BroadSign Extends Ad Targeting Platform To Smartphones
April 20, 2016 by Dave Haynes
Montreal-based, ad-centric, signage software firm BroadSign has started making noise about a new mobile product – helpfully called BroadSign Mobile and aimed at digital OOH networks, notably retail ones.
The company has a deal with Denver’s Xprnc Media to blend conventional digital OOH marketing on 55-inch displays with directly tied and target mobile messaging.
Here’s how it works:
BroadSign has for years been strong and largely focused on hyper-targeted ad messaging to display screens. Now BroadSign-generated campaigns can have optional mobile campaign components.
Bryan Mongeau, VP Technology for BroadSign, says a user seeing and stopping at a screen in a retail (or other setting) can interact and bridge content to a smartphone in several ways, including beacons (if there is retailer or other, related app), eddystone-urls that go to the messaging layer on Android and iOS phones, NFC, QR codes, SMS or just using short urls. Whatever the method, the action initiates a browser page load (unless an app is used, then it’s in the app).
That browser load hits BroadSign’s servers, and the platform identifies the screen and which mobile-enabled campaigns are running at that exact moment. “We use that data to dynamically construct a mobile menu and send it back to the browser,” explains Mongeau.
The user looks over the mobile menu, and can decide to do things like redeem a coupon or get more info on a product, by clicking a banner. BroadSign registers that as a “proof of interaction” and then re-directs the mobile browser to the destination microsite.
Xprnc Media provides ad and messaging screens in what looks primarily to be indie music and entertainment retailers. The company hopes to grow to 300 locations in the next two years, and now reaches about 300,000 consumers monthly.
Adding this new layer makes sense to Michael Fitts, President/CEO at Xprnc Media. “This comes at a time when 85% of all consumers use their mobile devices at retail to obtain product information toward purchase decisions, as well as coupons and discounts. Our media consumers are the perfect niche to reach on mobile devices based on their desire to see and hear media before purchasing.”
Xprnc Media runs five-minute loops with 15-second slots. Half of the content is dedicated to advertising, while 20% of screen time is used for custom messaging by local managers, using BroadSign’s online content and messaging Creator.
This is certainly not the first iteration of mobile tie-ins. Other companies – Real Digital Media, ComQi, Mood Media and Capital Networks, off the top of my head – have some things with tech like dynamic NFC and audio notifiers. But this appears to be pretty robust, and I like how it is not placing all the bets on one or two things but essentially letting consumers whatever way in they prefer.
Increasingly, digital sign screens are just another screen to push/pull content, so companies that recognize that and don’t stay silo’d as just signage display delivery tools are being smart.
reaching the ‘BroadSign’s servers’ could be tricky if the user does not have an internet connection! The Dynamic DTAG100 could be driven by a localised server driving the user to the dedicated destination, albeit a coupon, or even navigational directions without relying on cloud servers and connectivity. The User can then access the required destination when they have a suitable connection to the web