5 common misconceptions about digital signage

#1 - This is going to be EASY!

Not to burst anyone's bubble but deploying digital signage can be quite challenging.

There are many variables to consider:

• What hardware/software should I use?
• What am I going to show on the screen(s)?
• Should I host the software or should I go with a hosted solution (SaaS)?
• How am I going to hook this all up together?
• Where should I locate the screen(s)?
• Does the location have internet access and power available?

Going at it alone can be a very costly proposition and often vendors will downplay this complexity.

As a good friend once told me... "If this was easy, chimps would do it!".

So before you hand out your hard earned money, seek some professional advice.

You will avoid costly mistakes.

#2 - We can do this for free

Let's see...  We'll grab some free software, throw it on that old Windows XP box sitting in the back room.  We'll hook it all up to the plasma TV from the board room and voila!  Instant digital signage.

Before you dust off that PC, consider this.  Time is money and free software will often lead to a lot of work.  Unless you know what you're doing, prepare to spend many hours going through documentation, help files, you'll be posting a lot on user forums just so you can get your installation working.

It's true that many free and open source solutions are backed by paid support and consulting services.  You will get the software for free but you should be prepared to pay for support, otherwise you'll be wasting a lot of time.

With so many affordable SaaS and self-hosted solutions on the market, it doesn't make much sense to try and "build your own".  If you don't have the the budget for professional software, stick with PowerPoint (or Google Docs).  You won't be able to schedule content or display live news but at least you'll have content on your screen and you won't need to spend too much to get there.

#3 - Content is free

On the internet, images and videos are but a few clicks away... As long as you're willing to pay.  Unless you are acquiring the content from a "free" source (under a creative-commons license for example), scraping content off the internet is akin to stealing.  Same goes for displaying RSS feeds or playing live TV in a public venue without consent.

Most digital signage software applications let you publish pictures, videos and real-time data with a few mouse-clicks.  It is the software user's responsibility to secure the rights of all content displayed on their screens.

Unless you're in the business of creating content, you will need to acquire it from outside sources.  It's best to shop around for royalty-free content providers that have images that fit your needs (see: Corbis Images, Getty Images...) and consider dealing with a content aggregator that has secured the rights for the content.    A good example would be Screenfeed or Blue Fox.

If your budget won't afford professional content, at least look for content that is distributed under the Creative Commons license.  Google and Yahoo will let you specify this criteria in image searches so you should use that switch when searching for content online.

#4 - Consulting? Training? Who needs that?

Perhaps you're a video production whiz.  Maybe you know your way around Flash.  Doesn't mean you know how to prepare content for distribution in a digital signage system.

Digital signage requires a special set of skills that cuts across many disciplines. It's not broadcast... It's not web publishing either.

Digital signage content must often be displayed for days or even months.  It's one thing to load content when someone hits your web page but it's an entirely different thing to have your content loop hundreds and thousands of times in a stable and reliable fashion.


A well designed digital signage platform will manage key memory parameters to ensure trouble-free playback.  However, the need for proper content preparation should not be ignored.

Knowing how to prepare your content can save you hours of troubleshooting and downtime.  These skills are as important as knowing how to configure your digital signage software to ensure a reliable and trouble-free operation.

Spending one or two hours with an expert at the beginning of your deployment will save you many hours of frustration regardless of the software platform that you use.  You will get up to speed faster and become productive much sooner.

#5 - I can't afford this!

After reading this, some of you may think of digital signage as this black hole that will swallow all of your cash.  This may sound like a funny description but if you don't plan ahead, you will end up paying for it.

It doesn't have to be.  Digital signage can be deployed in a viable and self-sustaining manner as long as you do a bit of planning and have a good understanding of the potential costs.

Remember that digital signage can generate its own revenue stream. If you are in retail, healthcare or in hospitality, consider co-op deals with your vendors and suppliers.  This is a great way to offset ongoing maintenance and production costs.

Here are some useful tips:

• Determine what you want to achieve with your screens
• Perform a thorough assessment of all in-house expertise and capabilities (technical and creative)
• Define your budget
• Target specific technologies that will support your vision (SaaS, Self-Hosted platform)
• Put out a RFP and evaluate multiple options

Before you get started, consider hiring a qualified digital signage professional who can help nail-down your requirements and translate them into a RFP that is clear and easy to follow.  This person can also help in evaluating the proposals you will receive from potential vendors.

A large portion of your budget will be spent in the planning and roll-out stages. This is when you acquire, install and begin using the technology.  Once this period has ended you will enter the production stage at which point you will face ongoing operating costs  These are: content acquisition and development, administration and support.

This scenario applies to pretty well any digital signage platform on the market.  If you purchase a self-hosted software platform you will encounter a "one-time" acquisition charge early on.  Choosing a SaaS solution will let you amortize this cost over many months or even years which is sometimes preferable.

So there you have it!

I hope you find this little check-list useful and I welcome your comments.

photo credit: Jeremy Brooks via photopin cc