your complete

guide to
building a
successful
digital signage
network
2 | what is a digital signage network? what is a digital signage network? | 3

one of thousands of
screens that make up
a digital signage network

what is a
digital signage
network?
First things first, there are a few main components of a digital signage
network: screens, players, playback software and content management
software. This combination of hardware and software plays content (videos,
still images, HTML content and more) across any number of screens (a few
to tens of thousands) from one centralized location. Rather than plugging
a USB key loaded with content onto each screen, you can manage each
screen’s content from one computer program.

Almost every industry uses digital signage networks in some way, shape
or form. From smart cities to cinemas, hotels to gas stations, the list is
nearly endless. With its many benefits, including flexibility, creativity and
scalability, digital signage networks are popping up everywhere.
4 | what is a digital signage network? what is a digital signage network? | 5

cinema Cinema
Digital signage networks are used in cinemas to augment the moviegoer
experience from the box office to closing credits. To entertain and inform
customers, content is displayed on ticket booths, menu boards and

healthcare
lobby screens. The network can also be used to schedule pre-movie
entertainment, movie previews and the feature film in each theater.

Healthcare
More and more, digital screens are found in waiting rooms in doctor’s
offices, dental clinics, physical therapy clinics and more. These screens

transit
inform and entertain patients while they wait for their appointment. Displays
also help guide patients through busy hospitals.

Transit
Airports, train stations and bus terminals use digital signage to help guide
passengers to their destination. Since travelers have some time to spare

food service
before their departure, interactive displays are a good fit for this vertical.

Food Service
Digital menu boards have been growing in popularity, particularly in
franchise and chain restaurants. Unlike their static counterparts, digital
menu boards are easily updated to display breakfast/lunch menus, daily
specials and time-restricted promotions. They are also a great medium to

retail
upsell items, using dynamic imagery to further entice hungry visitors.

Retail
Screens and video walls in retail locations, both in stores and in shopping
malls, are a great way to build brand loyalty and promote products. Many
digital signage networks also have mobile capabilities, extending the

advertising
shopping experience once the client leaves the store.

Advertising
Though each industry includes some form of advertising content, there
are many networks where the only goal is to generate advertising revenue.
Bus shelters, billboards and outdoor screens are common places to spot
advertising-focused networks.

are you ready to build your own network?

read on for all the tools you need to get started.
6 | deploying your digital signage network deploying your digital signage network | 7

select your digital signage vendors

deploying your
digital signage
The next step in deploying a digital signage network is to select which software and hardware
vendors to work with. Important things to consider are your budget, the current and future scope
of the project, and your company’s goals.

network software hardware

set your goals
Before setting up a digital signage network, it is important to establish
your goals. What exactly do you want to accomplish with your displays?
Of course, the answer will depend on your industry and the audiences
you are targeting.
Ask yourself:
• What business goals do you want to meet? For example, do you
want to increase sales, inform customers, or improve employee
productivity?
• Who will be viewing the displays? What do you want them to take
away from the experience?
• What type of content will be displayed on your network?
Advertisements, important information, entertainment? What percent
of each type will be shown?
• What resources - time, money and human - are you willing to commit
to the network?
Companies generally select one digital sig-
nage software provider for the entire network.
Software is comprised of a content manage-
ment system (CMS) which allows you to easily
manage and run the entire network from one
central location, and a playback software that is
installed on each display’s player. When se-
lecting a CMS for your network, consider the
following:
Workflow scalability: Will the software be able
to keep up as your network grows?
Supported Content Formats: Does the soft-
ware support industry standard content for-
mats? Does the software also support dynamic
content, like reacting to a viewer’s input on a
touch screen?
Software security: Does the software encrypt
data and protect against attacks?
Advertiser Accountability: Does the software
provide accurate playback reporting and proof-
of-play?
Automation: How efficient is the software at
managing your network? Does it support rules-
based playback?
Selecting the right hardware for your network
depends on the location of your displays, their
proximity to the audience and what type of
content you plan to play. Audio requirements
should also be considered at this step.
LCD and LED screens are common solutions
for indoor displays, while big, bright LED
boards are used for large-format outdoor
displays.
While many networks select a single hardware
provider, others prefer to work with a variety. If
you are deploying in many different locations or
looking to install more than one type of screen,
you may want to work with multiple providers.
installation
To help you select an appropriate combination
of software and hardware, many vendors work
with prefered partners. Be sure to ask your
hardware and/or software providers for partner
suggestions tailored to your network’s needs.
This step also includes hiring a team of integra-
tors to install and configure your network. They
will mount the screens, connect the players and
ensure everything is ready to go. This team will
also be in charge of ongoing maintenance and
troubleshooting, as required.

