KioskCom Self Service Expo and The Digital Signage Show
Mandalay Bay Convention Center, Las Vegas– May 6-7, 2009

Keynote Presentation (Day 1)

KioskCom opened with a keynote address called Full Service, Self-Service, outlining Delta Air Lines transition toward integrating self-service touch points into the consumer experience. “When you embark on a self-service venture, cost cannot be your only goal,” said Joshua Weiss, Managing Director of Delta Airlines’ Delta.com, Self-Service, & CRM. Mr. Weiss addressed a packed room. “Self-service is about offering a consistent experience across all consumer touch points,” said Mr. Weiss.

The way people interact with media has changed. No matter what the media platform is, people expect their brands to be available to them all the time. The challenge for marketers is to provide a consistent experience across print, broadcast, online, and mobile media.

Delta has just completed a merger with Northwest Airlines, making Delta the world’s largest airline. The merger has required the integration of both airlines’ systems while maintaining a seamless experience for consumers.

“The way to the future isn’t about expensive hardware,” said Mr. Weiss. Marketers need a strategy that puts the customer in control of their experience. Self-service is about having options and providing a streamlined experience for the end-user.

Self-service needs to be front and center to be successful. Delta’s self-service strategy is multifaceted, including new product development, interface design for improved usability, and facilities changes to streamline the flow of traffic through their terminals. The end result has yielded higher customer satisfaction and increased productivity for Delta—80% of customers now use self-service through delta.com.

Conference Sessions

KioskCom presented a wide range of conference sessions spanning digital signage and kiosk deployment. Pat Hellberg, President, Kaicon LLC moderated a session aimed at understanding the advertiser’s rationale when evaluating a media buy in the digital out-of-home space. The session, If You’re Not on the Plan, You’re Not in the Buy: The How’s & Why’s Behind DOOH Ad Purchasing by Brands, included two panelist. Gerald Johnson, Vice President of Marketing Communications, ConAgra, represented the brand manager’s point of view, and Rocky Gunderson, VP, Marketing and Network Development at Seesaw Networks, represented the video advertising networks perspective.

There are challenges that the digital out-of-home industry needs to overcome to reach mainstream status. Chief among them is higher quality analytics, better standards, and improved creative execution. While research has shown several strong examples of the effectiveness of digital out-of-home, the industry still struggles to gain traction. “There’s a huge infrastructure within advertising agencies that supports traditional media,” said Mr. Johnson. That traditional media mindset will take time to recognize the value proposition of digital out-of-home, not only for their clients, but for their agency's revenue stream.

“There’s a lot of ‘prove it’ in the upfront conversation,” said Mr. Gunderson, referring to the media buyers and planners at agencies. For digital out-of-home to be truly successful, networks need to minimize the risk for brands to engage with the medium.

There needs to be a return on investment for brands.
“ROI equals validation,” said Mr. Johnson. Networks need to demonstrate that the medium is working, the message is being delivered, and sales lift is being achieved. “The network is the means to drive transactions.”

It is important for the industry to translate the technology and the capabilities of this medium into a language that marketers can understand. How are you selling the message? What are the real benefits? “Once we understand who the audience is, we can talk about how to engage that audience,” said Mr. Gunderson.

Understand Why Digital Out-of-Home Is the 2nd Fastest Growing Ad-based Media, a comprehensive perspective on the current state of the digital signage industry, was presented by Patrick Quinn, President & CEO, PQ Media, one of the most respected researchers tracking the economics of the medium.

“Traditional media continues to lose viewers, readers, and
listeners. Consumers are increasingly multitasking different
media and skipping ads,” said Mr. Quinn. Changes in
consumer behavior have created opportunities for digital
out-of-home media, however according to Mr. Quinn’s
research, digital out-of-home will need another 1 to 3 years
before it reaches the “tipping point” and becomes mainstream.

The path to becoming mainstream was outlined in Mr. Quinn’s
Top 10 Drivers for Future Success of Digital Out-of-Home Networks:

1. Unique Value Proposition – ROI metrics that offer a favorable comparison to other advertising media.

2. Measurement – Viewer engagement and the development of a common currency.

3. Interactivity – Networks must incorporate online and mobile platforms.

4. Targeting – Demographics, psychographics, and geo-targeting.

5. Creative – Contextual content is vital to increase dwell time.

6. Venue – Stationary environment versus transient environment (point-of-decision & longer dwell times)

7. Exclusivity – Control the venue through partnerships and by limiting competition.

8. Venue-based Media – Integrating networks with other marketing strategies.

9. Scale and Cluster – National and designated market area (DMA) footprint with numerous touch points.

10. Capital Expenditure – Targeted screen locations versus “build it and they will come” methodology.



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