< PreviousCONTENT CREATION 10KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINES till perceived by many as an unpredictable and risky business, content creation remains an industry-wide challenge, that is, to this day, turning customers off. The good news is, however, that there is now an unprecedented range of affordable cutting-edge tools that can help facilitate next-level content creation. Here are five of the top developments. 1. AI-driven visual analytics platforms The advent of affordable AI-driven content creation has already transformed the web design sector, and now looks set to do the same for the digital signage and kiosk industry. With one click, AI visual analytics platforms enable you to run intuitive-to-understand analyses, and see, at a glance, if your content is likely to be effective and have the intended impact. The heat maps that are generated can signpost ways that designs could be improved, highlighting how a simple change to the layout, colour, or size of your text could strengthen – or even salvage content before it goes live. Any team member can use AI visual analytics solutions, with or without design experience, and it can save hours of time on constant re-designs while speeding up approvals, based on reliable predictive data. This technology is a potential game-changer. CONTENT CREATION TOP FIVE DEVELOPMENTS FOR CONTENT CREATION The difficulty of creating content that resonates is still a major block to digital signage adoption, deterring end users from expanding their networks, or worse still, investing in one in the first place. KDS Europe talks to Tim Baker, Marketing Manager for content management solutions company, Signagelive, and asks what can be done to simplify the process and democratise access to impactful content. TIM BAKER MARKETING MANAGER SIGNAGELIVE 11 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINECONTENT CREATION 12KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE Interactive digital signage experiences have modernised the High Street, giving brick-and- mortar stores and venues a new lease of life 2. Integrated programmatic advertising platforms With integrated programmatic advertising platforms, such as Snapp Digital and HiveStack, the most effective CMS solutions are not only helping end users to supplement and strengthen their content but also to monetise their networks, straight off the bat. Alleviating the pressure to create round-the- clock 24/7 content, programmatic advertising solutions automatically match end users with relevant, genuinely interesting advertisers, whose advertising can enrich in-house developed content schedules. With content management systems, it’s easy to manage, schedule and deliver third-party advertising, either as full-screen campaigns or alongside in-house content in multi-zone template designs. The availability of integrated asset playback analytics also enables end users to give advertisers valuable insights into campaign performances. 3. Interactive digital signage experiences Interactive digital signage experiences have modernised the High Street, giving brick-and- mortar stores and venues a new lease of life. While these experiences have traditionally been restricted to the high end of both the retail and hospitality markets, they are now becoming increasingly mainstream, thanks to the integration of sensor-driven technologies with CMS platforms. These integrations can help turn simple showcases into personalised brand and product experiences. Customers only have to interact with, and lift a specific item on display for more product and/or brand information to be triggered and delivered straight onto a nearby big screen. The solution effectively offers some of the benefits of an unobtrusive personal shopping assistant, enabling retailers to streamline store operations and maximise sales opportunities, as and when they happen. Through the on-screen display of relevant product information, they can automatically pre-empt customer enquiries, as well as tempt shoppers to trade up to a more highly specified model or even invest in accessories that complement the item. 4. CMS external device control Next-generation experiential retail campaigns are known for turning heads and boosting customer engagement, but they are often too costly, CONTENT CREATION 13 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE Digital signage may be best known as a customer-facing promotional medium, but the reality is that it can be just as effective when used for back office operations. complicated and time-consuming to develop. This is set to change with the evolution of a new breed of CMS solution that can offer an all-in- one platform for content management, as well as simplified external device control. Patented technologies can enable users to send commands within content files to trigger at any stage of the asset playback, everything from motorised screen movements to changes in the lighting. Offering more possibilities for those in retail and hospitality to set the scene and ambience, it’s another way to immerse customers in the world of the on-screen retail promotion, or brand experience. 5. Back office content tools Digital signage may be best known as a customer-facing promotional medium, but the reality is that it can actually be just as effective when used as a hub for back office operations. The CMS integration of a whole raft of office content tools, in addition to apps designed for B2C communications, means that it can do it all, and double up, after-hours, as an additional employee resource. With data integrations, retail and hospitality chains as well as brands can now use their networks to crunch numbers and immerse employees in the sales targets and data they need. Highly sensitive company information can effectively be rolled out quickly, and securely shared at scale from any business intelligence platform. CMS integrations of YouTube Live Stream and IBM Cloud also make it easy for organisations to train employees more efficiently. End users can live stream their training sessions, so only a single experienced trainer is needed to train multiple employees located across different branches. Access to good design isn’t just fundamental to the success of digital signage content, but also, to the very growth of the sector. With the development of so many recent innovations for content creation, CMS providers, together with resellers, can now deliver unprecedented, game- changing support to help open up the market and realise its full potential.O ne advancement is in the metaverse - augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). From