We’re living in a world dominated by the visual medium. The surge in reels, memes and TikTok has only furthered the desire for quick, eye-catching content to inform, entertain and guide people. It’s how the eCommerce landscape functions. And bringing eCommerce into the brick-and-mortar world has become a vital component of the evolving physical store.
The customer experience journey has travelled past the traditional transactional in-store process. It’s now about marrying the virtual with the physical, offering a more engaging experience to entice people into shops on foot. Digital signage can be the director, curator and guide of the shopping experience; it has the power to emotionally and viscerally enhance the brand and customer journey.
Its availability is also expected by the younger generations: research shows 48% of Gen-Zs don’t like speaking to customer service staff and would prefer digital solutions to discover information. With in-store touch points, brands can deliver this process and so much more.
But how and why is this technology able to revolutionise customer experience for the new and ‘expected’ in-store journey?
Curating the customer experience
The experience starts from before a customer even walks into the shop. Window advertising of products has been a mainstay of high street makeup, with mannequins an ever-present feature. For the digital age, LCD or LED screens, for instance, can create this initial touchpoint, with eye-grabbing displays of video content illustrating the in-store experience and the latest ‘looks’, trends and products on offer.
From here on in, it’s all about presenting a variety of digital signage components that can curate the customer experience. We’re now operating in a world of digital access, speedy service and a desire for quick responses. Having interactive touch screens or QR codes that can answer initial questions and show product information, for example, can help customers quickly decide on items and where they can be found.
These signs can also be placed at specific points in the shop to guide customers towards different products or specially curated areas, for example. In-store staff can then enhance this process with more detailed guidance and personable advice. For the shops of today, being able to merge the digital with the physical is crucial to revolutionising the customer experience.
Enhancing the brand
Through harnessing digital signage to cultivate the customer experience, you can also explore the variety of ways to show your brand identity, vision and advertise products. Of course this can range from incorporating the brand’s formatting, colour, design features and logo to more innovative product video and animation. By going digital, you have the flexibility to change what’s being promoted when in line with factors such as the time of day/season, weather and customer footfall.
You can also take this approach further and have campaign videos and adverts that reflect the culture of the brand and are more creative pieces of film and ‘artwork’. These could also include facts about the campaign and interesting anecdotes for customers to engage with. By going beyond normal in-store shopping promotion, you’re amplifying the in-store experience which, in itself, is promoting your products and services.
Taking it to the next level
The power of digital signage has an array of possibilities that go even further beyond the norm. There are a range of innovative ways of using interactive and augmented technology to tap into a multi-sensory journey.
For example, traditionally we’ve seen stores using electronic screens and decor to take customers on a trip to locations such as the beach. Ideas and technology have since evolved further. The world of social media has led to areas in-store where customers can interact online and ‘take snaps’ in branded zones, explore artwork and interact with virtual environments.
Companies have also been taking to VR headsets to create an exciting shopping experience, showcasing product capabilities and transporting customers on a journey to different real world locations and virtual worlds. The further digital signage is incorporated into shops, the more possibilities there are to take it to the next level.
The power of digital signage is only set to grow
The physical high street world is changing and adapting rapidly to the virtual and social one. New customer habits, generational shifts and digital advancement are necessitating brands to innovate the in-store experience to match consumer expectations. The demand for in-person experiences remains – it’s about finding the methods of using digital signage to truly revolutionise the customer experience.
Digital signage can be used to create and direct each touchpoint of the shopping journey, working with in-store staff and the physical environment to create an all-round customer experience. Brands can leverage such technology to reflect their brand and products in a flexible manner, and the growing use and variety of digital signage options are leading to more and more pioneering ways of shaping how shoppers experience shopping.
The digital customer experience revolution has only just begun.
