Is Digital Signage an Industry? My Answer.

Two weeks ago I asked you fine readers to chime in. Those who believe we are part of something bigger hold a lead over those who believe we are an industry. It’s my turn to give an answer.

Is Digital Signage an industry? No.

Okay, there. I said it.

I’m sure you’ll find reasons to argue with me, whether you agree or not. But being the one who asked in the first place, it would be a cop-out to sit on the fence. So here we go.

I think we try hard to act like one, but we are a cog in the mighty wheel of cultural communication.

Insert cliché photo here. Aaaaand there we are!

I have a few reasons why I believe we are not an industry. By no means is this exhaustive, but to me, these are the core reasons we are (and should) consider ourselves part of something much bigger:

We are a Variation on a Theme.
There is very little architecture in digital signage that is truly endemic or original to digital signage. We use TV screens, software, computers, and wires to do essentially what TV screens, software, computers, and wires do, that is to provide _________ (fill in the blank with your own term here: information, education, advertising, entertainment, etc.) to a viewer/user. And we’re doing the same thing with these devices that several other channels were doing before us.

Media platforms, while having a distinct purpose with native widgets, are built on the general proposition of playing media in any given situation. I agree with Tim Pixley, that many of these platforms are variations on previous programming for applications like the internet. There is no argument that our sector of communication has provided new workflows of expertise and execution, but the core purpose was there a long time ago. In 2004, while working in baseball, the still store machine for the video board broke down. I patched PowerPoint into the system and no one knew the difference. PowerPoint is still used today in some cases. (Gasp! I know.)

The ROI Orgy.
We are in business for the exact same reason as all the other channels: To send a message that results in a return on the investment. Whether we start the conversation or we continue it on the path to purchase, we are trying to get that viewer to do something. Because of this, it benefits us to adapt to the best practices of viewer engagement across these other channels. Sometimes we try to write the rules instead of simply understanding the playbook. Without question, the best education I get on how to do this well comes from other sectors of communication.

Agencies Buy Audiences, Not Channels.
Ask any agency or brand executive, and they consider us only part of a multi-channel opportunity to distribute the message; agencies never buy just one channel anymore. They go where the eyeballs are: TV, computer, mobile devices, and Out-of-Home. No executive or buyer wants five different rate cards on her desk. She wants one sheet with all the options that she can select and deliver.

A typical day at the agency, going through the rate cards for digital signage networks.

In the eyes of media planners, the distinction between digital signage/OOH and other forms of communication lies in the measurement of those eyeballs. DPAA? Nielsen? Arbitron? Someday, a common metric equation will apply to all channels. At that point, can we truly consider ourselves distinct?

To this end, it benefits us to work toward a common goal, not away from it. The harder we make it for people to buy time on our networks, the easier it will be for them to ignore us.

Mobile: The Force that Binds Us Together
If possible, you use your mobile device to interact with other forms of technology. Every channel of communication (print, TV, computers, etc) encourages interaction with mobility via Quick Response (QR) codes and SMS capability. Mobile devices continue to grow into the ubiquitous remote control of our lives, giving us autonomy over our environment, and in particular, the electronic messaging systems around us. If we, like all channels, encourage mobile interaction, it binds us with the other channels in a seamless and effective engagement.

Use the Force to find my cell phone, I will.

As a caveat to this discussion, I often use the term “industry” to describe the overall area of my profession, but I am careful not to confuse the label with a trade.

There you go. Thoughts?

Next week we’ll find the Lost City of Atlantis and discuss whether or not digital signage tickers would have saved Pompeii. (I’m guessing only scroll versions, not crawl versions, would have helped.)