Self-Healing Capabilities: Does the software

self-heal in cases of deadlocks, and operating
system and player crashes?

Compatibility: Does the software stay up to

date with latest technologies and applications?
8 | deploying your digital signage network deploying your digital signage network | 9

select your network locations install your digital signage

network
Once you have determined your goals, it is time to select locations for
your screens. Good locations are those that provide adequate exposure When locations are confirmed, the installation team will begin setting up
to your target market, are easily viewed and are a good fit for the type of your network’s screens and players. They will be connected to a power
content that will be displayed. and internet source and if audio is supported, a sound-system will also
be installed.
survey the locations
restrictions
Your location wish-list is ready but before
While a location may look great at first glance,
making a final decision, each site should be As most displays and players are located in public areas, there are a
some venues may not be the best fit for your
surveyed to make sure it can accommodate few important things to consider to make sure your network is safe
network. First, analyze restrictions to ensure
your network. from potential hackers:
the area is suitable for your screens and vice-
versa.
Some questions to ask include: • Make sure all screens are adequately secured to the wall and that all
attachments (screws, bolts, etc.) are difficult to access and remove.
Weather is an important factor to consider
• Which parts of the venue’s structure can
before selecting a location for your display.
support the weight of display equipment? • Keep all public players in a locked, break-proof enclosure and if possi-
Heat is actually the leading cause of hardware
ble, keep them out of sight.
failure in the industry and large variances
• Where can the media players be installed
in temperature can damage equipment.
safely? • Ensure that all PC ports and connections are secure and password
Screens must also be able to withstand the
protect the BIOS to prevent the boot order from being changed.
elements, including rain, snow and hail. Before
• How will the entire network be wired and
committing to a location, ensure your screens
powered? • Only give necessary applications access to your OS.
are approved for the given weather or invest
in a temperature controlled weather resistant
• Is there internet connectivity available? How • Be sure to disable all unnecessary network services and work with
encasement.
will it be provided? software that does not need open inbound ports.

You must also consider a venue’s rules and

If a location does not fit your selected criteria, it • Install a firewall to block unwanted incoming traffic.
regulations. For example, wireless signals and
may be possible to resolve these matters with
a screen’s electromagnetic radiation emission
custom construction. However, keep in mind
might be limited in the healthcare industry.
that not all construction projects are welcomed
by the venue owner.
Outdoor displays also have to abide by certain
rules. Many areas require that digital screens
adjust to current brightness to reduce glare,
while some municipalities restrict digital
billboards altogether. Read the signage codes
and check in with local government agencies
to see if your desired project abides by all
regulations and to obtain required licenses
before proceeding.
 preparing your network for content | 11

preparing your
network for content
While your hardware is being set up, you can begin configuring your
digital signage software. For the system to determine which content is to
play on which display, each player is linked to a specific display. Displays
are then categorized by location, audience and estimated reach to
determine what type of content is appropriate for each.

