about the ROI you’ll certainly make you’re money back within the first 2 years.

5. stand out from your competitors

If your store needs to stand out then digital signage is the most cost effective solution.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2010. | Permalink | No comment |
Post tags: christmas, Christmas Products, Christmas Theme, Cost Effective Solution, digital signage, Festive Season, Happy New Year, Merry Christmas And Happy New Year, Money Back, new year, Opportunity, retail stores, ROI, screens, Showcase, Simple 1, Special Christmas, Worry

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2010. | Permalink | No comment |
Post tags: blog, digital signage, First Day, Poll Id

I really haven’t seen it in action so the above is just a guess based on what I saw. Has anyone else seen any innovative kiosk or digital signage solutions?

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2010. | Permalink | No comment |
Post tags: Business Hours, Canberra Australia, Cleaning Business, Clothes, Convenience, Digital Id, Digital Signage Solutions, Digital Solutions, Dry Cleaners, Dry Cleaning, Hanger, Kiosk, Receipt Number, Shaft, Signage Solution, touch screen

1. Tax reasons – for leased or rented equipment you can claim the full cost as an expense
2. If the equipment is rented, then you have the option to upgrade your hardware once you contract has ended
3. No initial upfront costs – some businesses don’t have the upfront costs and would have their money invested in purchasing actual products to sell

There are many more reasons but we would like to hear from you what these reasons are.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments |
Post tags: digital signage, money, Poll Id, Purchasing, Upfront Costs

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments |
Post tags: Clients Requirements, Cost Effective Solution, digital signage network, digital signage player, Good Time, Retail Chain, Retail Digital Signage, Retail Industry, Retail Signage, Retail Store, retail stores, Signage Products, Signage Solution, Signage System, Single Store

Yes, its true that the cost of digital displays is generally higher than the static display – there’s no doubt about that. But here’s why you should still consider in using a digital display:

1. Printing costs – there are no printing costs involved with digital displays. If done correctly, you don’t even have to spend too much money with design costs as you may already have existing content from your website or marketing material.

2. Resource costs – how much time is spent replacing static images. Wouldn’t it be more effective if your staff was actually serving customers rather than spending time hanging posters?

3. Animation and engaging content – this is used to attract more customer into your store.

4. Live information – e.g news, weather, twitter posts, facebook information, you can’t do this with static display!

The switch is easy… just contact advertise me and we’ll take care of everything for you.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2010. | Permalink | One comment |
Post tags: Animation, Digital Displays, Digital Printing, digital signage, Lightboxes, marketing, Much Money, No Doubt, posters, Printing Costs, Purchasing, Resource Costs, Retail Owners, Spending Time, Static Displays, Static Images, Waste Of Money, weather

1. cost savings for running cables and power. If planned correctly then during the electrical fitout, you can install and run cables (this includes audio, video, and data) to the various screens locations before the walls are put up. Trust me, it’s must cheaper than having to install these at a later stage

2. structural support – during a fitout you’ll be able to easily plan where the screens will be located and hence you’ll be able to install structural support for the screen brackets

3. Use digital signage for opening specials and to attract more customers into the store

4. Generally, the installation of the screens are very minimal compared to the overall cost of the shop fitout

5. Bring your store to life – if done correctly, you’ll be able to use engaging content and differentiate your store from your competitors

There may be more reasons and in my point of view, digital signage should definitely be considered when you plan to refit your shop. So if you’re in the process of renovating or opening up a new shop, make sure you contact Advertise Me so we can demonstrate how you can use digital signage to your advantage.

What do you think?

Feel free to submit your answer as a comment.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments |
Post tags: Advantage, Best Time, Brackets, Cables, digital signage, Point Of View, screens, Shop Fitout

So in this situation, should the store owner have paid the extra money and went with sunlight readable screens? Did the installer mention this to the store manager? Was there a site survey conducted and did someone analyse the environmental constraints?

I guess these are some of the questions you need to ask yourself or the installer before proceeding with purchasing a screen.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2010. | Permalink | One comment |
Post tags: Constraints, Extra Money, Glare, Light Screens, plasma screen, plasma screens, Proceeding, screens, Site Survey, Store Owner, Sun Light, Sun Screens, Sunlight, Sunny Day

In today’s day and age, the Internet and email technology has revolutionised the way we communicate with people all over the world. Both of these technologies are critical and vital to the operations of any business. Without these technologies, your employees and company will come to a standstill.

