Despite the growth of online stores, shopping malls still have a presence in the retail industry. Due to the amount of traffic that visits shopping malls, they’ve become a central location for brands looking to meet each customer’s needs. Naturally, this has led to massive competition for businesses to attract the largest audience. But as online shopping has taken over and stores see less foot traffic, malls need new ways to keep attracting in-store customers.

Competition, as well as these other factors, have made innovative technologies like digital signage a necessity for most businesses in shopping malls. Digital signage is literally what its name suggests: LCD monitors you can use throughout your store that displays offers, ads, traditional store signage, videos, or any other information you want to relay to customers.

In this article, we’ll be looking at a few shopping mall digital signage ideas to increase footfall.   

Getting Creative: Shopping Mall Digital Signage Ideas

Capturing and keeping the attention of humans in the current digital age can be a challenge. According to a report by Microsoft, the average human loses focus after eight seconds, while a goldfish has an attention span of nine seconds. 

To that end, one of the benefits of digital signage for malls is that they can be effective tools for captivating the attention of potential customers and keeping the interest of old ones. Effective mall digital signage will drive more engagement, improve customer experience, and save your business time and resources. The following practical tips will help to capture the attention of walk-in customers:

Navigation and Wayfinding

Can’t find your way from the food court to your favorite store? Unfortunately, getting lost at a shopping mall is an experience most of us have gone through, and it’s so common that a famous psychological study is named after it. The occasional kiosk with a big map and a tiny “you are here” dot can confuse shoppers, especially if it’s not updated to match the current businesses. 

You can leverage mall digital signage for personalized navigation and wayfinding experiences. Thanks to digital signage on the mall’s central hall, all the shopper has to do to find your store is to locate the nearest info display, tap on your store, and follow the guideline to their destination. Ensure the updated map contains accurate information about your store since it will be on display at each connected kiosk in the mall. 

With 68% of mall shoppers claiming digital signage would make them more likely to make a purchase, using digital signage for navigation and wayfinding would be an effective way to bring more people into the store.

Retail Media

Digital signage allows you to turn any part of your retail store into an advertising opportunity packed with the most relevant information. There is no better time to promote customer engagement in your store than when they are already in your retail location and ready to spend. To avoid boring potential shoppers with basic content, you should consider using a series of different content types that could be played on a loop.

Finding the right content and digital signage software for your store might take some trial and error before finding the balance. The focus of content should be storytelling, enticing the shopper to act. For example, the MIX convenience store in Skoyen relies on digital signage to promote hot drinks during cold weather and ice creams in hot weather. Some of the top content to consider for your retail media include Promotional information, a 10-second advert for a new product, live social media feeds, customer reviews or testimonies, or season-specific content.

The location of retail media might vary from store to store, but they have to be in a visible place with lots of traffic. Here are some of the key areas you can place your retail media:

Entrance: You can leverage different digital signage solutions in various ways to support your business at the store’s entrance. Studies show shoppers are particularly receptive to videos and easily get carried away by them. The following are some of the common store entrance digital signage applied in most stores:

• Interesting facts about products on offer
• Digital welcome display at the entrance
• Interactive touchscreen displays showing product promotions
• Digital product information and pricing displays
• Social media display

Windows: Your outdoor digital signage is the first impression shoppers have with your store, and it has to be enticing enough for them to enter your shop. There are different approaches to window digital signage, which with the help of a digital signage CMS, can promote your retail media on different windows in an efficient way. According to various studies, combining digital signage with traditional window elements such as spotlights and mannequins can attract up to 30% more shoppers.    

In-store: There are many ways a business can implement digital signage in-store. The most common practice is digital displays which play your retail media to engage or attract shoppers. This is quite common among restaurants that highlight their menus digitally. Some big retailers like CVS, Target, and Walmart have also introduced self-checkout kiosks that help shoppers check out faster. You could also place interactive screens in different spots to keep your customers engaged and educated while in the store.

Personalized Experiences

According to a study by Twilio Segment, 44% of customers are likely to move to a different store if the one they are in isn’t personalized to their needs and wants. The number is continuing to rise following massive competition from eCommerce stores which can instantly personalize each shopper’s experience thanks to shopping history data and other markers. In addition, retailers can maximize customer experience by including smart mirrors, which will help shoppers who might need some assistance to find the right product.

For example, H&M features fitting rooms with smart mirrors that can identify a shopper’s product selection and provide personalized products or styling recommendations. Another great example is Nordstrom, which relies on digital signage to make shopping for jeans less frustrating. The store features a “Digital Denim Doctor” display that relies on filters, intelligent programming, and 360-degree imagery to give shoppers a full view of how the jeans fit.  

Augmented Reality

Augmented reality technology is one of the biggest trends in the digital signage industry. It’s only a matter of time before the full potential of the two technologies reaches shopping malls. Augmented reality is not new, but it is any form of computer-generated imagery mixed with a live view of the real world.

While we are still some way from adopting it as a standard technology, augmented reality and digital signage as a concept are wildly promising and powerful tools. For example, implementing augmented reality with wayfinding digital wayfinding means shoppers can create real-world digital guides who’ll show the shoppers your store. These digital guides can also share useful facts about a product or share other promotional information while guiding customers to your store.

Conclusion 

Digital signs remain a powerful tool for attracting potential customers in mall shopping centers. When setting up your digital signage network, it’s important to understand its purpose, which will help guide which is the best solution for your store and needs.

If you are looking for digital signage solutions to increase store footfall, look no further than Keyser. We provide digital signage displays for restaurants, retail environments, school and health systems, or anywhere you might need a digital screen to share up-to-date information. 

Contact Keyser today to learn more about our digital signage solutions.