define a “loop” strategy determine network

demographics
In digital signage, a loop is the length of time
that elapses before content is repeated. In
screens without content general, the loop length should corresponds to
are empty canvases full the average time a viewer remains in front of
of potential the screen, which is also known as dwell time.
Have you been in a waiting room and noticed
the same advertisements playing over and over
again. This is likely because the loop time does
not correspond to your current dwell time.
Loops sometimes extend past the dwell time.
This is most often seen in the advertising
industry. For example, a one-hour loop can be
set up for advertisers to better understand the
frequency at which their ad will be played, such
as 6 plays per hour.
To ensure each display is showing content that
is relevant to the actual audience, research is
conducted to know who is actually viewing your
screens. Audience measurement companies
like Nielsen and Geopath offer demographic
information, rating points, and reach and
frequency data for out-of-home. With this
information, content can be targeted to each
display’s audience.
To go into even more detail, video analytics
companies offer real-time audience data based
on the individuals viewing your screen. This
detailed information is very helpful for reporting
on campaign impact and effectiveness.

Once loop duration is set, the ratio of ad-based

versus non-ad-based content will need to be
established. This ratio will depend on your
industry, your intended audience and your
network’s goals. For example, a healthcare
waiting room would focus more on non-ad-
based content to inform and entertain patients,
while a screen in a subway station would likely
follow a more ad-based strategy.
12 | preparing your network for content
establish campaign capabilities
Each campaign will have its own unique goals and strategy. It is
important to consider and define the capabilities of your network to
deliver the best results for each campaign. Your digital signage software
should be able to help you set and define each of these parameters:
broadcasting
When campaigns are aimed towards reaching
the largest audience possible, content is
typically run across a group of displays or even
all locations. This is usually seen with editorial
content or automated content such as RSS
templates.
targeting
Advertising campaigns generally require a
higher degree of targeting to produce strong
ROI. Content is targeted to displays based on
geographical proximity, demographics, display
size, language and more. For example, a beer
company might want to target bus shelter
screens in close proximity to a sports arena a
few hours before a big game.
interactivity
Viewers might need to interact with the display.
Wayfinding is a prime example, where visitors
can touch the screens to find their destination.
adjacency
Content in sponsorship or co-marketing
campaigns might need to be played one after
the other.
saturation and separation
On the other hand, some content needs to be
spaced as far apart in the loop as possible, as
in the case of competing products.
preparing your network for content | 13
synchronization and triggers
Content can also be synchronized across
multiple displays. For example, slots from one
campaign can trigger a campaign on another
set of displays. This trigger could also come
from third party technology such as a GPS
device.
multi-scheduling
Slots play a different message depending on
the time of day, the day of week or a calendar
date. For example, a breakfast menu could be
displayed in the morning while a regular menu
airs after 11 AM and broadcasts the daily
specials.
customization
Some content may be customized based on
location. For example, a default message can
be customized to represent local pricing.
preempting
A message that fills the loop is removed if its
slot is required by a message of higher priority.
This way, filler content can be used to make
loops the same length but popular loops will
contain less filler since higher paying ads will
get priority.
emergency communications
In some cases, screen takeovers are necessary.
For example, airport employees should be able
to display important information on the screens
in a matter of seconds to guide travelers to
safety in emergencies.
14 | generating revenue with your network generating revenue with your network | 15

generating revenue
with your network
Once your loop strategy is finalized, your audience is categorized and
your displays’ capabilities are outlined, it is time to start selling to get the
revenue flowing - if generating revenue is part of your strategy, of course.