Moving forward with technology, digital signage is a new form of digital medium for corporate businesses with multiple offices around the world to deliver dynamic messages to its employees. It is a proven fact that dynamic images and information attract more attention than static images such as posters or billboards by a factor of 10.

XXX  is a large global organisation and it can embrace this technology by keeping its local and remote employees up to date with; business events (National Sales Conferences, annual Christmas party), corporate headlines (the launch of new xxx products or systems) and local business effecting announcements (building renovations, Information Technology business interruptions).

What is digital signage?

Digital signage is the method of displaying multimedia content on a display unit such as a LCD screen, a plasma display panel, a monitor, a video wall composed of a number of screens to deliver informative and entertaining content to employees, visitors, captive audiences and passers by.

As opposed to still images, multimedia content is the new standard of digital communication. The information presented to your viewers will not only be exciting but also captivating.

Benefits

XXX can use the digital signage technology to impress both its visitors and employees. Imagine the following scenarios:

Your visitors are standing at your reception desk signing the visitor’s book. They look up and their eyes are caught by a large LCD screen. A message is displayed “Welcome to XXX.” The message fades and the next message appears “Dear visitor, please ensure your visitors badge is visible at all times whilst on XXX premises. Please also remember to sign out before leaving. Thank you and enjoy your visit.” The system can also be used to display Training timetable information (training name, time and locations) and help guide your visitors to the training rooms.

Your employees walk into the office and their eyes are caught by the LCD screen. There is a message on the screen “Reminder: Flash Presentation at 11:00 AM”. In this particular scenario, the system is being used as a bulletin board to efficiently remind staff of particular events.

Your employees are eating in the cafeteria, the LCD screen displays the message at all sites with the following “advertise me Christmas countdown: 2 days to go. Visit http://www.advertiseme.com.au for more information.” Staff members are updated with important company information.

There are infinite possibilities and scenarios where your business can benefit from this evolving digital signage technology. Take the step now and you will notice the difference.

Just by simply introducing the digital signage technology to XXX’s corporate environment, Advertise Me can guarantee the business can achieve the following:

• Promote new products to its employees
• Increase awareness of critical business projects to employees
• Improve business image to visitors and the public
• Achieve recognition from competitors by being the first YYY company to use this technology
• Keep employees informed with information with eye catching presentations

Proposal

A typical digital signage network consists of a small form factor Personal Computer, a 32 inch LCD TV (inclusive of a mounting bracket) and the digital signage software.  Our proposal for XXX is slightly different and is as follows:

• XXX will supply Advertise Me with a PC which meets our technical specifications. This will ensure that the PC has been qualified by a XXX employee and conforms to the XXX standards.
• We will supply XXX with a 32 inch LCD TV as a minimum or for an additional cost, upgrade to a larger screen size LCD.
• We will install, configure and support the software on any PC that is connected to a stand.
• Provide basic training to either IT staff or XXX employees who will manage the system
• Provide on-site maintenance for the equipment and software

XXX has the option to have the digital network set up on its own private network or on the Advertise Me network. Our preference is to have the PC’s on our network so that we can monitor and remotely manage each stand. We will provide Internet access points at each stand and set up VPN (Virtual Private Network) tunnels with the highest security back to our network. We will then provide XXX with access to the players via our network.

There are ZZZ XXX offices based in Australia; [locations]. At each location we propose to have an stand at the reception desk, and one in the cafeteria/lunch area. At XXX we can additionally add another stand in the Hub.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments |
Post tags: Business Events, Business Interruptions, Captive Audiences, Christmas Party, Corporate Businesses, Corporate Headlines, Digital Communication, Digital Medium, digital signage, Dynamic Images, Dynamic Messages, Global Organisation, Images Multimedia, Information Technology Business, lcd screen, Multimedia Content, Plasma Display Panel, Proposal, Reception Desk, Standstill, Static Images, Still Images, video wall

What are the main reasons behind this and which industry does digital signage fit in?

In this particular post I will attempt to explore these areas and hopefully others can follow and join me with sharing their thoughts and ideas on this particular topic.

