Digital Signposts: Content Marketing
Jul 22, 2013 9:54 AM,
By Vern Freedlander, Vice President, Production, X2O Media
One of today’s most exciting marketing trends is the proliferation of content marketing techniques. For readers unfamiliar with the term, content marketing refers to the creation and distribution of multimedia content that targets key audiences without hard selling a product or service. Instead, the concept focuses on content that contributes insights to a customer’s industry, enhances a viewer’s lifestyle, or attempts to subtly evangelize a reluctant user. Content marketing comes in many forms: videos, documents, social media, apps, and more. For marketers, this new communication channel has already been incredibly beneficial in both raising the profile of brands and in positioning them as true industry partners that play a thoughtful and creative role in their customers’ success.
Consequently, digital signage has become a natural distributor of content marketing. One could consider signage networks as channels that have the ability to target and distribute content to a highly focused audience such as potential customers of a product. Marketing professionals can then use these channels to distribute content that consistently delivers complimentary, high-quality, and timely messaging. The signage network, in this particular case, is not simply an ad-driven channel or generic information/entertainment medium. Instead, it becomes a highly specialized communications vehicle that informs and educates viewers while simultaneously complimenting a brand. Marketers could make highly strategic decisions regarding channel recipients and fine-tune content to complement their marketing campaigns. By doing this in concert with other outlets such as social media, the channel becomes a highly valuable and sought after 24/7 resource that can live on a potential customer’s desktop, screensaver, or mobile device.
Integrators also need to move away from the old paradigm that digital signage only exists as a place-based set of screens that runs content aimed at specific, but not necessarily specialized, demographic groups. Though this is still an important attribute of digital signage, we should dig even deeper and provide highly specialized messaging with the purpose to leverage content marketing efforts, impact decision makers, and convert them to customers.
Vern Freedlander is vice president of production services for Montréal-based X2O Media, a full-service provider of technology, network management, and content services for professional digital signage applications. With more than 20 years of broadcast television experience as a producer, director, and executive, Freedlander oversees all of X2O Media’s content initiatives. He can be reached at [email protected].
