Dev Pro Journal
TSPs have the opportunity to provide solutions that enhance customer experiences – and deliver quick ROI.
Merchants recognise that digital signage offers value to their operations. It allows them to display content in eye-catching ways. Changing digital signage content is easier and faster than printing paper signs, giving them more agility to adapt when a menu or special promotion changes. It can make the wait seem shorter when customers must stand in a queue by displaying content that entertains them. Digital signage solutions can even give merchants a new revenue stream by displaying ads from brand partners. However, most merchants have only scratched the surface of what this technology can do. Technology solutions providers (TSPs) have the opportunity to educate their customers about digital signage’s broader potential, including as an effective method of personalising customer service.
The Advantages of Interactive Digital Signage Integrated with CRM Data
Digital signage can do more than display static or preprogramed content. It can respond with relevant messaging when a customer is nearby, requests information, or engages with it. For example, a quick service restaurant (QSR) diner can browse a digital menu. The solution can recognise the customer based on an opt-in to the restaurant’s loyalty program and make recommendations based on previous orders. Artificial intelligence (AI) can boost the solution’s speed and capabilities, enabling it to compare the customer’s data to other diners’ and make upsell or cross-sell recommendations for sides or combos the customer is most likely to buy.
An interactive digital signage solution can also allow customers to access their loyalty rewards accounts, check availability points, apply them to orders, or browse promotions – which may be enough of an influence to convert or increase the purchase size. Furthermore, with customers’ consent, the solution can learn more about them from their interactions with the digital signage solution and use it to hyper-personalise future engagements.
Digital Signage Is More than Self Service
Interactive digital signage solutions can take self-service to a new level, giving customers access to product information and complete transactions. However, innovative TSPs can help merchants create other types of exciting, memorable customer experiences that help them grow their businesses:
- Making offers based on proximity—Retailers can create immersive experiences for customers who use the brand’s app in the store and agree to share location data. An interactive digital signage system can recognise when a shopper is nearby and display relevant information. Marketing content can be as big as life on a large-format screen, encouraging shoppers to give specific merchandise a closer look or displaying a QR code that shoppers can scan for a discount on those items.
- Providing content that educates—Digital signage can display images, text, and video, showing shoppers how well kitchen utensils and appliances help with meal prep, how the pros get the most out of sports equipment, or how to accessorise apparel on display.
- Laying the foundation for a lasting relationship—Digital signage can highlight the details of a brand’s loyalty program with animation, graphics, and reward options and make it easy for shoppers to enrol by communicating with their smartphones. A survey from Moengage found that European consumers are most delighted by loyalty rewards when engaging with a brand, and about 80 per cent are comfortable or somewhat comfortable with exchanging personal data for better experiences. An interactive digital signage solution makes it easy for consumers to access personalised rewards and discounts.
- Bringing social media to life—Digital signage can display social media posts based on a brand’s hashtag, handle, or user name. Diners can share photos from their experiences or write brief reviews and see them displayed in the store. Social media engagement can help brands build community among their customers. Digital signage can strengthen it and encourage others to join.
Deliver on Expectations
Your clients and prospects may be sceptical that expanding their digital capabilities in-store can make service more personal. However, a well-crafted interactive digital signage solution can enable merchants to meet consumer expectations, automate and hyper-personalise customer engagement, and reap the benefits. McKinsey & Company reports that personalisation can lead to a 1-2 per cent lift in grocery sales and even more in other retail sectors. It also drives loyalty, increases spend and can reduce marketing costs by 10-20 per cent. Furthermore, personalisation can increase customer satisfaction rates by 20 per cent. Use your knowledge and expertise to show your clients how to leverage digital signage solutions to achieve that ROI and differentiate their businesses and loyalty-building experiences.