The Business of Digital Signage

It’s another exciting day for MediaTile and our MediaCast Video Presence system that powers HumanKiosk solutions. Today we’ve been included in another ‘ideation center,’ as one of the key components of a new generation of interactive digital signage solution for banks, credit unions and other financial institutions. I’ve had the pleasure of working directly with both DBSI, and our joint partner F-2-F Live to include our HumanKiosk solution in what’s been dubbed the Future FI interactive display system.

DBSI has put a tremendous amount of effort into their ideation center for financial institutions. To give banking and credit union customers, for example, the ability to experience a wide range of the latest FI products and services to improve their businesses. FI customers, by appointment only, can visit the ideation center to personally experience the advanced products and services showcased in order to improve their business efficiency, the customer experience, and differentiate themselves from the pack. The DBSI center is a special showcase centerpiece for the FI market, unlike anything I’ve seen. 

We’re extremely honored to participate in this center with our HumanKiosk solution – the fusion of interactive digital signage and remote customer service agents available for live, face-to-face engagement. Today, it’s all about getting personal with customers and we’re very happy to be part of it all.

About the HumanKiosk Solution: Powered by MediaCast Video Presence, the HumanKiosk revolutionizes marketing and customer service in point-of-sale and point-of-service environments. With the HumanKiosk businesses can humanize their brand interaction, improve the customer experience, and deliver messages with absolute control and precision.  Watch our video here.

About DBSI:“For over fourteen years, DBSI Incorporated, headquartered in Chandler, Arizona has created profitable, problem solving, experience enhancing with lower cost-to-create and operate retail bank and credit union branches.” 

About Face to Face live, Inc.: “Here at Face to Face Live, Inc.™, we're developing a reputation for having the most trusted, affordable, and dependable unified communication solutions on the planet.”

Today is a big day for MediaTile, our customers and our partners.  But it’s an even bigger day for the digital signage industry as a whole.  This morning, we officially launched our HumanKiosk Solution, powered by the revolutionary MediaCast Video Presence system.  With this solution, we are fulfilling consumers’ demand for personal service and contextually relevant and accurate answers exactly when and where they want it: at the point of sale or point of service.  Just as importantly, the solution allows businesses and organizations to provide this service easily and economically. With our innovative solution, marketers are able to humanize brand interactivity, improve the customer experience, and deliver their messages with absolute control and precision.

Marketing and communications is undergoing a fundamental shift across all industries;  it is the transformation of B2C communications into B2Me engagement.    This transformation does not surface merely where messaging is specifically tailored to individuals, but also where engagement and dialog is triggered by a customer – and where he or she is then rewarded with courteous and knowledgeable service; even in their native languages.

It is this B2Me paradigm shift to which we are responding with the launch of the HumanKiosk Solution and MediaCast Video Presence.  A growing number of us in the digital signage industry believe that the fusion of interactive digital signage, with live, on-screen customer service attendants, will significantly expand the addressable market for digital signage.  This is what makes the HumanKiosk truly exciting.  For background, here is the story that appeared in Digital Signage Today regarding our announcement and the B2Me transformation; you can also watch a short video introduction on YouTube.

This is a very important milestone for MediaTile, and according to the article above, may well also be for the industry.  I believe today’s launch is as significant as our announcement made back in 2004, when we unveiled the industry’s-first “cellular digital signage” turnkey solution.  It is simple to deploy and easy to use.  This created a leadership position for MediaTile in the world of Digital Signage, SaaS-based CMS systems, and the use of cellular-based networking.  At first we made it simple, now we’ve made it personal.  Today, we offer another innovative and revolutionary breakthrough in marketing and communications, again extending our industry leadership.  It’s time for Digital Signage to “Get Personal”.

Together, we can make a difference  –  The recent disaster in Japan has affected millions of lives.  Many are facing a day-to-day struggle.   Together, as members of the digital signage industry we can make a difference.   Collectively, we can use our technologies and our digital signage networks to promote Red Cross Relief Efforts and reach an estimated 155 million viewers  each month. 

Take action today -   We have the power to dramatically improve the promotion of Red Cross Relief Efforts.   By adding Red Cross Relief PSAs (Public Service Announcements) directly into our daily playlist and program schedules,  we can influence millions of viewers to take action.   If you own or operate a digital signage network, whether a promotional network or an internal communications network, you can help make a difference.  Please visit www.dooh4relief.com , download the pre-approved Red Cross PSAs, and add them to your network today.

