This is a terrific way to get people engaged with a brand. And Kraft and MonsterMedia took the essence of the product – the elbow macaroni – and created a fun and engaging interactive. Very well done.

But here’s the problem. This doesn’t sell Mac and Cheese. That’s the point. Right?

These interactive screens were placed around the country (Chicago, New York, LA) in high traffic areas. And it looks like it got a lot of audience engagement. But did it sell any Mac and Cheese? Here are three reasons why this is a challenge:

Where Can I Buy? One of the most important tenets with digital engagement is the viewer’s ability to act upon what she has just experienced. The takeaway here is not the smile, it’s the brand impression. She needs to move that impression forward on the path to purchase. But if she can’t, the impression is lost as soon as the next bright, shiny object enters her field of view.

There Is No Takeaway. Unlike the Smile Happy Ice Cream campaign that Unilever created, this doesn’t give the viewer any takeaway, like the product, or a coupon, or a QR code for their mobile device to really open the gates of communication. With an immediate return, the customer connects the impression with the result – the product or access to it. This creates an indelible mark on the viewer’s mindset, and provides marketers with real data on the success of the device.

Using a Shotgun When You Need a Sniper Rifle. These were placed in high traffic areas to get viewer engagement, but I’m willing to bet that a large percentage of the people who interacted with it aren’t really Mac and Cheese fans. Sure, you’ll get a massive amount of people who will try it, making the numbers sexy, but if those viewers are not customers of Kraft or Mac and Cheese, it’s an inefficient execution. The value of each impression is much lower because of the high traffic strategy.

In the end, someone has to pay for this (yes, I know it’s the customer, but bear with me). As these devices become more prevalent in our culture, so too will the need to justify the expense on the marketing budget to create and deploy them. This is advertising, and advertising is made to get people to buy. If they don’t buy, these devices are no more than costly wet noodles.

Ba dum dum.

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People who have been around the sector for a very long time have watched as it has grown and evolved. Much has changed in the last five to 10 years. Oddly, though, what has changed very little is the presentation of content.

If you walked into an elevator or convenience store 10 years ago, you would have seen news headlines, traffic and weather reports, sprinkled around with some trivia and other soft content. If you walked into those same scenarios now, you would almost certainly see the same blend of content. Same story, as well, in thousands of other places where DOOH screens are now operating. The content formula has changed little, in spite of loud, open questions as to whether that sort of content makes any sense given the context and audience dynamics.

We have our own opinions about the merits of news tickers and other commoditized content that, for many networks, is there for not much more strategic reason than to fill up the time between the ads and venue messages.

A couple of theories come to mind. We think many new networks run this content mix because that’s what they’ve seen elsewhere, so it MUST be what’s done. We also think that situation is perpetuated by software operators and integrators who can’t offer many alternatives, and don’t want to introduce new costs that could stop a project in its tracks.

Relevant, engaging, compelling content that actually gets and keeps people watching is a big part of the success equation for retail and digital out of home networks, and more work needs to be done to get a clear idea of what’s appropriate.

The first step is understanding what resellers and end-users are using or asking for, and why.

So The Preset Group has developed an online survey that methodically sorts out where respondents sit in the decision and delivery chain, and asks a series of questions. The survey is quick and easy, and the answers entirely confidential, It won’t take more than a few minutes of time and we think if we get enough responses, we will get a useful snapshot of the current state of content needs.

To thank users for their time, those respondents who exercise the option to leave the basic name and email contact will be sent a summary of the findings, at no charge. If you really want to see that report when it comes out, it will be easier to be a participant and just get it than it will be trying to figure out who does have a copy and will send it along. So borrowing a famous brand line, Just do it (the poll),

To get started, click here.

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There is really only one goal for digital signage: enabling initiative, getting the customer doing something with what he or she has just seen. Regardless of the engagement, a positive outcome is the only desired effect.
Here are three very general areas where digital signage can play a positive role in a customer’s experience within an environment, and the potential pitfall each encounters with poor planning and execution.