Let’s firstly look at the roles and responsibilities of both industries:

The IT industry

Generally speaking, when someone uses the term IT (Information Technology), the first thing that comes to their mind is computers – basically this is what the majority of digital signage players are (embedded computers, laptops, desktops, Macs etc). One thing that needs to be clarified is that IT encompasses much more than computers, it covers broader areas such as software development, desktop management, server management (Windows, Linux, Mac, etc), network infrastructure, security and helpdesk support. All of these areas form the basic foundation of the IT backbone and digital signage is one of those technologies which have a great dependency on the IT framework. The design, stability of the overall IT infrastructure needs to work in order for the digital signage network to also be reliable and efficient.

Let’s look at a few of these areas starting with Network infrastructure. The network infrastructure covers equipment such as Routers, Switchers and Firewalls which allows information to transverse between computers and devices. From my shallow understanding and for simplicity purposes, switches are used to connect Local Area Networks and routers are devices which connect Wide Area Networks together or allow connectivity to the Internet. In most cases, digital signage networks will span across multiple WANs and LANs and is used to monitor, manage and schedule content to disperse sites. Firewalls are used to prevent unauthorized access to the network. These devices have access control lists which define who can connect to the network and what they can connect to.

Here’s a quick example of a typical digital signage network:

One of the most critical factors for having an efficient network is speed and bandwidth between end to end devices. This means that when deploying your digital signage solution you must analyse the requirements and determine what the minimum speed your network must support. If you’re looking at streaming your high resolution content to the digital signage players from your head office, I would suggest that you subscribe to the fastest speed available in your country – obviously all this comes with a price but you can leverage this by using additional services like VoIP, CCTV, wireless hotspots etc. If you’re a techie, you may consider implementing Quality of Service on your network especially if you’re streaming your content. This will allow you to prioritise and reserve enough bandwidth on your network so there are no streaming delays.

Let’s move on and talk about the Software component. No matter which type of solution you’re using, you’re definitely going to use a piece of software that a company has developed. The programming language and technology used to develop this software will vary but what is common between all the digital signage software tools is the ability for someone to manage and schedule content. From experience, there are quite a number of software tools out in the market and when determining which piece of software is best suited to your requirements ask yourself these questions:

1. What operating system will I be using? (Windows XP, Windows Embedded, Linux, Mac OS)
2. What are the minimum hardware requirements? (Memory, CPU, Video Card)
3. What features do I need e.g ability to support RSS feeds, Live TV, streaming video, display websites etc?
4. How much budget do I have?
5. Is there a cost for additional support and maintenance?
6. What is the frequency of software patches?
7. Can I easily obtain support from the company?
8. How intuitive is the system?

When dealing with the software company, make sure that they are able to provide you with the necessary support in the event a bug is found. You don’t want to wait around for a year for the software company to resolve the issue.

Let’s keep moving forward and talk about the digital signage hardware -indeed these can range from computers to laptops or from small embedded devices to high end servers. The current trend that I’ve seen when using digital signage players is that they are becoming smaller and more environmentally friendly. Here’s another set of questions you should ask yourself before making that final purchasing decision:

1. What technical specs do I require in order to run the digital signage software? (Operating System, Hardware requirements)
2. What types of video ports do I need to connect to my screen? (e.g S-Video, VGA, DVI, HDMI, Composite, Component)
3. What screen resolution will I be outputting to the screen?
4. How long is the warranty and what does it cover?
5. Does the hardware need to be mounted behind the screens or are they going into a rack?

So there you have it, that’s a brief summary of the IT industry.

The Audio Visual Industry

This industry has been around longer than the IT industry. Since the early days of the black and white televisions, the industry has grown exponentially. This industry is all about what we see and what we hear – its about tweaking and refining two of our sense (visual and audio). The visual component has now evolved to also provide the viewer with a means to interact with the medium by using technology such as touch screens.

