< PreviousTherefore, the future holds many opportunities to incorporate technology into your business, so it’s essential to set time within your company to research current trends and the uses of new technology. Conducting research will allow you to gain insight into the benefits of various digital tools and assess which will be the right fit for you. And with many businesses also looking to improve digital experiences, keeping up to date with trends and new tools helps you stay competitive. Avoid leaving your remote employees behind Currently, in Britain, one in five employees work remotely. Despite this being the only solution for non-essential workers during the pandemic, working from home has remained, even as lockdown restrictions eased. This was possible due to the implementation of technology during lockdown. Now, remote work has been successfully incorporated into traditional working life and businesses are finding a balance between the two. Remote work offers businesses the opportunity to hire people who aren’t local. So, in this instance, you may have just as many employees working from home as you do in the office. It’s key to regularly check in with these employees and ensure that their digital tools are up to scratch, as this is much more important to them than it is for employees working in the office. Ensuring that software and devices are up to date is a necessity so that they can continue to complete their work to a high standard. Planning regular video calls reassures them that they are appreciated in the company and offers an opportunity to keep them connected. Leave room for personalisation Of course, digital additions will benefit everybody in the workplace. But it isn’t one size fits all, which is why an understanding of various technologies is beneficial. Investing in one tool may offer a huge advantage to one specific role within your company, but it may be of no use to another – so plan ways to personalise digital tools for each role. Or if it’s something broad, such as artificial intelligence, it may be able to help many people within the workplace. But offering personalisation ensures that the digital implementations are improving your employees’ IMPROVE DIGITAL EXPERIENCES 30KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE Offering personalisation ensures that the digital implementations are improving your employees’ digital experience, as well as making your investments worth the time and money.IMPROVE DIGITAL EXPERIENCES 31 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE digital experience, as well as making your investments worth the time and money. Measure the progress of your digital additions Progress monitoring is a vital part of adding digital transformations. You may have integrated a new technology that is the perfect fit for your company, but it is key for you to monitor how successful it is within the workplace. This can be done by comparing data of your new and improved process with your previous routine, or even through requesting customer reviews and feedback from employees. By gathering results frequently, you can measure the success of the digital experiences within your business and gain insight into whether you need any extra technological tools or upgrades. Additionally, businesses that track their goals are twice as likely to hit all their goals within a year – so it’s a crucial step to improve digital experiences. In recent years, we have learned to rely on technology. It’s a vital aspect of the business world and is transforming businesses to become more fast-paced and adaptable. Deploying solutions such as IPTV distribution to remote users and employees working from home, enables them to access live and on-demand IPTV content, which can help them in their working day. Equally, remote collaboration tools will help them to keep in touch with colleagues. It’s important to understand why you’re implementing different technologies and the benefits your employees or customers will see as a result.T oday, we see interactivity at work in most spaces, from elevating a customer shopping experience through trigger- based content to boosting a visual experience through accompanying on-screen graphics for a sports match. What’s more, younger generations now expect interactivity to be available to them as a guide to what they should be doing and how they should be doing it, as they consume so much content through other digital technologies in their personal life. Most businesses have made the transition to digital to optimise their user experience but now, it is time to reconcile offline and digital by implementing immersive and interactive AV technology on-site to deliver an omnichannel experience. The perfect trio of interactivity When we consider interactivity from an AV point of view it can be easy to only consider touch and visuals. While there is no doubt both are important, interactivity goes so much further. It must also encapsulate audio, and emerging trends such as motion, to prioritise a completely immersive experience for customers. These two facets, alongside the essential base, hardware, create the perfect trio of interactivity. People can underestimate the role AV technology will play in the future of traditional customer experience. Most in-person experiences such as retail stores, museums and stadiums have taken a considerable hit because of the pandemic restrictions, but as digitisation grows, these businesses must think of how they can bring the physical experience into the new digital age. High-quality visuals and the way customers can interact with