“Digital Signage in the Age of Covid -19 – and Back Again”
As we gaze out our windows, the world that stares back at us bears little recognition to the one that we all remember just a few short months ago. With the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, we find ourselves faced with the immense challenges of both personally coping with the crisis as well as finding ways to effectively communicate information to employees, clients, and prospects.
Digital signage has played an essential role in our business communications for many years now, and although this world-wide pandemic has “changed the messaging”, the need to remain connected has never been greater.
Quast Media has a long history of working with our clients to provide both the hardware and skills necessary to employ this digital technology as well as the creative and strategic skills needed to educate, inform, and engage targeted audiences. We’ve done this by making a commitment to understand our clients – their businesses, growth goals, missions, and values. With this thought in mind, we’d like to offer a few suggestions to help you to use digital signage technology to meaningfully communicate with all those important groups that rely on your products, your services, and your partnership.
We’ll focus on two main ideas – how to incorporate digital signage messaging into the “Covidized” world we’re operating in currently, and how to use digital signage to assist your audience in the recently begun transition back to a somewhat changed – but more “normalized” post-pandemic world.
Digital Signage in the age of Covid-19
Create content in a way that promotes calmness – pay attention to choosing wording, colors, music, and video usage that evokes feelings of hope and togetherness.
Using inspiring stories and testimonials that relate to your product or services that are helping to reduce stress in some way can be gratefully received. EX: The use of “Wayfinding” in a retail establishment can be a significant help to people who now find their shopping experience an unpleasant one, saving them time and emotional energy.
Re-evaluate and promote all the “value-added” ways that your products and services can be used beneficially in today’s stressful environment – this re-thinking of your product’s feature-benefit proposition may surprise you in previously not considered ways.
Stay positive in your messaging – this can reinforce what your brand stands for both now and in the future return to normalization.
Use real-time updates for best-practice guidelines: general, hygiene, crowd distancing, symptoms, transmission, prevention, etc.
Promote your company’s guidelines to staff: safety procedures, status updates, building security, cleaning procedures, illness policy, testing or temperature requirements, etc.
Don’t promote with the idea of capitalizing on the pandemic or on consumer discomfort
As We Now Begin “The Return To Normal”
Start now to develop your strategy for the inevitable return to “normal”.
Understand that this return will likely be done in stages and determine how to position your products and services to meet the need that consumers will have as various aspects of life return at different times.
Begin developing content that will be effective in mirroring this staged recovery roll-out
Recognize that the overall experience we’ve collectively had is likely to change consumer sentiment, most likely in a more conservative approach to buying decisions. This will be coupled with the likelihood of reduced consumer “ready income” due to job loss, reduction of income, etc. Develop plans now for how you will position your products and services to reflect that eventuality.
Continue to present your messaging with calmness, confidence and purposefulness.
We hope these tips will be of value to you as you negotiate your way through to pandemic’s end. If you could use some help with digital signage hardware, software, content development or strategy, please contact us. We’re here to help.
Wishing you continued health and prosperity….
sales@Quastmedia.com | 860.310.4400