Typically, the audio equipment consists of speakers, audio input devices (CD player, audio from a DVD player, digital signage, mobile phones) and an AMP (to amplify the audio). When installing any audio system you should consider the following:

• What will be the audio input device?
• What are the speaker requirements? 1 or 2 channels?
• How will the speakers be connected to the audio input device?
• Is an amplifier required?
• Is a zone control device required? (this is a device to switch audio to speakers located in different zones/areas).
• What type of wiring will be used? Avoid installing power cabling, audio and network cabling together as this may introduce noise
• Speaker layout – determine the best locations for installing speakers whether on the ceiling or against the wall

It is human nature to be attracted to beautiful and appealing images and the medium which presents these images must be able to leverage this requirement. There are various types of screen technologies in the current market and this includes, LCD, Plasma, LED, DID, projectors, touch screens and even steam. Generally the bigger the screens and the better the quality, the more expensive it gets. The only limitation we’ve come across is that the screen is only capable of display the resolution the player or connected device is outputting. This was talked about in a previous post called Screen Dilemma. When thinking about installing the screen, location is very important. We talked about this in previous post called Digital Signage: Location, Location, Location. Basically, the screen is more profitable when there are more people looking at the screen.

Before purchasing a display screen, you should consider the following:

• What types of video connectors does the digital signage support and does the screen support this? (e.g S-Video, VGA, DVI, HDMI, Composite, Component)
• What screen orientation do I need? (landscape or portrait)
• What screen resolution will I be outputting from the player and will the screen support this? NOTE: We have noticed that some residential screens do not support some of the screen resolutions we needed.
• What is the warranty period?
• Do I require speakers? (Some commercial screens do not come with speakers)
• Do I require the user to interact with the screen? (Touchscreen, sensors)
• Do I require power management features?
• Will the screen be installed in outdoor or indoor purposes?
• Will I need enclosures to protect the screen?

Avoid using residential screens and purchase commercial grade screens as these are designed for retail and commercial environments.

There are probably more points to consider and I look forward to hearing from all the visual and audio experts out there.

Digital Content

The majority of content that is produced will be created and edited by a computer. Also the application used to create or edit the content must have been developed by a computer to digitise the little bits (1’s and 0’s). In this day and age, everything is heading toward the digital world. Images, audio and video are now all in a digital format and this makes it easy for the content to be used for any digital signage installation. Having grown and seen these technological changes has been amazing. I still recall the days when scanners were first introduced in the market, and converting an image or document to a digital format was like pulling a rabbit out a hat – it was magic. And now, digital signage is riding this wave. The benefits of using digital signage are obvious and when the content can be easily supplied, created and moved across to different mediums.

There are several common tools used in the industry to create the digital content and these are:

• ASV4You – very affordable and easy to use tools for video, audio and image editing and for converting to different formats. We’ve actually used this software for most of our video and image editing.
  “Register once and work with AVS4YOU Package which includes 28 audio& video software. AVS4YOU Software are designed to meet your most various tasks: Convert between all key audio and video formats; Rip DVDs and videos; Edit home video and audio quickly; Apply effects, text and transitions to video and audio; Create video-DVDs with menus; Burn DVD/CD/Blu Ray; Copy videos to portables like iPod, iPhone, PSP, Zen, PS3, Xbox, Archos, phones, DVD/MPEG-4 players and portable media playes. All key video and audio formats are supported: HD Video (inc. AVCHD, MPEG-2 HD and WMV-HD), TOD, MOD, M2TS, AVI (DivX, XviD, etc.), MP4 (inc. Sony PSP and Apple iPod), WMV, 3GP, QuickTime (MOV, QT), SWF, DVD, VOB, VRO, MPEG 1, 2, 4, H.263, H.264, Real Video, DVR-MS, MKV, FLV; MP3, WAV, WMA, OGG, AAC, Vorbis, MP2, VOX, AAC, M4A, AMR and others. Subscribe to AVS4YOU Package for $59/lifetime and get All-In-One Software Bundle.”
  It’s actually very affordable and they currently having a special on the Unlimited Subscription which you’ll be entitled to install all of their software package. Awesome bargain- order the Unlimited Subscription here: AVS4You Software

• Adobe Flash – create fancy animations
• Adobe Photoshop – create professional images
• 3D Max – create 3D animations
• Adobe Premier – used for video editing and productions

There’s quite a number of image and video editing application on the market and there are also some which may be open source as well – so before spending your hard earn dollars, I would recommend you test the open source applications first.

