Once again, we find ourselves amidst the festive season, with retail spaces battling it out for all-important consumer attention. Operating in a highly saturated market, retail owners are having to explore unique ways to draw in customers, with AV displays being a core way to elevate spaces and capitalise on a customer’s initial interest. For instance, high brightness window screens are an essential way to draw shoppers’ attention and raise footfall. In-store screens can be used to engage with shoppers and show promotions or product information, which all serve as part of the customer journey. When used in combination with activation features such as lift-and-learn solutions, they can become a powerful tool by collecting valuable data to analyse ROI.
Alternatively, they can be used to display QR codes to allow customers to sign up for membership loyalty benefits or festive promotions, all while opening a channel for communication about future deals. Notably, screens have become an integrated part of Omnichannel fulfilment, as these have the ability to track your sales as well as dialling up or toning down elements of your marketing within seconds, providing an invaluable tool for any business owner.
Retailers also don’t need to get bogged down in a ‘one big screen’ approach, instead focussing on the customer experience throughout the store by engaging them with storytelling of the brand that in turn builds on brand loyalty. Stores should be a destination you visit for inspiration thus retailers must consider the overall shopper experience from the outset. This includes how digital signage is integrated to bring the omnichannel journey to life. LED works well in these instances as it’s customisable in size and aspect ratio. Stacking multiple panels that show different content simultaneously, or placing panels next to each other with seamless content flowing between them, can result in creative displays that capture attention while conveying messaging in a unique way. While sales are always front of mind, festive retail spaces are more than just a shop-front advertisement. You could even incorporate curving LED screens that envelop the entrance providing an immersive experience for customers, removing them from the outdoor world and setting the atmosphere and mood that you want your store to evoke. Samsung has a mechanical designer that can share years of experience and passion for retail to assist in bringing your vision to life.
For retail environments, we would suggest the QHB series with UHD resolution and 700 nits brightness. It’s been built for 24/7 operation and will perform year after year with crisp images, retaining its brightness to make an impact. Another thing to keep at the forefront of your mind when cultivating aesthetic displays is the hardware and cables that may be on show. We know that most businesses are going through an extremely challenging period so we’ve continued to increase the amount of our products that contain our SoC. Finding screens that limit the amount of peripherals needed will lead to cost savings. Our SoC means the media player is built into the display resulting in no extra hardware, less cables, less potential sources for error and lower maintenance costs.
Now more than ever, it’s also equally important to work towards a sustainable future and this starts with manufacturers. Samsung has recently announced its new environmental strategy, which includes efforts to achieve enterprise-wide net zero carbon emissions and plans to use more renewable energy, as well as to invest in and research new technologies to develop energy-efficient products, increase water reuse and develop carbon capture technology. To propel its goals, Samsung has joined RE100, a global initiative dedicated to pursuing 100% renewable energy, in a collaborative effort to reduce indirect carbon emissions from power consumption and aims to match electric power needs with renewable energy by 2050 for all operations globally.
Looking to the future of AV displays within retail, I can say it’s looking bright! In addition to investing more in a sustainable future, we’re seeing the shift to AV across the board, with retailers embracing new technology to adhere to customers’ demands for a more exciting, immersive shopping experience. I also expect to see the trend of social displays that interact with shoppers getting better and better. They allow customers the chance to share posts, tag the store, and build upon brand loyalty.
From floor to ceiling feature walls that work as unmissable media canvases, to smaller, more niche digital screens that can be used in isolation or groups to target shoppers and elevate spaces, it’s clear that LED screens are universal in their capabilities. If there’s one thing retail owners can be sure of, it’s that the future of retail marketing is firmly grounded in AV.
Henrik Hansen, Business Development Manager at Samsung
