Digital Signage Magic: Simple Upselling for Complex Goals

It takes a lot of effort to build effective marketing communication with your customer. It’s more than just supporting an offer/purchase method, but rather being on the same page and being connected with your customer’s needs. However, once you establish this bond, you might ask yourself – where can I go from there? How can I increase customer engagement? And finally – how can I get them to buy more?Have you ever bought a subscription for an online service? If you have, then you might have been offered an additional integration into the service or something that would improve your experience. That’s called upselling – encouraging the customer to buy something that would expand or upgrade the primary purchase. This technique is widespread: everything from retail to online games. If you own a brick-and-mortar venue (a store, a cafe or a real estate showroom) – you should consider digital signage software as a versatile upselling tool. And here are some important steps to keep in mind.

Visual Storytelling

The biggest issue with upselling in 2019 is that customers are aware that you will attempt to get them to buy more. They are too savvy to not see through the CTA’s like, “Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought...” And while you may find yourself struggling with the “sell more” strategy in your digital signage, you miss out the original goal of any product or service you offer. You’d choose a dessert after your meal because you have a sweet tooth. You’d buy extra batteries for your camera because you want to have a better experience with it. The real success with upselling in digital signage and targeted suggestions are based on a single element: a customer’s delight.What if I told you that your digital signage (whether we talk about one screen or a hundred) can become your main upselling channel? What if I told you that to successfully upsell anything, you need to create a consistent visual story? It might seem far-fetched, but it’s real. Studies show that people are 85 percent more likely to buy a product after viewing a product video. Furthermore, people form a first impression in less than a second. Certainly, that’s a small span of time to grab the attention of your target audience once they’ve made a purchase. But it’s enough when it comes to visual storytelling. Every time your upselling digital signage ad says something too generic, like “this dress goes well with these shoes,” or “improve this TV network with that media player,” it becomes nothing but an annoying piece of BS. But if you add context to your digital signage content for upselling, you give it a context: “This game takes the world by storm, purchase this media player along with that TV set and become the sheriff in the Wild West without leaving your room.” See? You add a story and now you can engage your customer into buying more.

The Right Language

Customers are becoming more and more sophisticated in terms of marketing interactions. Once they see a screen in your venue, they expect the ad, they expect a monologue. But that’s exactly what it shouldn’t be like. Certainly, CTA’s are an effective way to motivate customers into buying, but it’s the connection with the product and the service that makes a long-lasting bond. And that’s where CTAs appear to be the least effective in the long run. CTA-driven content tends to be easily spotted by the audience, who are overwhelmed with false claims and generic images.However, it doesn’t mean you should get rid of the CTA’s in your upselling ads. It means you should adapt them to fit your audience. When it comes to digital signage advertising, you might have a tendency to use imperatives like, “buy this new product now.” There’s little room for argument, there’s an urgent demand to buy “now.” And while it might seem like the customer subconsciously has nowhere to back out. Such an imperative approach can backfire when applied to upselling – it can be too heavy for customers who have already made their purchases and are willing to get to it as soon as possible. The language you choose for your digital signage matters a lot. The words, the tone, the symbolism, and connotations – they influence the customer’s decision on a subconscious level. Focus on something people can relate to. Something that is true, or at least seems to be. Something that evokes genuine interest and connects with the audience on a personal level. Adjectives that describe the product, verbs that allow the customers to see the applications – the possibilities of persuasion are vast. Furthermore, the language of your advertising for digital signage is not just words per se, but visuals in general. The color palette, the video plot, the scheme. There’s one fundamental thing you should always keep in mind when creating digital signage content – keep it simple, keep it relevant.

Relevant vs Intrusive

Speaking of relevancy, have you ever noticed how tiresome over-imperative or vague ads are? Just as much as your customers and visitors pursue clearly defined benefits from your products or services (or even the atmosphere or brand’s status), they need a clear message about the benefits (products, services or even the atmosphere), they require a clear and valuable message visualized with your digital signage content. You own a vegan restaurant, and you want to offer your clients additional items from your menu – use your digital signage screens to show how this or that meal can enhance their lunch experience. Obviously, you might want to engage the clients of your gym into additional training courses – create a video message displaying the exact benefits these courses have. It’s all about the value. However, it’s equally important to get your message across smoothly. Don’t be intrusive, don’t force your clients and customers into buying. Create an appeal to buy. Broaden the scope of your digital signage content from showcasing the products and services you need to upsell to adding the extra value. Go beyond excessively obvious visual marketing techniques. There's one simple and effective idea to consider: when you try talking about the product and its features, when you’re establishing straightforward marketing communication – you’re being intrusive, you breach the personal space of your customer or client. On the other hand, try educating people with something they might find useful about this product, show them the benefits. That’s how you create the type of trust that lasts longer than upselling campaigns and discounts. Remember, 65 percent of the population are visual learners.The relevancy of your digital signage content is something you pay close attention to. The moment your customers find the message of your upsell visual content relevant, they will make an effort to consider your offer. Once they accept the idea of going an extra mile in their purchases, they are likely to ask your staff for details or even make the purchase. On the flip side, once your customers are surrounded by irrelevant digital signage messages, or make an effort to go deeper into your offers only to find they do not match their expectations – they experience a sense of pressure and feel negatively toward your brand or service. Keeping your upsell content relevant and targeted is the key to establishing healthy and effective marketing communication with your clientele. Know your audience. Know how to speak to them. And know when to speak.

Timing Is Everything

Finding the perfect time to visually approach your client about additional products or services is crucial. Should you offer extra purchases after your customer makes a primary one via your interactive screens, or after he establishes an interest while browsing through your catalog on one of your displays? Pitching an upsell is effective after helping to execute a win for the customer. It makes sense to deepen the sales engagement once you have a customer who has already ordered or purchased an item, but is still at your venue: in your store, cafe or club. Your customer’s journey begins from the first interaction with your brand: online ad, or DOOH marketing. It’s important, that you track every step your customer makes, to make your upsell strategy personalized and timely. It’s not a matter of pre- or post-purchase phase, but rather the moment, your customer is the most satisfied (after the first meal or expecting the order at the counter). According toOracle research, 72 percent of global consumers say that the buying experience is important when visiting a brick-and-mortar store. Customers go in for your products and services because they need sensations. Test and find the right time slots to enhance customer experience with your upselling via digital signage.