Planning. Execution. Alligators. We've all played the game.

Environmental Navigation
Navigation is usually the first impression a customer gets of a store. “Where can I find…?” Good navigation will make the shopper’s experience positive and can reduce time and stress. Digital signage can play a key role in making sure that two goals are met: Showing the customer exactly where to go and showing the easiest way to get there. But you don’t get a second chance at a first impression. Poor navigation techniques, or making the customer work too hard to locate the destination, will disengage a customer before he is even at the destination.

Do we now need GPS in a store?

Education
Learning about a product or service through digital interactivity allows the customer to learn at her pace, not the pace of the employee or the store. The ability for digital engagement (most likely in a kiosk) to be flexible for the customer’s depth of knowledge and desire for education will generate interest, respect and loyalty from the customer. In contrast, poor education or programming that makes too many assumptions about the customer’s knowledge and has ignored important messaging will sour the experience.

'nuff said.

Perception of Time
The ability to cut down on a customer’s perception of time is taken very seriously by environments where waiting (hospitals) or poor attitudes (returning an item that gave you a bad experience) are part of the customer’s experience in the space. Engaging content can change behavior and ultimately reduce a customer’s perception of time. However, poor execution on basic guidelines, such as the running time on a looping program being shorter than the average time a customer waits, can be a big disappointment. Customers don’t want to see the same thing twice. In addition, creating programming that does not effectively draw attention away from the customer’s purpose in the environment can backfire by making the customer even more aware of the time.

Have I shown you my big...long...program?

The detail that goes into each category is dependent upon the venue’s strategy with digital signage. Great care should be taken each time. Poor execution with one screen can wreck a customer’s experience in the entire environment. A bad digital signage experience can drive customers away just as fast as bad customer service.
To avoid that end, constant research and understanding will keep your digital experiences fresh and appealing for the customer and the venue.

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Awaiting entrance into the trade show. I'm third row, second from left.

Another Digital Signage Exposition has come and gone. Last year I spent all my time in the sessions. This year, I spent all my time on the floor. Instead of giving you the top five things I learned (as was my habit with shows I attended last year), I will just drop some thoughts on you. Take ‘em or leave ‘em. (Or hold ‘em or fold ‘em, as Mr. Rogers would have you do if you’re the gambling sort.)

The industry is selling to the wrong audience and doesn’t know it.
The real audience for the exhibitors was upstairs in the conference sessions. The conflicting schedules kept many of them from diving deep into the trade show floor. And the buyers that walked the floor had more questions than answers after leaving. I know. I ran into two of them.

The sessions were well attended…
I did the opening keynote session and a final session of the conference, and both were well attended. I heard most sessions had good crowds.

…but there are too many of them.
Day One had three full day seminars, a half day seminar, and a half-day tour of Vegas. Days two and three had 43 sessions. This is too much, and I’m certain there is a lot of redundancy. I hope that over the next 11 months, the DSE will find a more efficient way to make sure everyone has the opportunity to learn, network, and explore without having to decide between one session or another.

The DSF was on people’s minds…
One of the interim DSF board members asked me if I thought it was the right thing to do.  It is, if you take this opportunity to do what the industry needs. If not, the DSF and the DSA will battle themselves into apathy while the NRF, InfoComm, and other shows continue to lure away the exhibitors and experts.

…but not on all minds.
One executive told me, “The companies in there [the trade show] couldn’t care less about these boards. They care about landing clients and buyers.” Ouch. But I see his point.

#dse2010 was pretty cool…
Many screens throughout the show floor displayed the Twitter hashtag tweets, and it’s really great to see so many engaged with a community tool to spread the cheer of the show. There were over 1,200 tweets.

…but not very cool
So we all tweeted. Big deal. The DSE promoted that session attendees could use Twitter to ask questions of the session moderators and panelists before the conference. I was in two sessions and never got a question. Did anyone else? I doubt it. Was anyone not at DSE really “following” what was going on? Twitter is here and will be a great tool for communication, but we’re trying too hard to jam this into the ecosystem without allowing it to grow organically.

