Connectedsign Digital Signage White Paper

Where To Find Live Content For Your Digital Signage Network
Connectedsign, LLC

Deployment is only the first step. When it comes to running a digital signage platform, network operators eventually discover there's more involved than the screens, media players, and servers. At the heart of a DOOH solution lies your content. It can make or break your network.

Even the best hardware can be made ineffective if the loops you stream across the screens fail to generate interest in your viewers. On the other hand, even outdated technology can deliver your message in a way that grabs your audience's attention, and triggers a response. The challenge is finding - or creating - content that viewers find interesting, and are willing to watch.

This article will focus primarily on streaming live content feeds to your DOOH screens, and automating the process. In the course of the following discussion, we'll also touch upon a few non-live content ideas you can use to fill space in your loops.

Know Your Sources
Chances are, you want to develop some of your own content for your DOOH platform. The problem is, doing so is usually expensive. Depending on the size and scope of your network, and the message you hope to deliver to your audience, you may need the help of an experienced advertising agency. The alternative is to hire content development staff. Here, the challenge is attracting those who understand the medium, and can design effective spots for it.

If you're running a small network, and are constrained by a tight budget, creating your own segments and loops may not be an option. If this is the case, live feeds offer a cost-effective solution. The type of feeds your audience finds interesting will depend in part on the venue. For example, suppose you operate a travel agency. Weather forecasts for popular vacation destinations might make a seamless fit. If you run a real estate office, showing the local MLS may be a good choice.

Some types of content feeds will fit within a wide range of venues. For example, news coverage, high-profile sporting events, and celebrity news will find a home nearly anywhere people are forced to wait (e.g. dentist offices, hospitals, airports, etc.).

Think outside the box. With the tools now available, you can create loops that stream user-generated content, using feeds from Twitter and Facebook. You can also customize your signage loops by mixing feeds - for example, mix a business news feed with information from the stock market.

Systematizing The Delivery Of Your Signage Content
Ideally, you should create your signage loops so the entire delivery process is automated. There are services that will do this for you, streaming feeds to your network over the internet. With these services, you'll be able to easily manage and schedule your content through an interface accessible via your browser.

But suppose you have chosen to do everything in-house. In this case, setting up delivery of your live signage feeds is more complex since you'll need to program the media players and content management software. Depending on the type of content you intend to use, you'll likely be working with files in RSS and XML format. You'll need to determine whether your platform can handle such files, and ultimately, how to deliver them to your screens.

Advantages Of An Automated Solution
Automating live content delivery to your signage platform will help minimize the need for manual intervention. Your segments and loops will be distributed to your screens with few, if any, problems. Moreover, because distribution is automated, you and your staff will make fewer errors, which means you'll spend less time resolving problems.

There are many simple-to-integrate signage content options available that will engage your viewers, and keep their attention on your screens. Until your budget can accommodate the creation of original content for your network, consider streaming the live feeds discussed above.

By Loren Bucklin
President

Connectedsign, LLC
lbucklin@connectedsign.com
www.connectedsign.com
866-833-2723

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