We were both honored and excited to be invited to participate in the Verizon Wireless and Alcatel-Lucent booths at CES 2011 recently to demonstrate the true power of 4G LTE, both from a technology and business perspective.    And (I've said before, and will continue to say),  "4G is like having 5 T1 lines without any of the on-site infrastructure."

But what's truly impressive about 4G, with its massive and persistent bandwidth, is its ability to enable new types of revolutionary business practices, services and methodologies.   Nowhere was this more evident than in our HumanKiosk with MediaCast Video Presence Demonstrations at CES.   Even MarketStar, “the leader in field, voice and digital sales and marketing” agrees  -- read the press release about the breakthrough in “cloud-based” customer service here, and watch the short video of Nate, of MarketStar, giving a demo on the show flow:

As 4G is fast becoming commercially available nationwide from a number of carriers, expect more product and service breakthroughs  to emerge.    From my perspective, 4G is a true “disruptive technology,”  the result of which will touch our daily lives and routines in ways we can’t even imagine yet.   What is a “disruptive technology?”  I’ll cover that in my next post.

After only one day at CES demonstrating our MediaCast Video Presence platform on multiple HumanKiosk solutions, we’ve been told repeatedly that it’s truly impressive.  But what makes the solution so compelling is having the remote MarketStar on-call video attendants available to answer real questions, and in a number of different languages.  And all through the magic of 4G networks from Alcatel-Lucent, Sprint and Verizon Wireless.

The HumanKiosk Video Concierge solution has interactive content at the bottom of the screen, running looped video promotions highlighting some of the shows here in Vegas, including “Jersey Boys”, “Peepshow” and “Phantom.”  There’s also a version that highlights products, and a video jukebox, but I’ll save those for later, and continue with the Video Concierge.

If you’re interested in one of these shows, you can push one of the six call buttons that represent the different language options – English, French, German, Spanish, Chinese, and Japanese which are represented as flags.  Pressing the “Japanese” flag, for example puts into a direct, 2-way face-to-face conversation with an on-call attendant who speaks Japanese and who can provide you with information about the show, show times, and even a discount code. All right on the digital signage. 

It’s no wonder by brands, agencies, and even our good friends at MarketStar are interested in this next generation of interactive digital signage.  They can make local-language and subject-matter experts directly available to their customers, and get the added value of real “face time” without the need to put brand advocates who speak all these languages in every location.  This is a great example of business value both in terms of increasing brand coverage while slashing costs.

And thanks to 4G networks from ALU, Sprint and Verizon Wireless all that’s needed at each location to support this solution is a power outlet. Just a power outlet. Pretty amazing. 

4G Abounds!   From the Verizon Wireless booth #35216, in the heart of the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, MediaTile has two advanced prototypes showcasing the power and simplicity of 4G LTE networks on a next-generation interactive digital signage solution.
More than just demo-ware, there are two MediaTile HumanKiosk solution concepts in the booth that are powered by the latest version of MediaCast Video Presence.    Through the MediaCast system, we are showcasing a 4G LTE-enabled interactive digital sign that goes one step farther by providing a live, 2-way video session to remote video attendants located in Utah. 

Thanks to our teammate MarketStar, live, on-demand video attendants (remotely located in Ogden Utah) are providing the face-to-face interaction and experience to Verizon booth visitors and answering questions about Vegas shows and the latest products from Verizon.  Visitors have the luxury to select their language of choice when requesting a video-attendant, including English, French, German, Spanish and Chinese. 

With 4G LTE and MediaCast Video Presence, MediaTile and Verizon Wireless are providing a true breakthrough for brand-to-consumer communications in retail, hospitality, heathcare and other venues where product or service experts can assist visitors remotely, and without the need for any network gear or IT infrastructure – the all-in-one solution simply needs a power outlet! 

4G LTE is like having 5 T-1 lines without any of the network gear, IT Infrastructure, or supportive maintenance.  

This week at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, MediaTile will again be making industry-breakthrough announcements and showcasing advanced proof-of-concepts around 4G networks and interactive digital signage.   This year’s CES focus centers around our next generation MediaCast Video Presence platform – the cloud-based CMS system that powers the HumanKiosk solution.