virtual learning environments to 3D-modelled products, the internet is changing the customer experience. Here, we will explore some of the impacts that the metaverse will have on customer service and the customer experience. Brand interactions One way the metaverse will start impacting customer service is through the interactions consumers will have with the brand before, after and during purchases. The metaverse can offer an immersive shopping experience from the comfort of your living room – including diagrams and model creations of products. There may also be the opportunity for customers to walk through a shop, as well as interact with virtual shopping assistants, without having to leave their homes. These could be robotic assistants who can answer a range of commonly asked questions, or hologram-projected assistants who regularly monitor the ‘shop floors’. Businesses can also use the metaverse to contribute to a virtual economy and drive loyalty. The introduction of the metaverse has also seen intangible additions, such as cryptocurrencies and the creation of non- fungible tokens (NFTs). NFTs can be used to increase customer interaction and promote loyalty schemes for specific brands, improving the customer experience. Personalisation As with social media, the metaverse is a great opportunity for brands to increase customer personalisation and targeted marketing. The reality capabilities of the metaverse mean that brands can design their own interactive and CUSTOMER SERVICE The customer service sector has changed dramatically in the last few years, with the growing popularity of eCommerce and social media becoming a driving communicator between brands and customers. With technology advancements occurring regularly, it is no wonder companies are finding new and wonderful ways to connect with their customer bases. JANINE HUNT CLIENT PARTNERSHIP DIRECTOR KURA 14KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE HOW THE METAVERSE WILL IMPACT CUSTOMER SERVICECUSTOMER SERVICE 15 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINECUSTOMER SERVICE 16KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE immersive worlds which represent their brand identity in a way that traditional marketing, such as video ads, cannot do. This can be personalised to the customer’s own home – showing them how the products will look within their own environments. This is crucial as 80% of customers are more likely to buy from a brand that offers a tailored experience and what can be more personalised than bringing brands and 3D products into their home? Better support The metaverse can also help expand your company’s omnichannel support. Omnichannel support is the ability to communicate with customers and handle complaints through multiple channels – whether this is live chat, email, phone call, or another form. Adding metaverse capabilities offers your customers a wider range of communication points and face- to-face human interaction no matter the location, thus improving the customer experience. The quality of customer service and complaints handling may also be improved by the introduction of the metaverse, allowing you to demonstrate solutions and products, and discuss troubleshooting more easily. A study has shown that the information a human can store is increased by 70% when using augmented reality (AR). This could mean your company could make a significant difference to your customers by using the metaverse. Provide training Further quality can be provided through internal use of the metaverse. Virtual reality can be a useful tool when it comes to training customer CUSTOMER SERVICE The quality of customer service and complaints handling may be improved by the metaverse, demonstrating solutions and products, and discussing troubleshooting more easily. 17 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE service agencies or company sales teams for example. Adopting augmented learning environments means you can teach new recruits from multiple locations and monitor their progress. By improving your training programmes, you can make sure that customers are handled with the best care possible. Better service training can improve your customer’s satisfaction – leading to happy, and loyal customers. And outstanding customer service can lead to a rise in the desire to buy, with consumers spending 17% more after good interactions with customer support. Whether it is in-house or from your employee’s house, training or bringing the shop to the customer, the metaverse can improve the customer experience tenfold. The quality and speed of customer service can be improved through the introduction of these different realities, and by offering a new way to connect, more customers can experience brands in exciting and innovative ways.SPONSORED CONTENT 18KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINEW hy can this camera be compared to a typical consumer webcam? With uEye XC, IDS has developed an industrial camera that has the typical features and advantages of a webcam without its disadvantages. Compared to the standard industrial cameras, we have reduced the camera to the essentials in order to reduce costs and concentrate on the functionalities that make webcams so popular. USB3 makes the camera quick and easy to use with just one cable. USB3 is widely available as a cost-effective standard interface and provides both power and sufficient performance to allow live transmission of high-resolution images. With its many in-camera auto-features for focus, gain, shutter speed, white balance, gamma and colour, the camera produces perfect images every time without writing a line of code. This true plug and play means that once plugged in, the camera works like typical webcams and is in no way inferior to them. What are the advantages of a webcam for the consumer market? In contrast to webcams for the consumer market, we build the uEye XC with industrial components. This allows us to ensure a long SPONSORED CONTENT INDUSTRIAL-GRADE WEBCAM HELPS TO AUTOMATE TASKS Getting perfectly focused images and videos at all times, even when the distance between camera and object is constantly changing? Such tasks often involve the use of webcams. However, they are hardly ever designed for applications in an industrial environment. This is where IDS steps in: With the uEye XC, the company recently launched a 13MP autofocus camera that combines the advantages of industrial cameras and webcams. Heiko Seitz (IDS Imaging Development Systems GmbH) explains the advantages and application fields. 19 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE HEIKO SEITZ IDSNext >