Choosing a CMS for Your Digital Signage Strategy

Whether you are a marketing director, purchasing director or point of sale network manager, your digital signage project is built up in stages. First of all, you think about your long-term strategy:

• What equipment is needed to attract new customers to your store?
• How can you generate additional revenue or liquidate part of the stock?
• How can you find a balance between investment and ROI?
• Which software platform can monetise the digital signage?

Once these questions have been raised, you set up your project. Several players are involved: screen manufacturers, software suppliers, integrators, your content creation agencies, etc.

A collaborative effort for successful deployment

During project development for the installation of advertising screens for stores, the retailer is the first stakeholder. You are a decision-maker and your integrator offers you a deployment strategy with different types of screens, installation and maintenance formulas and a Content Management System (CMS).

The choice of CMS is critical for ensuring the effectiveness of your long term digital signage. Indeed, it must meet the objectives of the brand but also the needs of users.

Preliminary checks before choosing digital signage software

• Its operation and technology (on-premise, hybrid, SaaS, etc.)
• The good design of its interface
• The required training and user-friendliness
• Its current and future features
• The team that develops this solution and supports you

The specific features of the screens are naturally important (brightness, indoor and outdoor exposure, etc.). But keep in mind that they are only the tip of the iceberg.

How do you choose digital signage software?

Digital signage management software must meet several criteria for your strategy to achieve its objectives:

Ease of use

The interface must be intuitive and easy to use by all project stakeholders. The management software for the dynamic screen platform is a tool that is not generally used every day. Therefore, its use must be intuitive.
To this end, a CMS that is suitable for both an expert and a beginner is recommended.

Overall perspective on the screen network

Managing a network of dynamic screens requires a real-time view of the campaigns broadcast and soundness of the equipment. More than just offering content management, the software must provide data on displays, provide information on the state of the network and thus become a management tool.

Dynamism

Attention must be paid to the content broadcast system. Simple programmed playlist or smart algorithms? The software must make it possible to create stories, and adapt the scenarios to the target audiences (gender, age, weather, etc.).

Automation and Context Marketing

The SaaS platform must also be able to automatically distribute specific content related to its display context. Some context-driven software can offer to configure customisable broadcast criteria: weather forecast, emotions, movements, gender or age of the audience, etc.

Monetization

The point of sale is the first medium to be exploited. Monetisation can be a brand objective: Become your own agency to sell communication space to private labels, suppliers or other advertisers. You must ensure that the software provides sufficient data and that proof of execution is available to ensure that partners comply with their broadcast instructions.

Choice of software to maximise ROI

Whatever your project, it is essential to ensure that your tool will allow you to maximise your Return on Investment (ROI).

Once equipped, you will be committed to between 3 and 5 years with your software publisher.
What can you expect from your digital signage CMS?

• Short and long-term profitability
• Practical use that meets operational needs
• Deployment capacity: how large will your network be tomorrow?
• Adaptability for your communication strategy

And then, always staying one step ahead, make sure you choose software that is flexible, adaptable and regularly updated. Choosing a CMS also means choosing the team that builds it, develops it and supports you in getting started. 

All these factors ensure its compatibility with your future strategy and your future business tools. 

Cenareo offers you an intuitive, scalable SaaS solution perfectly adapted to the needs of communication professionals. The software has many features regularly updated by our team of 15 engineers working solely on improving and upgrading the solution. 
Our experts remain at your disposal to answer all your questions regarding the specific features of the Cenareo software and its operation.