them will no doubt be key to this. Taking retail as an example, we can clearly see how interactive displays can be used to optimise the visual customer experience while driving sales through product advertising DIGITAL INTERACTIVITY In our increasingly digital world, interactivity has slowly become the connecting bridge between human interaction and the online sphere. In the AV industry, interactivity is double-edged, encapsulating how AV providers use digital signage to engage customers, and how consumers respond. Tim Matthews, Senior Product Manager, TV and Visual Solutions for Vestel discusses. TIM MATTHEWS, SENIOR PRODUCT MANAGER TV AND VISUAL SOLUTIONS VESTEL 32KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE HOW BUSINESSES COULD USE INTERACTIVITY TO STREAMLINE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCEDIGITAL INTERACTIVITY 33 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINEin-store. If a customer sees a product they like on a screen they can click to see where this product is available in the store, creating a stress-free and easy-to-navigate shop. Evidently, visual effects and interactivity are intrinsically linked, however, this does not stop at just good digital signage. Beyond visual: light, motion, sensor! There are two key ways businesses can take this to the next level. Firstly, by using sensors, businesses can put understanding the customer at the centre of their strategy which will lead to positive interactions. Most customer-facing businesses will know that a successful business is as much about cultivating a brand as it is about selling a good product or service, and both can be achieved by shaping the environment in which the customer finds themselves. By using sensors for voice, light, motion and temperature, businesses can have the ability to not only guide the consumer but shape their whole environment. For example, analytics can be implemented into AV technology that can determine what type of consumer is looking at the screen and suggest possible products of interest as a result. It’s a win-win, not only enhancing the customer experience by making it more personalised but also allowing retailers to leverage their in-store merchandise through screens, and eventually drive revenue growth. Furthermore, light sensors allow the AV technology to control brightness and energy consumption so information is always accessible and can be read, regardless of the external environment, such as natural light, or obscuring screens. It may seem simple but allowing customers to see clearly what’s available to them will make them much more likely to engage with a brand. Additionally, installing proximity sensors on the displays allows the brightness to be automatically lowered when no one is close DIGITAL INTERACTIVITY 34KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINEDIGITAL INTERACTIVITY 35 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE by in order to save energy, which of course is not only great for saving costs but also great for the environment and demonstrates to consumers a commitment to keeping energy consumption as low as possible. Covid conscious Sensors are also critical in this new age, where the Covid-19 pandemic has heavily influenced the way people engage with one another and spaces. Implementing motion sensors in retail spaces can help alleviate the increase in anxieties brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, by informing shoppers of the current footfall in-store so they can avoid busy periods if needed, thus demonstrating how businesses are prioritising customer welfare. By informing shoppers of the current footfall in-store they can avoid crowded stores, and additional sensors such as temperature and air quality sensors can allow businesses to monitor virus risk, so consumers feel safer and more comfortable. Information for all While sensors offer more depth to the interactive experience, it is important not to forget how crucial audio is. Language and voice technology are not commonly associated with AV screens, but it is integral to not only the success of customer engagement but also to create an inclusive environment that is accessible to all. Nearly half of the population worldwide today is bilingual, so multil-language availability is more important than ever before. Moreover, in spaces where multiple languages are being spoken, language functionality is invaluable to an optimised customer experience. In an airport for example, where passengers from any corner of the globe come together in one shared space, interactive screens with multi-language options allow for an inclusive experience with displays no matter their native language. Not only that, but according to a 2021 report it was found that not only was general customer satisfaction higher when multi-language options were available but also it was found to increase brand loyalty. Additionally, harking back to the retail space, using voice technology as the role of ‘greeter’ allows businesses to help customers upon arrival with any questions they may have, which in turn saves on training costs and frees up staff for deployment elsewhere in store. Harnessing interactivity Finally, having taken these two first points into consideration, the final step to the perfect interactive experience for a streamlined customer experience is hardware. Businesses need to be looking for the best hardware that is able to support their customer experience offerings. It is no use knowing about all these factors without being able to apply them. Finding an AV supplier that can provide a tailored