Project management

Both of these industries require the professional to be skilled in project management. To ensure the successful completion of either an IT or Audio Visual project, there are several tasks that is required from the professional. One of them is to have strong communication and writing skills but most importantly is being able to plan and assign tasks to your relevant resources. If the install is not planned correctly, it could potentially lead to scope creep.

Digital Signage

So after all that, which category should or does Digital Signage fall under… actually the way I see it, it covers both the IT and AV Industry. I don’t believe there is clear answer to this question but I’m more than happy to listen to your comments and maybe there is an answer out there.

The digital signage industry is a cut throat industry and people getting into the industry needs to be aware of all the areas that were covered above. Because of the scope and complexity of the digital signage industry, it is often best to partner with reliable and professional businesses – this is crucial if you want your business to survive and succeed. Good luck to those who are just starting out in this industry.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments |
Post tags: Audio Visual Equipment, Backbone, Basic Foundation, Convergence, Convergence Technology, Desktop Management, Development Desktop, digital signage network, digital signage networks, Etc Network, Firewalls, Infancy, Information technology, Information Technology Network, Infrastructure Security, Local Area Networks, Management Server, Network Infrastructure, Roles And Responsibilities, Server Management, Signage Industry, Simplicity, Software Development, Switchers, Thoughts And Ideas, Transverse, Wide Area Networks

Enclosures are primarily designed to protect the display screens from:

• the environment – direct sunlight or extreme weather can cause damage to the screen
• theft – fortunately we haven’t come across this situation but I’m sure others around the world have experience this
• physical damage – vandalism is quite common in public areas

In addition to protecting screens, enclosures are also used to protect digital signage players – so make sure there is enough room to house the player.

We’ve seen different types of enclosures ranging from free standing to wall mounted and here’s a few photos:

One thing that I’ve learnt is that if someone really wanted to steal something, no matter how secure it is they will find a way to take it but “prevention is always better than cure”.

Have you seen any innovative or strange enclosures?

Feel free to submit your answer as a comment.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2009. | Permalink | 3 comments |
Post tags: digital signage, Extreme Weather, Investment, Photos, Physical Security, Prevention, Public Areas, screens, Secure Digital, Security Considerations, Shopping Centre, Signage Installation, Signage Solution, Strange, Sunlight, Vandalism

Almost 9 out of 10 times when digital signage goes wrong through my observations, they are running Windows. There is no perfect system out there regardless what hardware, operating system, or configuration you may have, but according to Murphy’s Law, when something does go wrong how do control it? Does your software allow you to show an exception or alternate display?

Weirdly enough, these observations have now become second nature to me, whereby I notice all other people would just walk right past it. Not to mention the urge for me to take out my blackberry to snap it.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2009. | Permalink | No comment |
Post tags: 9 Out Of 10, blackberry, chadstone, Coincidently, Control, digital signage, Fun, Hardware Configuration, Linux, Melbourne, Murphy S Law, operating system, Perfect System, Second Nature, Signage Project, Urge, Windows Linux

It is interesting to see where each city is at with the influence of digital signage, and I have noticed that the usage of its application differs between different regions across the country. However one of the disappointing things that I have picked up is the management of downtime for systems going offline. In less populated cities, when a screen goes offline it can be left like that for days without anybody coming to its attention. In more populated cities, the screen will be back live again by the afternoon, or the next day at latest.

I’ve got a couple more places to go before the end of this month, and that should leave me with an open, but not easy December where I can get my feet back on the ground and plan for the next year. By gosh its mid November already and Christmas is just around the corner!

Has anybody found any other trends with digital signage applications across different regions of your country?

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2009. | Permalink | 2 comments |
Post tags: Applications, Back Ground, christmas, Different Regions, digital signage, Downtime, Feet, flying, Melbourne, Perth Domestic Airport, telstra, Trend

If you look at the screen closely, you’ll notice that on the top right hand section there is a banner stating “Advertise Here…”. This is the first time I’ve seen an airport trying to promote advertising space which is great to see.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2009. | Permalink | One comment |
Post tags: Adelaide Airport, Caption, Digital Id, Digital Marketing, digital signage, marketing, screens

Let’s clear a few things up first.

