Digital signage to light up channel in 2008

From specialist marketing to business opportunity, now is the time for VARs to turn to digital signage, writes David Smith

As I look back over the past 12 months to early 2007, I find that I am surprised at the sheer scale of developments that have been created within digital signage during this time. And as we enter 2008, I believe that this is one of the most exciting opportunities available to our channel.
Samsung has been involved in digital signage for many years. Because of its success to date, we believe that digital signage has become a consideration for both marketing and IT professionals. This can only be a good thing. In fact, in our biannual Samsung UK digital signage survey, 48.8 per cent of company respondents planned to increase their usage of digital signage.
We believe that a major driver of this is the increased use of screens for consumer marketing applications. As these company trials continue to deliver real results for businesses, we are seeing opportunities arise in almost every major sector. For example we have recently worked on several major deals that involve employee and student communications - with great feedback so far. These are two major markets in the UK and represent a significant and immediate growth opportunity for resellers.
Longer term, whether it is for company announcements, training, news distribution or information provision, we believe there are realistic applications for digital signage in just about every customer-based service organisation.
Despite market growth, we believe that there is still much to be done to ensure that the channel is fully equipped to source opportunities and maximise its involvement. For instance, manufacturers need to invest heavily in training and development programmes to improve reseller skills and should also provide incentives such as joint-marketing funds and consultative sales support to ensure that resellers have the tools they need to get the job done properly.
Similarly, it is important that manufacturers constantly innovate and introduce new technologies to keep the market growing. For instance, Samsung’s MagicNet technology enables entire digital signage solutions to be easily installed and run from a single terminal.
Any reseller already involved in this market should constantly reviews its skills, support and partners to ensure it is prepared to meet the ever-expanding opportunities within this market.
Those who do not currently operate in this space should consider how the market has changed and I think they will be surprised at where and how easy it is for them to get involved.
David Smith is IT business director at Samsung Electronics UK.