Digital signage is a tool that serves many purposes and can mitigate multiple business challenges at once. At face value, the expenditures on digital signage seem lofty. Then why do many businesses still invest in it?

The answer lies in the ROIs that this technology promises.

Digital signs offer high returns on investments. It saves a lot of time value and offers incredible brand visibility, and if you calculate the long-term costs, It also cost-effective.

In this blog, I will address all the FAQs in your mind and why your digital signage game plan should always include assessing the ROIs.

What are the performance indicators? How to figure out the number of people who saw my ads? The questions might range from one to many.

So, let’s dive in!

Why is it essential to measure digital signage ROI?

Measuring Digital Signage Return On Investment (ROI) is critical for businesses to assess their marketing investment’s effectiveness and efficiently allocate available resources.

Accurate assessment can help identify spot-on strategies, adjust campaigns to improve performance, and ultimately achieve marketing goals.

Furthermore, this ROI can provide insights into customer behavior, preferences, and trends, helping businesses better understand and engage with their target audience.

Some common metrics used to measure digital signage ROI

While measuring the Return Of Investment (ROI) of digital signage, several metrics might come up for consideration to accurately evaluate the effectiveness and success of a digital signage campaign. Some of these are as follows:

1. Sales: The impact of digital signage on sales is crucial for evaluating the campaign’s success. This can be done by analyzing the increase in sales during the digital signage campaign or shortly after the campaign has ended. For instance, a car dealership might use digital signage to promote a new car model and measure its sale during the campaign.

2. Foot traffic: For brick-and-mortar businesses, foot traffic is an important performance metric, as digital signage is often used to attract store customers through incredible visual merchandising at the storefront. Increasing traffic may boost sales, brand awareness, or loyalty program memberships.

3. Customer engagement: Measuring the engagement level with digital signage can be tricky unless you use interactive elements like QR codes, touchscreen functionalities, cameras & sensors. Some parameters to gauge customer engagement include average dwell time, click-through rates, social media interactions, and other engagement metrics.

4. Audience Reach: Another metric that can be a little dicey to judge but still holds significant value in assessing the ROIs of digital signage is the audience reach, meaning how quickly & widespread the intended communication reaches. For example, a concert venue might use digital posters & billboards to promote upcoming shows. It can then see if there is a quick jump in the sale of tickets.

5. Social media engagement: For businesses that integrate digital signage with social media platforms, social media engagement can indicate how to plan future campaigns. For example, a restaurant might use digital signage to promote a social media contest and measure the number of social media interactions generated by the same. This metric can help businesses evaluate data-driven decisions about on-the-web advertising efforts.

6. Brand Awareness: The impact of digital signage on brand awareness can be measured by analyzing the increase in brand recall or recognition among customers. For instance, a beverage company might use digital signage to promote a new drink and discover how many customers can recognize the brand via interactions & face-to-face survey.

Real-world Instances

Let us take a look at three real-world examples of businesses that have been successful in measuring and optimizing their digital signage ROI:

Retail stores

A retail chain implements digital signage in their stores to promote products, display promotions, and enhance the overall shopping experience. They track the impact of digital signage on sales by analyzing POS (Point of Sale) data before and after the installation of digital signage. By comparing sales metrics in stores with and without digital signage, they can quantify the increase in sales attributed to the digital displays. Additionally, they gather customer feedback through surveys or social media to gauge the effectiveness of the signage in influencing purchase decisions and improving brand perception.

Quick-service restaurants (QSR)

A fast-food chain integrates digital menu boards in their restaurants to streamline ordering processes, highlight promotions, and upsell items. To measure ROI, they track key performance indicators (KPIs) such as order accuracy, order speed, and average transaction value. They compare these metrics before and after implementing digital signage to assess improvements. Additionally, they leverage technologies like NFC (Near Field Communication) or QR codes on the digital displays to track engagement and redemption rates of promotional offers. By optimizing menu layouts and content based on customer preferences and sales data, they continuously enhance the effectiveness of their digital signage strategy.

Corporate offices

A multinational corporation implements digital signage in their office lobbies, common areas, and meeting rooms to communicate internal announcements, company news, and upcoming events to employees. To measure ROI, they conduct employee surveys to gather feedback on the effectiveness of digital signage in keeping them informed and engaged. They also track metrics such as employee attendance at company events, participation in corporate initiatives, and overall employee satisfaction.

By analyzing these metrics alongside the cost of implementing and maintaining digital signage systems, they can calculate the ROI and identify areas for optimization. For example, they may personalize content based on departmental preferences or integrate interactive features to increase employee engagement further.

In each of these examples, you’ll notice that different businesses employ various strategies such as data analysis, customer feedback, and technology integration to measure and optimize the ROI of their digital signage investments. With a continuously evaluating performance and data-driven adjustments, they ensure that their digital signage initiatives deliver tangible benefits and contribute to their overall business objectives.

Tips to maximize ROI of digital signage

To maximize your digital signage ROIs, improving and optimizing its performance is necessary. Several changes can impact a signage system’s ROI. Here are five tips to go about the same!

• Frequent content refreshes can keep the digital signage experience relevant and engaging, which is vital for capturing and maintaining viewers’ attention. To ensure this, businesses can leverage techniques such as creating 2-3 versions of the same content, making minor tweaks in the design and copy text, updating with new information, and including interactive elements.

• Changing the placement of digital signage can also significantly impact its effectiveness. For instance, businesses can experiment with the location and orientation of digital signage to ensure maximum visibility and engagement.

• You can also leverage user-generated content and social media by encouraging the audience to share their experience on social media and include them as a part of active campaigns in the form of testimonials, hashtag participation & soft branding.

• Optimizing the hardware and software of digital signage can also help maximize ROI. Brands can ensure their hardware is up-to-date and properly configured or leverage advanced software features such as data analytics, personalization, and interactivity to provide a more engaging viewer experience.

You reap what you sow

To effectively measure signage ROI, businesses must first define their marketing goals and establish clear performance indicators aligning with their signage interface incorporation objectives.

You must then leverage a combination of tools to collect reliable insights on digital signage performance.

With this data, businesses can conduct regular analysis and adjust their strategies to optimize performance, ensuring maximum ROI. Finally, companies should continuously stay up-to-date on emerging trends and technologies in the marketing industry to identify new opportunities to benefit from all technological investments.

Looking for a high ROI digital signage solution for business? Pickcel can be the right fit for you. Start a free trial today or schedule a call with us to discuss opportunities.