In a social-media-driven society where trends come and go in a matter of days, flexibility is a huge part of retail marketing and merchandising.

Digital signs let you highlight upcoming sales or in-store events and easily change your messaging to drive customer engagement, but there's a catch. Traditional digital signs have to plug into a wall outlet, which limits their usefulness. Resourceful merchandising teams need more agile and creative solutions to develop compelling, innovative, and adaptable retail media campaigns.

Portable battery-powered digital signage gives you the flexibility to deliver timely, targeted messages where they can most effectively reach your audience.

Use Cases for Battery-Operated, Portable Digital Signage

You're probably used to digital signs that you install in fixed locations. But if you want to hang a sign, you need a power supply and the space to install it. Even standalone digital displays can be cumbersome and create tripping hazards since you need to run a power cord to an outlet. 

While this model is great for standard messaging in your retail space, you're missing out on dynamic opportunities to reach your customers in the in-between spaces without power outlets. Whether you advertise in retail locations, event halls, or theme parks, one thing is universally true: Advertising needs in these spaces vary from day to day based on planogram changes or promotional events.

Standalone digital signs that you can move easily open up many possibilities for you to deliver valuable, relevant content on the spot, without the power cords.

Retail Environments With Limited Power Supply  

Even in the largest stores, there are only so many power outlets and many items competing for access. You can put battery-operated digital signs in places where plugging them in would be impractical or impossible, such as in fitting rooms or on checkout counters. 

When you want to bring your store to your customers with a pop-up shop, battery-operated signs are ideal. There's no extensive setup or permanent commitment. 

Similarly, you can use portable digital signs in shop-in-shop environments. They let you customize your setup in the host's retail setting without changing or damaging the space.

Rapidly-Changing Retail Stores

Fast fashion, experiential retail, and specialty stores are increasingly using modular designs to respond quickly to product drops and seasonal changes. Trend-based merchandising is a bleeding-edge strategy that relies on every facet of a space being dynamic and adaptable. 

When people are used to scrolling 30-second videos and dealing with constant distractions, you have to be clever and creative to grab their attention. Frequently mixing up your planogram can help you draw customers in to visit more often. Cordless signs aren't just easy to move to accommodate a changing layout—they also complement your strategy by making it easy for customers to find products that you've moved to a new location. 

With portable digital signs, you can make quick changes based on customer behavior patterns and foot traffic flow. Just as modular designs allow you to switch up your product placement and displays, cordless signs let you instantly refresh your store. You'll get faster turnaround for new deployments and better customer engagement with minimal installation costs. 

Retail Media Applications

Battery-powered digital signs can unlock additional opportunities for selling advertising space within your stores. You can set up advertisements directly where customers make purchasing decisions. For example, you can put signs on endcaps next to displays. You can even incorporate programmatic advertising into your retail media strategy and unlock additional advertising space. 

This type of campaign flexibility equates to better monetization and a faster ROI. With smart technology, advertisers can run A/B testing and automatically run better-performing ads based on immediate feedback. 

Festivals and Other Live, Outdoor Events

Brand-aligned outdoor events, such as festivals and sporting events, are a great way to meet your customers where they are and create positive associations. However, running extension cords to power digital signs is a tripping hazard and creates a less-than-professional look. Battery-operated signs maintain your brand integrity and build dynamic, immersive experiences. 

Beyond branding displays, portable signs can engage customers with activities such as trivia contests or replays of exciting moments during the big game. At festivals, you can display wayfinding information and provide live safety updates. 

Wayfinding

Helping people figure out where they are and how to get where they need to be is one of the most popular use cases for cordless digital signs. With cloud-controlled access, you can remotely push real-time updates with localized messages based on the time of day or traffic patterns. 

Airports can use portable displays to help travelers check in, find the right gate, or detour around construction. With screens that display messages in multiple languages, everyone can get the information they need. 

Healthcare organizations can use cordless signs to direct patients to the right department or as pop-up overflow management in triage areas. They can be set up in hallways or near elevators to give patients information about how long it will take them to walk to another section of the hospital. 

If you're coordinating an event at a convention center, battery-operated signs can display itineraries or speaker bios and direct attendees to meeting areas. You can even set the portable signs up to visually signal at specific times, such as blinking five minutes before a meeting begins or a speaker takes the stage. 

Interactive Displays

Your battery-operated digital signage isn't limited to a static display. It's an engaging, responsive tool that provides actionable value for your customers. Here are some interactive features you can program into your sign: 

Touchscreen Responsiveness

With touch panels, your customers can use your signs to navigate digital maps or look up information about products. They can also browse through your services or promotional offers to find what they need. 

Voice Activation

Add convenience and accessibility to your signage by incorporating voice-activated features powered by artificial intelligence. People can interact with the sign using natural language. They can ask questions such as "Where are the yoga mats?" or "Which shirts are on sale?" This provides accessibility support for your customers with disabilities and—as is the case with many accommodations—is more convenient for everyone. Touchless interactions are also more sanitary in environments such as food service or healthcare. 

Motion Sensors

If your digital sign is in an area where foot traffic is unpredictable, you can incorporate motion sensors to wake it up when customers pass by. This can help preserve battery life and reduce energy waste. You can also set the sign up to automatically switch from a brand ad to an interactive display when someone gets close enough. 

Display Technology in Battery-Powered Digital Signage

Most digital signs use LED technology, the same technology behind modern televisions and computer monitors. These signs are bright and ideal for showcasing even detailed graphics in crisp, high definition. Available in many different sizes, the screens support interactive features and videos, making them highly engaging. Although they can use a lot of power, there are steps you can take to conserve energy usage, and they're more eco-friendly than paper options. 

There have also been recent developments in e-paper options. This is the same type of display featured in e-readers such as the Kindle. While they don't have the same attention-grabbing power as LED signs, they're available in vivid full color, and they have an extremely low power draw. As crazy as it sounds, you could run an e-paper sign for 10 years on a coin cell battery. This type of sign is better for displays that don't need to change more than a few times a day, such as shelf-edge displays or tabletop signs featuring restaurant specials. E-paper signs also make an eco-friendly alternative to high-turnover point-of-purchase printed signage. 

Optimize Your Digital Signage With Glass Media

Incorporating battery-powered digital signs into your space gives you more flexibility to reach your customers with targeted messaging. These types of signs don't yet offer the simple, out-of-the-box solutions that traditional corded digital signs do, which is one reason retailers have been slower to adopt them. However, this lag means you have the chance to be an early adopter and give your business a competitive edge. 

Glass Media is leading the way in developing cordless digital signage solutions. Whether it’s curbside displays or wayfinding signage, we make it easy for brands to get their message across, without the hassle or hazards of cords. We combine strategy, storytelling, and engineering expertise to deliver end-to-end solutions that captivate audiences in new ways. Reach out today to discuss options for your business. 

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