direct sales
The traditional way to sell out-of-home Direct sales offers a unique opportunity
inventory is through a direct sales process,
beginning with a proposal, followed by contract to connect with clients and get to know
negotiations and finally an insertion order.
their needs and campaign goals. With this
During this process, the price breakdown for
each campaign, the displays and the planned information, your team is well equipped
number of impressions is agreed upon.
to create unique media packages with
Rate cards, which represent typical media buys maximum impact for each client.
on the network, are implemented to simplify
the sales process. In general, displays based
on a similar target audience or location are However, with this level of contact, the
packaged together to enable sales teams to
quickly select relevant packages. For example, direct sales process can be quite time
an advertiser looking to sell backpacks might
consuming, sometimes taking hours to
be interested in the ‘University Campus’ media
package. respond to a client’s request. To reach an
You’ll want to include the following elements
agreement quicker, tools are available to
in your rate card: scan available inventory and automate
Targeting Criteria: The specific demographic media package creation and proposal
or market that will be targeted. generation. A tailored proposal can be
Flight Duration: The length of the campaign. In
advertising, this is often four weeks. sent to your clients in a matter of minutes,
Slot Duration and Frequency: The length of the
significantly increasing the chance of
individual piece of content and how often will
it be shown on the screens. For example, four closing the sale.
slots of 15 seconds each.
Pricing: The cost of the media package. Often
a CPM value.
16 | generating revenue with your network
programmatic sales
Still in its infancy, but quickly getting a lot of interest, is the ability to sell
digital out-of-home inventory programmatically. There is a growing pop-
ularity for programmatic options, as more and more media buyers are
committing their budget to this automated solution. Programmatic sales
enable media owners to reach past the traditional digital out-of-home ad-
vertising buyers and gain access to the entire digital advertising market.
Programmatic ad buying means purchasing digital advertising inven-
tory with the help of software. Rather than the traditional process that
requires a request for proposal, negotiations and insertion orders, the
software automates the entire sales process.
1. Advertising inventory is made available to a supply-side platform
(SSP).
2. Advertisers/media buyers connect to a demand-side platform
(DSP) to search for a given audience, impressions and reach.
3. The SSP and DSP interact to show advertisers available inventory
that matches their criteria.
4. Advertisers place a bid on selected inventory and the highest bid-
der wins.
For mobile and online campaigns, the winning campaign is played the
second the bidding is complete. However, with digital out-of-home’s
public nature, the campaign is delayed slightly before being played, giving
network operators the chance to vet the content before it is displayed.
To make your digital signage inventory available for programmatic buys,
you will need to integrate with an SSP, some of which are specialized in
digital out-of-home.
Before integrating with an SSP, below are a few considerations:
• Does the SSP understand the intricacies of digital out-of-home?
• Can the SSP handle digital out-of-home’s audience measurement
techniques?
• Is the SSP a good fit with your current digital out-of-home work-
flow?
generating revenue with your network | 17
Working with an SSP that communicates direct-
ly with your digital signage software helps you
maximize profit for each display. Programmatic
does not generally replace direct sales but is
rather a complementary tool to expand your
revenues and reach new audiences. In some
cases, a direct sale may yield a higher revenue
whereas another time it may be the program-
matic bid. A system that merges these two
workflows will help ensure the greatest return.
non ad-based content
Of course, not all content displayed on screens
will be ad-based. Many screens are in place to
entertain, inform or promote branded content.
Individual locations can also be given time in
the loop for customized content. For example,
a dental clinic network might split their loop
as follows: 50% ad-based, 30% infotainment
and 20% custom content, where each office
displays dentist biographies, opening hours and
local information.
While you may wish to create non ad-based
content yourself, many companies offer
content feeds that are easily integrated into
your loop, such as weather, news, social media
and interactive games. Some digital signage
softwares also provide content creation suites,
where branded templates are used for a unified
look across the network. In the dental clinic
example, the network would create an “open-
ing hours” template with certain colours and
design, and individual clinics would fill in their
own hours.
about broadsign
Broadsign is the leading digital out-of-home (DOOH) marketing platform
that enables brands, agencies and DOOH media publishers to buy, sell,
and deliver DOOH campaigns efficiently, reliably and securely. Lighting
up airports, shopping malls, health clinics, street corners and more, the
Broadsign platform powers screens at the heart of people’s lives and
delivers more than 11 billion ads and 30 billion impressions per month.

The Broadsign marketing platform includes Broadsign Control for

content distribution, playback and proof of performance, Broadsign Direct
for sales inventory availability and proposal generation, and Broadsign
Reach, a customized SSP for programmatic DOOH transactions.

get in touch to see how broadsign can help you build your
digital signage network.

contact us
+1 877 399 1184
broadsign-info@broadsign.com
broadsign.com