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The Top 3 Messages from Strategy Institute’s summit
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1. Core messaging exploits digital signage benefits.
2. Plan before doing.
3. Find the right people for the project. |
LAS VEGAS – The Strategy Institute’s second digital signage conference of 2008, the digital signage Technology Summit, was all about the end user. In the days leading up to InfoComm, the Summit aimed to educate potential users about the benefits of digital signage, the options available and the state of the industry.
A group of around 100 attendees consisted of representatives from universities, convention centers, hospitals, PR agencies, systems integrators and government agencies looking to install or explore digital signage technology.
Presentations came from end users, integrators and vendors, and three messages rang very clear. First, digital signage deployers need to take advantage of and exploit the abilities of digital signage. There was a noticeable presence of representatives from colleges and universities looking to deploy digital signage to communicate with students and provide emergency notification, taking advantage of the ability to immediately change content.
Accordingly, one of the conference sessions featured representatives from Montclair State University (N.J.) and Penn State University, both of which have implemented successful emergency alert systems that include digital signage.
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Lamarca answering questions from Lyle Bunn on the second day of the conference. |
Lyle Bunn, strategy architect with BUNN Co. and moderator of the conference, said that the second focus was “planning before doing.”
“This also includes planning for the integration of content and technology for each environment,” Bunn said.
During a presentation on digital signage at the Fira de Barcelona Convention Centre, that point was reiterated.
“When I look at a screen, I think, ‘What is the value of the content here?” said Ingancio Lamarca, CEO of Focus on Emotions. “We always have to be aware of the value of the content we’re showing.”
Third, the conference focused on helping deployers involve the right people and partners in a digital signage project. Testimonials and case studies from the Virginia Railway Express, Proctor & Gamble, the Mayo Clinic and the Naval Sea Systems Command described the coordination of content providers and integrators for each project. Mike White, president of Multi-Media Solutions, also presented his Top 25 “Gotchas” — tales of mistakes made in his long personal experience of deploying signage networks.