and complete interactive offering is as much about optimising a customer’s experience as it is about boosting brand reputation. As we look forward, businesses looking to offer the best customer experiences must realise the power that interactivity holds and how they can engage with it to their advantage. By tailoring interactive digital experiences with proper sensors and audio, businesses offer themselves the best chance of overall customer satisfaction. With the market ever-moving towards digital and every future generation expecting interactive digital signage as a baseline for all of their business experiences in all sectors, companies would do well to adopt and engage with the latest technologies available to expand and retain a loyal customer base. In essence, the perfect ingredients for a streamlined customer experience through interactivity boils down to three things: strong visuals, sensor technology and audio. MOVERS AND SHAKERS 36KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE MOVERS AND SHAKERS A round up of promotions, structural changes and new recruits across the kiosk and digital signage industry PEERLESS-AV ANNOUNCES UK EXPANSION AND RELOCATION Peerless-AV has announced the relocation of its UK team to a new office and warehouse location in St Albans, Hertfordshire. This larger space will better accommodate the rapid growth of Peerless-AV EMEA and facilitate future potential warehouse expansion enabling the business to continue to bring the highest quality service to customers. The location perfectly complements the Peerless- AV warehouse facility in The Netherlands, servicing its rapidly expanding mainland European business. Peerless-AV’s new UK location is up and running, fully stocked, and operating as usual. Keith Dutch, MD– EMEA, Peerless-AV commented, “We’re delighted to officially announce our UK relocation after a busy few months of meticulous planning. Moving our warehouse has been a major step, but essential to match our ambition for continued growth after a hugely successful past several years, and to strengthen efficiencies in our operations, logistics and order fulfilment in line with this. We now have an increased capacity for stock held locally to address demand both in the UK and internationally. Staff have worked tirelessly to ensure a smooth transition with zero downtime or disruption for customers and I’m very proud of their support in making this move successful.” The new office is based in Curo Park industrial estate, located between Radlett and St Albans, between junction 21a and 22 of the M25 and close to junction 6 and 8 of the M1. DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR CELEBRATES 15 YEARS AT INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY Innovative Technology’s Development Director, John Robinson, has celebrated 15 years’ service with the company. After working his way up through the ranks at ITL, Robinson was appointed to the Board of Directors in 2016, taking responsibility for all product development. Commenting on Robinson’s longstanding achievement, Peter Dunlop, Group Managing Director said, “John is a vital asset to ITL and has been instrumental in ensuring our products are developed to the highest standard. Having been promoted several times within our Research & Development division, John is key to its growth. He has a passion for engineering and shares his technical skills and experience with the team and local students, inspiring the next generation of engineers.” Robinson commented, “ITL has always aspired to create revolutionary products and I will continue to build on this, creating state-of-the-art products that also present exceptional value for our customers.” ITL is celebrating an inspiring 30 years in business this year. Founded in 1992 by David Bellis MBE, the Oldham based firm was created with the aim to design and manufacture cost effective banknote validation equipment. In 1994 the company launched its first product, the NV1, and its iconic Smiley bezel was born. Following on from its successful development of affordable banknote validators, it expertly expanded its product range and grew on an international scale. Commenting on the company’s impressive milestone, founder and Chairman, David Bellis MBE, said, “Over the past 30 years, ITL has flourished, and we have established ourselves as a leading provider of cash handling equipment enabling customers to automate cash payments throughout the world; manufacturing multi-coin hoppers, banknote validators and recyclers that handle millions of transactions every day. This desire to continually innovate has led to the development of our biometric solutions division which allows customers to easily add age estimation and access control functionality to existing equipment or premises. We now have over 350 staff and numerous office locations worldwide plus a global network of Trading Partners – not a bad result from humble beginnings working out of my conservatory!” LOREM IPSUM DOLOR SIT AMET KDS Magazine is the leading technical journal for manufacturers, integrators and deployers of self service terminals and digital signage. Published on a bi-monthly basis, KDS features news, articles and features from industry leading bodies, and the very latest information on the innovative technology used in our exciting industry. Past issues can be found on our website: www.kdseurope.com, along with news, features and information on events throughout the year. Our media pack can also be accessed on our website HERE. www.kdseurope.com | sales@kdseurope.com | editor@kdseurope.comNext >