Blogpost was published on December 6, 2022
Did you know you can set up digital signage for your small business yourself? We call this DIY digital signage.
Here’s what you need to know about DIY digital signage for small businesses including the benefits, what you’ll need, content ideas, troubleshooting, how to get started, and more!
Digital signage is a powerhouse for any size company, but especially for small businesses. Here’s why you need digital signage for your small business no matter the industry.
Learn more about why your business needs digital signage
In the digital age, customers expect companies to keep up with the times. They want modern, technologically advanced companies, even if they are small businesses. Digital signage not only appeals to your customers by being dynamic, engaging, and useful, but it is also modern and sleek which is exactly what your customers want.
Corporate companies have a much higher marketing and advertising budget than small businesses, but luckily, digital signage is as budget-friendly as you need it to be. There are hardware options for all budgets, and here at Play Digital Signage, you only pay for what you use so there are no unnecessary fees.
Digital signage is a versatile tool for small businesses. It can be used for entertainment, information, emergency situations, advertisement, announcements, and so much more. We’ll give you some small business digital signage content ideas below.
Digital signage doesn’t require an entire marketing or IT department. It can be set up by anyone who knows how to get on the internet– it’s that easy! At Play Digital Signage, we have all the information you need to know plus step-by-step digital signage videos, so you can set up and manage everything yourself.
Digital Advertising helps make your business more profitable, Read more.
There are two main options for digital signage as a small business. The first is hiring a full-service digital signage company. They have their own hardware specific to their software which they come and set up, create content, and manage for you.
Full-service digital signage companies seem like a great idea, but there are some major drawbacks. For one, it’s quite expensive between initial set-up costs and long-term management fees. Additionally, you cannot change, edit, or troubleshoot anything with your digital signage without going through the company and being on its terms and timeline.
There are others, but just those give you a good idea of why most small businesses choose to go with the other option which is to “DIY” digital signage. DIY digital signage for small businesses means that you’ll have to set up, design, and manage everything yourself, though as we listed above, there are a ton of benefits that come along with that.
In case you were wondering Play Digital Signage, falls into the latter category as we give you the software and resources to create your own DIY digital signage for your small business.
Read the blog post Best Digital Signage!
So, if you decide to go the DIY digital signage route, here’s what you’ll need.
The first piece of hardware you’ll need for DIY digital signage is a digital signage screen. There are a lot of choices on the market.
Smart TVs are a popular choice because they are a two-in-one option as they have a built-in digital signage media player which we will go into detail about below. A tablet is also a two-in-one choice and is great if you want a touchscreen. Basic TV screens in any size or large video LED screens can be used as digital signage screens as well.We mentioned digital signage media players above, but what does that mean? The digital signage media player is the second and final piece of hardware that you’ll need for DIY digital signage.
The media player is what connects the screen to the digital signage software which we will get to in just a minute. Without the media player, your digital signage screen wouldn’t display any content.
Smart TVs, tablets, and high-end digital signage-specific screens have media players built into them, so they function as your screen and media player. Otherwise, examples of digital signage players include Firesticks and mini PCs.
Each media player has its own benefits and disadvantages which is why we have tested a sampling from every price point. Take a look at the results of our testing here.
Finally, digital signage software is the last thing you’ll need to complete your DIY small business digital signage. The digital signage software is what will manage your content. It takes your content and the settings and sends it to your player which is connected to your screen for it to display.
When you choose Play Digital Signage, our software is in the cloud and comes with a full-featured content editor so you can access and design your content from anywhere. We eliminate the need to be in the same physical location as your setup or pay for a third-party content editor.
So you’ve got all the pieces you need for DIY digital signage for your small business, but what are you supposed to display?! Well, here are a few digital signage content ideas for small businesses to give you some inspiration.
One of the main things digital signage screens are often used for is to pass along information to your customers in the same way traditional printed signs would. For instance, rather than having signs about specials you are running, operating hours, instructions, and safety, you can display all of that on one or more screens! Digital signage also works great for menus if you own a coffee shop or restaurant.
The other popular use for digital signage is for guest or customer entertainment. Have your company’s social media feed scroll on the screen, play a video, give fun facts, or display a slideshow of photos. There are endless ways to entertain your audience using digital signage.
Remember how having a touchscreen was a digital signage hardware option? Well, if you opt for hardware with touch functionality, you can use your digital signage to collect data from your customers.
In the retail environment, this may mean having customers enter their email to get discounts or even their shipping address to order something that’s not in stock. Hotels and resorts can use digital signage screens to collect check-in information.
This is an often overlooked digital signage content idea that can improve your efficiency.
Most of us never consider an emergency happening with our small business, but since we can’t predict the future, it is absolutely necessary to prepare just in case. In these situations, your customers are not going to know what to do and are going to panic. When you use Play Digital Signage, you’re able to create emergency protocols that will activate and display instructions on all of your screens if you are ever in a position where you need them.
Another content idea for your digital signage as a small business is advertising. Not only can you advertise your own products, services, and sales, but you can also display third-party advertisements. Third-party advertisements are content that you receive from other companies to display to your customers.
As you know, companies pay for advertising so by having digital signage you are at a unique advantage to charge for your screen space. The more foot traffic you have, the more you can charge, but regardless of how much you decide to charge, this is a great way to have an additional source of income. Profits from third-party advertising can be used to offset the cost of digital signage, too.
We briefly told you above that we had all the resources you need for DIY digital signage, so let’s talk about where to look when you need help.
There are two comprehensive online resources we have curated to assist you with almost any digital signage troubles.
The first is our extensive help section. In the help section, we give step-by-step details on how to use Play Digital Signage features, how to set up hardware, compatibility information, and other frequently asked questions. You’ll also find that many of the guides have YouTube videos that accompany them as well.
The other Play Digital Signage online resource that is helpful is our blog where we break down digital signage considerations, options, and content ideas for specific industries, give more in-depth information about digital signage hardware, and spotlight some of the features that make our software unique.
If you have a specific issue with your content or screens that you haven’t been able to figure out using online resources, our customer support team is here to help. On the bottom of any page of our website, you’ll find a chat icon that will connect you to one of our LIVE experts.
Our customer service chat is available 24/7 and is never operated by artificial intelligence or computer bots. You’ll get personalized help from one of our trained staff any time of day or night!
We know that digital signage as a whole and all of the features we offer can be overwhelming which is why you can also schedule a live demonstration. We’ll walk you through the features you’ll need based on your company’s unique goals over video chat so that you can be confident from the start.
This is also a great option for training others if you choose to have one or more employees join you in creating and managing your digital signage.
Sign up for Play Digital Signage and get started building your DIY digital signage setup in 3 easy steps.
Once you have completed these three steps, simply set everything up where you want it, open the content editor in your Play Digital Signage account, and get to designing content!
Start with our latest and most-read blog posts.
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If you haven’t found what you were looking for here, we still have lots to show you! Check out sample digital signage solutions by industry to see how digital signage fits into your business, case studies from those who have come before you to see how they have taken advantage of digital signage, or reach out to us using the live chat below with any questions you might have!
