May
12
It’s been far too long since i’ve posted. Amazing how life/work catches up to you. My apologies for not getting back on my rants further. My creative outlet time seems to be disappearing rapidly these days.
Digital Signage is, to many, about a land grab. The more land you own, the more likely it is that, once you get enough volume (locations), they will, in theory, yield dollars falling from the sky because advertisers believe that your digital “land” is more valuable than someone else’s. After all, there’s a projected 2.7 million identified “sites” for digital signage with an average of 4 screens per location….That’s over 10 million screens in public/place based areas by 2011/2012 ish. And you should own something, right? Because there might be gold or oil under them there land.
With the potential reach that these screens can serve up to the ad world, that’s an unadjusted “reach” capable of touching almost the entire US population by 2011 inside 2 weeks with a campaign that costs less (at today’s prices) than advertising 5 times during “Survivor” during a month. And guess what, they (your target audience) will see it. They will try to ignore and disassociate themselves with it, yes, but they WILL see your message if you want them to. We’re potentially looking at the dawn of the next “mass” medium, if the inventory can be sold under one banner. I know it sounds silly, but in advertising terms you will, at minimum, see 20 screens per week by 2011 based on my oh so unscientific calculations, no matter what city you live in, and at least one advertiser message will get through to you prompting you to buy something you hadn’t planned on. Sound familiar? Sound like the Internet land grab? Sound like some of the mobile plays that are happening?
Back to the title of the post: Is your Network a magazine?
While I’m not dismissing the importance of “the real estate” in Digital Signage, I’m running into a lot of people who can’t see past the land into the soil to see the real oil. Once you have the real estate, what do you do with it? How do you convert crude into gas?
I’ve run into some networks like the NEW Neo Advertising or Blast Media’s bar network or eMeba’s Vet clinic network that really get it. They know that you also need a drill on that land to get to the oil. I’ve run into others that think that the purchase of the drill and the labor to get at it will be funded by someone else just because they own the land….aka Advertising
I always end up speaking to this issue as a comparative to the magazine industry, and I hope this makes sense:
When someone decides to start a magazine, they usually don’t start by identifying the paper they are going to print on first (the land). Most people who start magazines, start them because they believe in a communication concept (ideology), want to talk to a group (a demo) and they feel there is a void/gap in the marketplace underservicing that void in communicating ideas (a need).
If that is the case, then they don’t start by saying “what advertising will we get to support this”. They start with “what content is going to really resonate with my consumers to make them want to be a part of my magazine and read/pay attention to what I have to say on a monthly basis”. They are wholly focused on the idea that what they say in the pages of their rag matters deeply to the people that take the time to participate in their medium. If they are able to do this on a recurring basis, their subscriber base grows, they pay attention and spend more time with the magazine, and tell their friends, who start to read the rag, etc, etc, etc.
Do you own a network? Is it focused on a theme, area, content, demo? if not, why not?
We’ve all heard of the idea of relevancy with regards to digital signage and, at most conferences I’ve been at, most people who own a network glaze over very very quickly when they hear the term. It’s not an area they feel relates to them and it’s not an area where (most) have expertise so they do their best to ignore it. It just gets in the way of selling network venue installs and hopefully ads, right?
I personally think that’s the wrong way to look at the opportunities out there.
To get back to the magazine concept. If you build “IT” they will come. And by “IT” I mean a relevant “channel”, not a Digital Signage network. Ignore the ad biz for a second. Ignore the business model for 2 secs. If you build a medium/channel/content that people can relate to and digest and that’s relevant, timely and close to home, people WILL watch it. I can single out channels like DrinksTV on this one. There are reports of 75% increases in certain product sales…not because they advertise….because they connect the drinks with recipes, with a particular function, with a person, with a lifestyle, with CHOICE. Weird, huh? People actually do like to think for themselves…even if they are subtly influenced. 75% increase…very little ad content influencing that. The more of THEM that you connect with your “magazine”, the more they will return.
When you reach a certain critical mass of people “returning”, guess what? Advertisers start taking note. Not only because of who they can talk to through your rag but also because of the positive association with the relevant content that people find in your “magazine”.
Does your network convey this type of messaging to your viewers? How “relevant” is the content that you provide to your audience? Does the content give them a reason to look at the screens on your network on a regular basis?
Is your Network a Magazine or just another vehicle for advertising?
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[...] vs. advertising. I touched on this a couple of days ago with my rant on the magazine theory: Is Your Digital Signage Network a Good Magazine. Dr Harris believes that 60% content and 40% advertising is the required [...]
[...] to partake of to watch, they simply won’t watch/participate in your Network. I’ve gone off about treating your Network like a magazine and focusing content in that manner. The more [...]
[...] As self evident as this may seem, most people miss it when developing their businesses. And when Tim says “no one” he means both none of the advertisers, agencies OR consumers will see value in the advertising if you don’t have something relevant and engaging on the screens. I’ll tell you this, I don’t find News, Weather or Sports tickers engaging or relevant at all…so will your audience? I find folks like KidCareTV do this well and develop custom programming that really fits the mold. If you want more info on this, I wrote a post a long time ago which explains more of my position on … [...]