Native resolution is the fixed number of pixels on the screen. For example, if your screen has a native resolution of 1280×720 pixels, this means your screen is physically made up of 1280 pixels wide and 720 pixels high.

Maximum resolution is the highest resolution that the screen is capbable to display.

When an incoming signal to the screen does not match the native resolution, that signal must be converted (or scaled) to be displayed correctly on the screen. So lets use the same screen above, it has a native resolution of 1280×720. If an incoming signal is 1920×1080, the screen will scale this resolution down so that it can fit on the physical dimensions of 1280×720. Likewise if an incoming signal is 1024×768, then the screen will up-scale this resolution to fit 1280×720.

This process is possible because the screen has been programmed to recognise different input signals and to convert them as such. More often than not you will have a list of all the supported input signal resolution sizes, and the highest supported resolution is your Maximum resolution.

Now that we have that out of the way, lets talk about how important is screen resolution in digital signage?

In all my digital signage years until now, I have not had to focus on optimising the quality of the display in regards to picture sharpness and contrast ratio. The general technology of the Plasma/LCD screen makes up for this. What comes out of the digital signage player is just right for the display quality. The general conversation would be on how to most effectively capture consumers attention with the type of content and how it is designed.

However recently in Australia, digital broadcasting of TV networks have become more prominent and consumers are now well aware of terms like HDTV. This presence of high definition television has entered many homes and now the retail store fronts want to show this off also. Because consumers are already aware of such technology, there is an expectation on store owners to provide this service to them.

The question comes back to client requirements. Do most clients have the proper knowledge to determine what screens they want based on what they know or what they have been told? Is it important to match the right resolution of what is coming from the digital receiver into the digital signage player, and out to the screen?

We’d like to hear your point of view on this topic. There is no right or wrong answer, as each requirements are different, but we would like to hear your thoughts.

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2009. | Permalink | No comment |
Post tags: Consumers, Contrast Ratio, Conversion, Decisions, Designers, digital signage, digital signage player, Dilemma, Fit, General Technology, Incoming Signal, Input Signal, Input Signals, Large Scale, lcd screen, marketing, Match, Maximum Resolution, Native Resolution, Physical Dimensions, pixels, plasma, Plasma Lcd, plasma screen, Screen Resolution, screens, Sharpness, Signal Resolution

But what’s interesting is that they at least had a backup plan – ie. static posters.

So, what do you do when your screen fails?

We previously talked about this in another post called “Why Digital Signage Can Work Against You”

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2009. | Permalink | No comment |
Post tags: Backup Plan, digital signage, posters, Signage Solution

On the weekend whilst walking past a busy street I spotted across the road a real estate company with several LCD screens located at their front window. This is what I saw: (excuse the quality of the pictures but it was late at night and I was using my blackberry):

Now, in Australia quite a number of real estate agencies have moved away from using the traditional static posters for displaying their property listing and have implemented some form of a digital signage solution (visual display screens or touchscreen technology).

What I was most surprised about this particular installation and setup was that 1/3 of their screens was either turned off or had a fault with the LCD unit. Does this mean that 1/3 of the properties were not displayed? How would the property owner feel knowing that they are potentially losing interested buyers.

So what I have learnt from this situation is the following:

1. If there’s a hardware fault fix it immediately

2. Always have a backup plan – don’t be afraid to revert back to the old method of using traditional posters when required

3. Use a mixture of digital signage solutions and traditional posters

4. It looks unprofessional and embarrassing for both the digital signage solution provider and owner if the solution fails

5. You will definately lose customers if the problem is not rectified in a timely manner

© AdvertiseMe.com.au for Digital Signage Blog, 2009. | Permalink | No comment |
Post tags: australia, Backup Plan, blackberry, Busy Street, Digital Posters, digital signage, Digital Signage Solutions, Excuse, Hardware Fault, Interested Buyers, lcd screens, Lcd Unit, Mixture, Property Owner, Real Estate Agencies, Real Estate Company, Screen Caption, Signage Solution, Solution Provider, Timely Manner, traditional posters

Source of the image: http://www.jsonline.com/comics/32402404.html?feature_id=Blondie&feature_date=2009-08-25

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Post tags: Amp, Comic Industry, Comic Series, Comics, Couple Of Days, Dean, Dean Young, digital signage, Html Feature, John Marshall, Jsonline, Signage Industry

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Post tags: blog, digital signage, Domain Name, Domain Names, Fun, Name Poll, Poll Id

What I found most interesting about this video from McDonalds is that it doesn’t matter which language the video is in, as long as it portrays the intended message to the audience then in my eyes it’s definitely a sure winner!

