Every successful business knows how to efficiently monitor and grow the ROI they generate from marketing strategies. The very same ethos applies heavily to the world of digital signage. But what methods can you utilize to accurately measure the returns your digital displays create? And how do you use this information to increase the potential value that your digital signage provides you.? Today we’re going to offer you some tips and practices you can implement to optimize your digital signage ROI.
Contrary to popular belief, every business has a unique ROI portfolio. A simple way to understand the return on investment is to measure your profits against your operating expenses over specific periods of time. However, in the digital signage sector, returns aren’t measured from an exclusively financial viewpoint. The primary function of digital signage is to create engagement by communicating, entertaining, and informing. Digital displays can be used to raise productivity and morale in the workplace, improve customer experiences within a business environment, and also as a means of growing a consumer base.
It’s easy to understand the diverse ROI digital signage offers when considering all the benefits and possibilities it provides a business. So how does a business manage and effectively utilize precious information?
The first step to understanding the ROI of your digital signage is to establish the outcomes you wish to achieve through using the medium. It can be easy to track specific performance areas of your digital displays. However, if you have nothing to measure the data against, the information won’t be as useful. For example, a retail store could attempt to increase sales of a specific product, and choose to display promotional information for that product on a digital display. After a specific period, they could compare sales from before and after the promotional campaign to measure the effectiveness of their digital displays.
The returns on your digital signage are not restricted to finance. However, you will still need to maintain a consistent record of any purchase, hire, or operating cost to accurately measure any and all tangible profit margins. Measurable costs include the following:
Hardware (screens, mounts, batteries, etc)
Software (operating program, pos system, content management)
Labor costs (installation, running costs, maintenance, staffing)
Auxiliary costs (consultations, design outsourcing, subscription services)
Key Performance Indicators are used as milestones on a map of objectives and goals and can be used to provide businesses with a clearer idea of their returns.
Once businesses have a better idea of the scope of their investment, a very healthy next step would be to set a target profit margin. By determining a baseline profit, you’ll set a standard of performance for your business that can be referenced to measure your digital signage ROI.
Aside from profit margins, a business can also measure what is categorized as ROO (return on objectives). This is where a lot of the communication and engagement levels can be pooled and organized to further understand the value generated by your digital displays.
Let’s imagine a business already has a strong consumer base, and simply wants to find a solution for accommodating high volumes of customer traffic during specific hours. The business could integrate self-ordering kiosks into their retail spaces to help speed up the payment processes over rush hours. A good example of a key performance indicator in this instance would be to measure the customer experience with these types of displays.
Calls to action are one of the strongest tools in any strong marketing strategy. A call to action creates an instant and direct link between the brand and viewer, and can also sometimes be used to acquire valuable data metrics.
Common CTA’s include providing a URL or quick link to a business’s product or service, scannable codes that direct consumers to an online portfolio, or instantly redeemable offers like coupons or vouchers. The most vital component of a CTA is its trackability, and the greater your understanding of how to utilize this asset, the stronger returns will prove over time.
The simplest way to gain perspective on your digital signage ROI is to monitor viewer behavior directly around the environments in which your displays are located. For instance, if you are trying to attract the attention of people moving through a busy or crowded space you’ll need to observe how much time they spend physically engaging with your display.
Similarly, if you are trying to convey specific messages more effectively throughout your company, you can acquire feedback directly from your staff that reflects the effectiveness of your displays as a communication medium. Utilizing your list of desired goals and objectives will provide you with a blueprint of the kind of information you need to prioritize to determine accurate ROI.
In addition to observing your consumers or staffing from a distance, you can find healthy means of trading insights on a more personal level. Surveys are a time-tested method for gathering significant feedback from your targeted viewers and can provide you with a first-hand account of the viewer experience.
Effectively quantifying the ROI that your digital signage generates will provide any business with healthy leverage when developing their marketing and communication strategies. While there is an abundance of statistics and metrics that your digital displays offer, it’s crucial to understand what is relevant, and what is redundant. By implementing the above-listed practices, you’ll be able to streamline any and all communication operations with exponential efficiency. Thanks for reading through our guidelines on measuring and improving your digital signage ROI.
Adflux has been Australia's leading provider of digital signage solutions for over a decade. From Sydney to Melbourne, Perth, and beyond, we have been the industry's top distributors of both digital signboards, as well as our exclusive digital signage software. Our cloud-based digital signage software is both cutting edge and incredibly user-friendly, allowing for seamless irreplaceable advertising campaigns. Please feel free to reach out to us for any more assistance setting up your digital display campaigns.