Palmer Retail Solutions Blog

Digital Signage Tips for Retail Stores

Posted by Kathy Heil on Apr 2, 2015 9:33:22 AM

How to Use Digital Signs to Deliver Retail Results Digital signage tips for retail stores

Back in mid-2012, an IT trade association conducted a survey that showed one-third of American retailers were already using digital signage. An additional 22% were considering digital signage retail options for the “near future.” You can bet they followed through with that and are enjoying the benefits. Now digital signage is common, and best practices are emerging on how to use digital signs to deliver retail results.

You use signage to provide simple information or directions, reinforce your brand, highlight featured merchandise, and point the way to special promotions or sales within your store. Anything traditional signage can do, digital signage can do better, in large part because you can use photos and graphics as well as words. Digital can be an excellent choice for exterior signage as well as inside the store.

That does not mean you should do away with other types of signs, but it does mean strategic investment in digital signage can give your customers a dramatically better experience and encourage them to buy more.

Digital signs can do things traditional signs cannot.

They can be much larger – think displays of flight information at the airport. Your store isn’t that big, but with digital signage, you can attract attention from a greater distance as well as up close. But nothing catches the eye like movement. With digital, you can bring visuals to life – for instance, showing videos that depict your products in real-life settings.

Ramp it up even more with interactive digital signage with touch screens that enable customers to search product information, sign up for your email list, and pay for purchases.

Make a plan:

  • Start small. Pick one way to use digital signage and identify your goal(s) for that so you can measure results. Your goal will determine your sign’s location and size.
  • Get advice from your vendor, your retail display company, and if you represent a large organization, get input from your marketing, visual merchandising and IT folks, too. Digital signage doesn’t function in a vacuum, it has to integrate smoothly with other technology and reflect the look and feel of all your marketing efforts.
  • Create content based on your goals and produce it using the elements of good design. If you’re using text, it must be easy to read. Use colors for font and background that contrast sharply, make the font size appropriate to viewing distance and eliminate visual clutter.

Need some inspiration?

Start by scouting the competition, as well as other retailers that have very different merchandise lines. You’ll learn two valuable things – what you don’t like, and what you do. The “don’ts” will help you avoid similar mistakes, and the “likes” will spark ideas you can use yourself.

Many industry experts say your signs get just three seconds to grab a shopper’s attention. Some in the industry say it’s only two seconds. Either way, digital signs are more likely stick out. Incorporating digital signage retail displays in ways appropriate for your setting and products can repay you handsomely with increased customer interest and spending.

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Palmer Retail Solutions strives to offer our clients the absolute best combination of innovation, quality, service, and value for our diversified custom store fixtures and merchandising displays. For more information about our designs, retail fixtures, cash wraps, kiosks, or point of purchase displays, visit our website at: http://www.palmerretailsolutions.com.

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