Digital Signage – Slowly but surely

Digital signage is a new area of marketing technology which is showing dynamic development in the global market. DS is gradually becoming a term used as frequently as ATL or BTL. Digital Signage is expected to account for 10 percent of total out of home advertising spending by 2012. However, prospects in the Hungarian market are not so bright. Nevertheless, some companies like For-Max Kft., Mood Media Hungary Kft., Your Media Company Kft. still show dynamic growth, while others have just entered this market, like Infirio Kft. and Metrocom Magyarország Kft. Infirio Club is one of the most important DS networks installed in clubs by Infirio Kft., while the Infirio Retail has been installed in hyper markets. Digital Totem, their latest project is a highly successful digital pedestrian stopper with a 120 cm full HD LCD display. Displays are linked to a central control via Internet. Their number one client in HoReCa locations has been Zwack. Look Up media is an advertising solution used on public transport in Szeged and sold by Metrocom Magyarország Kft. At present, they operate 161 screens on 65 vehicles which show passengers where they are, what connections are available and provide a weather report. The service reaches 100,000 passengers every day. For-Max Kft. offers new solutions every month, which now number 200. – Apart from big clients like multinationals, smaller clients are also beginning to recognise the advantages of the services we offer – says László Kulcsár, managing director. One of their most recent solutions is a an ultra thin touch screen POS terminal which also doubles as a bar code scanner. Your Media Company, the distributor of PIXMAN mobile advertising tools has already completed two contracts for Zwack. Pix Monitors are used for Unicum Next promotions in clubs. The cameras allow guests at parties to take photos of themselves which also appear on the web site of the brand. YMC, another big client has used the system to run a game software during an event, getting visitors to participate in an interactive campaign. All executives interviewed agree that the market is opening up at a far slower rate than they originally anticipated. Advertisers and agencies are often unaware of the advantages offered by such solutions. Penetration of digital systems is also limited compared to that of more traditional advertising tools. Recession is a further problem, because tasks are left to a smaller number of agency employees, which means that nobody has the time to become familiar with this area. Leaders of DS enterprises agree that those companies stand a chance of overtaking their competitors which dare to advertise effectively, of which DS .is an essential tool. Mood Media has come up with another new idea this year again, in the form of a fragrance marketing service to supplement audio marketing and digital signage. Our sense of smell is linked directly to the area in our brain where emotions and memories are stored. This is why fragrances can trigger a powerful emotional response. The use of fragrances in POS marketing is increasing as a tool for making brands more distinct from others. Mood Media is working with Ambius, a specialist in fragrance marketing in all European markets in order to be able to offer a standardised service everywhere. The ingredients in the fragrances used do not contain greenhouse gases and adhere to standards for allergenic substances. Clients can choose fragrances from samples or also have these mixed individually for them. At present, clients can choose from six categories of fragrances.