On Dividing Your Digital Signage Screen Real Estate

Your screen space is limited. Meanwhile, there is no limit to the content and advertising you can display across your network. Whether you're deploying a digital signage software solution in a casino, restaurant, convention center, or across a college campus, there will always be a question about how to best leverage your screen real estate. Should you allow one piece of content or a single ad to dominate the entire display? Or, should you divide your displays into separate sections?

We'll take a look at this issue in detail below. We'll begin by discussing whether partitioning your digital signs is appropriate given the goals of your network and its audience. You'll also learn how the changing perceptions of your audience will play a larger role in the decision going forward. Lastly, we'll explore ways to fill the zones of your partitioned screens.

Dividing your displays into multiple areas allows you to reach different segments of your audience at the same time. Some passersby may be interested in specific content, yet bored - and even irritated - by advertising. Others may be drawn to ads that address their immediate needs while remaining indifferent to content they find irrelevant.

One of the most common approaches to this problem is to split the real estate into three sections. The largest section occupies the top left portion of the screen; a smaller section occupies the top right; and a small sliver of space is left at the bottom for a ticker. Other configurations are also prevalent, including one that splits the top right portion into three equally-sized spaces.

But is such a split appropriate? Does providing your audience with multiple streams of information help them, or pose a distraction? The answer is not simple. Much depends on the venue in which your digital signage network is deployed, the network's purpose, and the people who watch it.

Consider a train station that sees a constant stream of hurried commuters throughout each day. These people have very little time to stare at DOOH screens. As a result, they are unlikely to watch a given segment for more than a few seconds.

If you are displaying ads, your advertisers will likely resist any attempts to split your screens. They realize this type of venue warrants delivering a single message quickly to passersby. If, on the other hand, you are aggregating data about scheduling, weather, and other pieces of information that are immediately useful to commuters, partitioning your displays makes sense.

Now, consider a hospital waiting room. The audience is likely less rushed, and thus has more time to watch your screens. Streaming ads, content, news headlines, and even stock prices, may be appropriate. Different venue, different audience, and different frame of mind.

Traditionally, experts have suggested that displaying multiple messages would do little more than distract viewers from your primary message. While this is still true, there are signs it is changing. Consumers are growing more accustomed to addressing multiple demands for their attention. As a result, they are better able to focus on things that are important to them while neglecting those that are less so. Partitioning a digital signage display is less likely to have an adverse effect on your audience when done properly in the right environments.

As a rule, displaying two ads at the same time rarely leads to positive results (the above discussion regarding changing audience perceptions notwithstanding). It is better to blend content with advertising on a split screen. A popular approach among DOOH network operators is to stream entertaining or useful content on the left alongside a rotation of short ad spots on the right. Because people read from left to right, they see the ads without feeling the spots are overbearing.

As with all things regarding digital signage, venue, audience, and messaging matter. So each should play a role in deciding whether to partition your screens, and if so, how best to do it.