Good Rumor.
There is a deal for PRN on paper in the range of 80 million. That’s a song compared to what Thompson paid for them, but I believe PRN is doing a lot of good stuff. They are refining their business model, breaking apart their bundled services, and partnering with key companies to offer better solutions. What I mean is: They ain’t Walmart’s bitch anymore. I hope that continues. There are good people there working hard.

Bad Rumor.
One service provider told me his company learned they lost a bid for a client to their competitor. They heard it from their competitor. Bad form, folks.

Everyone is busy…
Everyone I asked said they were busy. And many that I spoke with said they had the resources (read: money and people) to make traction in 2010. Let’s hope that’s true.

…so don’t waste their time.
One guy wrote to me and asked me to meet with him. He wanted to talk to me about some “new retail initiatives” his company was working on. I was excited to hear this news and made it a point to connect with this gentleman. After shaking hands, he proceeded to tell me how drunk he got the night before. Then he walked away from me. That was the meeting. Oh, and he did this in front of his CEO. Classy.

Shoes, Socks, and Business Cards
Adrian Cotterill, of DailyDOOH.com fame, has a small list of suggestions for your next show visit.

Want to read more? Head over to these blogs and get more first-hand accounts of the show. Lots to read, but all of it worthwhile.

Dave Haynes, Sixteen-Nine
DSE Impressions…So Far
More DSE Impressions

Mike Cearley, 11th Screen
2nd (and last) Official Session of the Day #40
Cutting Through The Clutter at DSE 2010
Top 5 Moments of DSE 2010

Adrian Cotterill, DailyDOOH.com
#dse2010 – The Gossip

David Weinfeld, DS Insights
Thoughts from Digital Signage Expo 2010

Ken Goldberg, Broad Thinking. Narrowcasting
Themes from DSE

Finally
The UMA Motorcoach Expo was taking place at the same time as our little shin-dig at the Convention Center. I snuck into their show and checked out a few of their rides. There was a huge banner that said, “We’ll see you next year in Tampa!” I don’t know about you folks, but I’m liberating one of those moving condos and going on a road trip to Tampa next year. Right now you should be hearing the theme song to Vacation.

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I had not visited my bank in a few months when I entered and was greeted with two new features. One was plexiglass spanning the teller windows from the counter to the ceiling.

The second was the brand-spanking new monitors that book-end the teller counter.

The screen on the left, showing you the left side of...you.

The screen on the right. Showing you...well...you get it.

The screens are showing a constant feed of the security cameras. It very much has that feeling like a market that hangs a screen right over the front door, showing you walking in, with a little sign that says, “We are watching you! We prosecute shoplifters and hooligans to the fullest extent of the law! Think thumbscrews!”

As if the plexiglass and half-dozen cameras behind the teller counter don’t convey the “don’t even think about it” message enough, you get to stand in line and watch yourself, or others, wait.

Just to the left of the teller window is a table with the wares of a local business. The table is provided to the bank patronage as an opportunity to promote the small businesses around the area. Sometimes you’ll see a diorama of pictures, like you find at someone’s high school graduation party, promoting the local insurance agents who have 157 years of experience between the husband and wife team and their dog. (I’m not sure if the dog is an agent, but they have the dog wrapped in one of those little doggie neckties.) Sometimes it’s some goofy little wood contraption with sawdust sprinkled around it, promoting the local handyman (who apparently doesn’t own a broom). During my recent visit, the table was covered with fruit baskets.

Next to the table is this sign:

It says, in brilliant non-trained handwriting: FREE BUSINESS ADVERTISING. Ask How Your Business Can Be Next!!!

Call me crazy, but I would think there would be a better application of the screens that are aimed right at you while you’re in line, totally captive, and waiting for a teller, instead of proving the obvious, which is that the cameras are so good that I can see the blot of food stuck in my teeth.

And if you ever ask where fruit baskets come from. Now you know: South Minneapolis.

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