How To Improve Customer Journey With Digital Signage

Customer journey enhancement with digital signage is what this technology is all about. And the great news is that screens can help at every stage of the journey. The versatility of content delivery and the immense attention-grabbing powers of displays make it happen. Let us show you exactly how digital signage enhances the customer experience.

What is a customer journey? 

We’re talking about the core of the marketing theory here. Customer journey is the basic thing every company needs to get figured out before stepping into the market. 

The customer journey consists of all the actions a person performs when interacting with a brand, business, or product. 

Hubspot defines the customer journey as "the series of interactions a customer has with a brand, product, or business as they become aware of a pain point and make a purchase decision."

Adobe’s definition is “a series of steps — starting with brand awareness before a person is even a customer — that leads to a purchase and eventual customer loyalty”.

The customer journey is not to be confused with the buyer’s journey.

The first encompasses steps from the initial awareness of the product to the interactions that go beyond the purchase (like spreading the word and retaining customers). Buyer’s journey is about the steps your business takes to make a person make a purchase. Customer journey is about the all-encompassing strategy to retain them.

Here’s a good visualization of the difference between the two from Impulsecreative:

What is the customer journey map?

One of the most important elements of a successful marketing strategy is having a customer journey map. This will help your business understand the customer and every action that’s done at every stage of his interaction with your brand or product. 

Forbes has done a great job visualizing the customer journey map:

As you can see there are 5 stages that each have their touchpoints and correlate with the customer's thoughts.

A successful customer journey map is a complex piece of marketing strategy that gives businesses a chance to understand what’s in the mind of a customer, how the interaction with the brand is done, and what can be improved. 

There are various approaches to what constitutes the stages of the customer journey, though. We also love this visualization from Adobe, it’s very straightforward:

This is the one we will use for the sake of this article to show you how to reach the customer journey enhancement with digital signage.

How digital signage enhances the customer experience

As one of the most effective marketing tools available, digital signage is a powerful feature to add to the operations of your business. Here are some of the advantages of the screens when it comes to the customer experience: 

- versatility - you can experiment with different content types and change what’s broadcasted in a matter of seconds

- attention-grabbing factor - the customers are guaranteed to see what you’re showing

- interactability - engagement is absolute when it comes to the screens

- impact - displays really make the difference in a physical space

With all these features, you get yourself an effective tool to use for making the customer journey better and having more sales. 

Naturally, the screens work the best during the awareness stage of the customer journey due to their stand-out character. But in reality, the digital signs can be used on every stage to fantastic results. You just have to use them wisely and take into account the customer’s wishes and interests.

Customer journey enhancement with digital signage: step-by-step

Let’s take the example of a retail clothing store at a shopping mall to illustrate the power of digital signage when crafting a superb customer journey. 

It’s important to state that digital signage exists in the real world and doesn’t follow the patterns that characterize the customer journey online. As attention spa is incredibly low nowadays, you only have a few seconds to make the customer look your way. 

That’s why the lines between the journey stages are blurred and the content can fulfill several goals at once.

Awareness stage

Window screens are perfect for nurturing the interest of potential customers. It can be single screens or powerful video walls to grab the attention more effectively. 

The content that works perfectly for the awareness stage is the one that best represents your brand, has an inspirational or creative edge, and makes customers stop and stare. 

If you’re a clothing store, the content featuring social media influencers and celebrities would work best during the awareness phase. It will spark interest and make sure that your brand stays in the mind of the potential customer. 

Consideration stage

Once you’ve grabbed the attention during awareness, it’s essential to take steps to retain it and turn it into serious consideration. Screens again will work great for that. If awareness-focused content is more about the visual, consideration puts the emphasis on practicality. 

Show what makes your brand stand out, give stats that prove you’re the best, and give the reasons why your clothes are different and win the customer’s mind by explaining how your store solves his problem.

While the awareness is mostly about the window and outdoor screens, the consideration stage is best mastered inside the store.  

Purchase stage

When the customer is ready to make a purchase, it shouldn’t be in vain marketing-wise. The counter is where the buying magic happens and it shouldn’t be left unattended without the digital signage content. 

Redesign your cash desk to make the buyers loyal customers. Announce special programs for regular clients, advertise your loyalty program, announce special offers for returning customers, and promote social media accounts. Make this zone work for future purchases, not only the present-day ones. 

Retention and Advocacy stages

While the first three stages organically exist within the offline space of a brick-and-mortar retail store, retention, and advocacy are mostly online phenomena. In other words, they are best done on the Internet. That doesn’t mean that digital signage has no role here. 

Every screen in your store can combine different content types to include potential, first-time, and returning customers in the mix. 

That allows you to show inspirational and motivational content for one second and then run a customer survey with digital signage. You can ask for feedback using screens, organize social media challenges, interact directly with your loyal customers, and encourage first-time buyers to register on the special loyalty programs. 

Basically, digital signage capabilities when it comes to customer interactions are truly limitless so every business can find something for itself.