This year, we’ve teamed up with industry leaders and have a prominent showing in a number of high-visibility venues for our digital signage.  These include:

- Three MediaCast concepts demonstrations in the Alcatel-Lucent Booth # 35469 that showcase transformative retail solutions including the HumanKiosk Virtual Concierge, Game Table, and a JukeBox Hotspot.  I’ll blog more about this tomorrow, but here is an advanced look.

- Two MediaCast Video Presence concept demonstrations in the Verizon Wireless Booth # 35216, that highlight using remote Video-Attendants on an in-store HumanKiosk and a hospitality-based Video Concierge.  Check out the Verizon Wireless press release.

- MarketStar (a division of Omnicom) has teamed up with us to provide remote Video-Attendants, based in Ogden Utah, to answer questions directly from the floor from the Alcatel-Lucent, and Verizon-Wireless demonstrations. They also have a HumanKiosk and MediaCast Video Presence in their Hospitality Suite.

- AT&T is demonstrating a HumanKiosk solution, powered by MediaCast Video Presence, at their Developer Conference which is running concurrently at the Palms during CES.
 

So no doubt the general economic condition has had an impact on our industry with the UK being no exception - but the quality of customers and vendors has improved as a result of this shake out – not only can they afford to pay the Traffic Congestion Charge but they are also ready and willing to buy.

There is increasing recognition in the DOOH industry of the importance of relevant content and ‘making every screen count’ – in other words ensuring that the content on each and every screen on the network is relevant to its specific audience at all times.  This of course is not a straightforward task - technically, creatively, or even logistically in the case of large disparate networks.  Add to that the drive towards experiential and contextual-based content and you have a complicated cocktail of requirements on your hands.

In response to this requirement, solution providers are taking varied approaches and bringing different backgrounds and skill sets to the client table in order to design and deliver high value-add digital signage content solutions.

One rather interesting approach is that being taken by Muzak.  The other day I met up with Jon Luther, Director of the Visual Solutions Division of Muzak, and wanted to share his approach.  Muzak has a long rich 75-year history and is the leader in in-store and on-hold custom music solutions. Over recent years, Muzak has been expanding its approach to deliver a much broader solution.  Playing on the senses of sight and smell, as well as hearing, Muzak now provides a broader sensory and experiential branding solution to its business clients.  By combining music, messaging, custom scent, and visual imagery through digital signage, Muzak has created a compelling and contemporary integrated suite of sensory branding and entertainment products and services.

As network operators and digital signage customers increasingly demand that their DOOH networks deliver a contextual based experience that is relevant to their environment, I expect we will see more examples of innovative approaches like Muzak’s.  This really is an exciting time to be at the forefront of digital signage.

Keepin’ it Simple

The Importance of Being ‘Metricable’: Monthly viewership of digital video displays: estimated to be 155 million adults in US.
 
No more rough estimates, no more compiled data from disparate networks, no more industry hyperbole.  Last month Arbitron published an independent research report that for the first time took a scientific, measurable approach to assessing actual viewership of DOOH networks. My thanks go to Diane Williams of Arbitron, who has completed and published a research report that states more than two thirds of the US population over the age of 18 took note of a digital sign in the past month.  According to her report, this means close to 155 Million US adults a month are taking notice of this medium.  

This report certainly received good press and social media coverage when it was published but it struck me that this report’s importance has been under-estimated relative to the validation of the digital signage industry, the power of targeted relevant video as a communications medium, and the importance of being ‘metricable’.

Prior to its release, the only “industry” figures being widely used to size our industry were derived from an aggregation of network operator deployments, based upon estimates of the both the number of deployments and the traffic at those locations.   These are not defensible metrics by today’s standards.

The Arbitron report is a truly significant event: to be able to have an independent audit of the estimated viewing population for digital networks – and of course the number of 155m is very high. This goes a long way to giving our industry the credibility it deserves, and continues to build the trust of buyers. Hats off to Arbitron and Diane’s research for inverting the methodology for the model and driving it from a viewer perspective rather than a general network estimation based on traffic flows.   Defensible metrics are important for the industry - are there others out there?



Keepin' it Simple

• The audiences are not captive;
• The content must always be relevant and localized;
• The business objective for the digital signage network will be tailored to each location and type of network;
• Programming must be synchronized with traffic flows and demographics of each location;
• Attention spans are short and sensory competition is high.

• LillyTV
• Santa Cruz TV
• Builder Television