The placement of digital signage screens plays a vital role in their success. While it's true that the saying "content is king" has never been truer than it is today, your content still needs to be seen, the screens need to be switched on (but that's another story) and positioned well (to be seen by a target audience).
Wherever your screens are installed, two zones can be identified with different target audiences. These zones will also influence the type of on-screen content used. Corridors will benefit from short, high-impact messages, while waiting rooms can afford longer, more detailed messages. Find out more about the different types of zones for choosing the best location for your digital signage screens in our latest article. On a more practical note, the following questions will help you identify the locations with the greatest potential.
The right questions to ask so that the placement of your digital signage screens works perfectly
Where's the sun?
And more generally, where are the light sources located? In relation to the screen and visitors? And how do they evolve during the day? Will the screen be exposed to the same amount of light in the morning as in the afternoon? Do you need to create an automatic brightness change in the screen settings according to the time of day (a feature to look for when choosing screens)? If the screen faces the light, will reflections affect the visibility and legibility of the message? If so, is it possible to reduce this light? Or prevent reflections? If the screen is turned away from the light, will it still be possible to read everything if it's against the light? Maximize the visibility of your messages by taking the lighting problem into account when deciding where to place your screens.
Who's the target?
Since everyone moves, stands, waits and evolves differently, it's impossible to reach everyone with the same screen. It therefore becomes crucial to identify the (main) target of a certain area and screen to deliver the right message. If the objective is to inform your employees about current developments, should you place screens in the window? If the objective is to inform students, is it useful to place a screen in the teachers' lounge? If the objective is to show your colleagues the traffic on the roads on the way home, a screen near the building exit and facing inwards is probably a good idea. Make sure you correctly identify the target of your messages. As well as ensuring that you create customized content, it's also a useful guide to the placement of your screens.
Where is the target audience headed?
Once you've defined your objectives and identified your target audience, one of the first things you'll need to do is find out where this audience moves and hangs out. On the one hand, this will enable you to identify areas where more people pass than in others (statistically, screens in these areas are more likely to reach the target audience than in others), but you could also look for paths favored by the target audience (for example, avoiding the central patio of the lobby by passing to the right rather than the left). Analyzing the target audience's movements may also reveal movement patterns that may seem difficult to understand at first. For example, colleagues may enter the company by going around the reception area to the right, and leave by going around it to the left. In this case, it would be a good idea to adapt the angles of the screens (for example, one on each side of the reception patio) to face the entrance on the right and away from it on the left. In the same way, the path taken by customers in a store can become quite clear: it's up to you to find them and place the screens in the right places AND point them in the right directions. Make it a priority to observe the habits of your target audience to discover the ways in which they move and circulate in your establishment, as well as the direction of their movement: your screens will be more likely to be seen, and your messages will have a greater impact.
Where is the target audience waiting?
It's often more cost-effective to show a message to people who are waiting than to those who are on the move. The truth is, messages can be longer and more detailed, and the information disseminated is more complete and therefore better remembered. What's more, people who are waiting are more receptive to any message. It's crucial to identify where people (particularly those you want to target) are waiting. To get the most out of your message, give preference to screens in waiting areas: the content broadcast can then contain more information, and the audience will be more receptive.
Where do people look?
As a general rule, and even more importantly for screens in passageways, where people are on the move, it's rare for them to look for installed screens at all times. It therefore becomes necessary to identify the areas that catch the eye. An ideally positioned screen should be in the field of vision of every position within a certain zone. As our eyes are naturally drawn to other humans, and in particular their eyes, a screen positioned to intercept these glances seems a good idea. Similarly, when we're on the move, we generally keep an eye on our next steps. A screen that's too high up and forces you to look up would rarely be seen, or looked at for long. Intercepting the natural gaze with screens is how you give your messages the best chance of being seen.
Correct screen placement is above all a question of the human aspect
The best content in the world will have very little impact if it's broadcast to a wall! As a general rule, if the target audience isn't looking at the screens, your efforts will be in vain. For your messages to have maximum impact, you need to know your target audience inside out. Understanding their state of mind will guide the creation of relevant messages, while understanding their movements will guide screen placement. If a large part of this question is about identifying that target audience, it's because the question isn't about finding the best placement for a screen, but the best placement for a screen for a target audience (and a type of content).
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