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Post tags: Audience, Digital Content, digital signage, Fun Video, Fun Videos, Funny Ads, Funny Advertisement, Funny Videos, Mcdonald, Mcdonalds, Poll Id, Video Post, Youtube Video Clip

You can follow us on twitter here: http://www.twitter.com/advertisemeAU

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Post tags: Forums, Latest Blog Entries

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Post tags: Advertisement, Airport Terminal 2, digital signage, Fun, Poll Id, Signage Solution, Taiwan, Taoyuan Airport, Video Poll

Happy reading… in whatever language you read.

Here’s some of the translations (don’t blame us if it doesn’t make sense):

German

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Post tags: Allemand, Ces, Different Languages, French Italian, German Spanish, Google, Hand Column, Japanese Korean, Poll Id, Portugais, Portuguese, Translate, Translations, Translator

And here’s a video of someone actually using the vending machine… I like it how he had to press the right arrow several times before it scrolled to the right and it also has the Pay Pass payment option (I haven’t really seen this been used in Australia):

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Post tags: australia, Coca Cola, digital signage, Payment Option, Poll Id, Right Arrow, Several Times, Vending Machine, Vending Machines

We previously talked about how the iPhone can be used as a digital signage player (there’s already a few companies out there who have created an application on the iPhone) but now how would you like to be served by a humanoid robot with an iPhone attached to it’s head? Watch the funky video and we’ll discuss later:

In the examples in the video, the humanoid robot with the iPhone attached as it’s head, can be used to:

• wake you up – morning!!! maybe even give you a hug or a slap
• entertain – it’s a dance machine…shake it’s robo booty
• teach it new tricks and moves – next thing you know it will start imitating your moves
• and if you’re nice to it… it might even make you a coffee (just kidding – ummmm may be it is possible)

BUT more importantly it can interact with YOU – think about it from a sales and marketing perspective and you’ll start realising that this robot can be used to attract more customers into your store and even possibly serve it’s customers (stick your own photo image as it’s head ). The screen itself can be used even to promote sales, products and specials whilst it’s dancing around entertaining it’s customers (yes it’s  digital signage after all). And yes…. I’ve said it before… the possibilities seem to be endless with the future of mobile phones as digital signage players.

So that’s our weekend fun for this week and we all hope you’re having a great weekend.

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Post tags: Amp, Booty, Dance Machine, digital signage player, Embed Src, Fun Video Clip, Hl En, Http Www Youtube, Humanoid Robot, iphone, Lt, mobile phones, Param Name, Photo Image, Possibilities, Sales And Marketing, Slap, True Width, Type Application, X Shockwave Flash

Bill Gerba explains in his post that participating in this survey is worthwhile because:

1.  demand-driven pricing estimate is a great way to check the accuracy of all of the supply-driven pricing estimates out there.

2. it’s easier than voting with your wallet: by choosing the fair-value price for each item, you get to (anonymously) tell everybody who receives the survey data what’s on your mind.

So let’s get to it, complete the survey here. I’m very interested to see what the results are but we’ll have to wait until the end of August when the survey ends.

How much should digital signage cost?

Feel free to submit your answer as a comment.

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Post tags: Accuracy, digital signage, Estimates, Gerba, hardware, Running, Survey Data, Wallet, Wirespring

The billboard is made up of two panels each over 100m long and just over 5m high. International airline V Australia is the first to take up the billboard located atop the Terminal 1 car park with their “fly girls” campaign exclusively for 12 months.

“V Australia will be noticed by anyone parking, driving or flying anywhere in the vicinity of the International Airport. Apart from being the largest site in the country, it also has a very high and consistent level of guaranteed traffic and visibility” – Paul McBeth, General Manager of marketing at APN Outdoor.

Source: http://www.bandt.com.au/news/75/0C062875.asp

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Post tags: apn, billboard, Fly Girls, International Aiport, largest billboard, outdoor, Sydney International Airport, V Australia