Imagine you are a hotel operator or a retailer with tons of information to offer to customers. What would be an efficient way to get your message across than through a digital signage system offering interactive multimedia content? Advantech Co., Ltd. is a provider of digital signage solutions and will display a variety of its technologies at this year’s COMPUTEX TAIPEI.

A focus on solutions, not hardware

Advantech, established in 1983, does not make digital signage hardware such as displays, players and servers that generate a smaller gross profit margin. Rather, the company which is headquartered in Taipei City’s Neihu Technology Park, packages these devices into solutions. According to Ken Yu, Vice President of Intelligent Services of Advantech, digital signage has achieved exponential growth most recently seen in Asia. China has replaced the United States as the largest market for Advantech, which has made “record highs” in sales over the several months, Yu says.

The company targets four main segments, namely hotels, enterprises, retailers and public space -- parks, train stations, school, hospitals, etc. Hotel customers can use an electronic travel guide to find out how to get around the city. Visitors of public arenas may receive a better understanding of the environment surrounding them through digital signage systems. Enterprises are offered solutions that allow hundreds of displays to be deployed at various branch offices throughout the world, controlled either by the corporate headquarters or the individual branch offices.

For retailers, Advantech does not focus on those that use digital signage “purely for advertising purposes” and seek a quick return on investment, which Yu says is an unrealistic proposition in the first place. “I’ve never seen, at least in Taiwan, a retailer that has made money off digital signage purely through advertising,” he says.

Rather, the company does business with retailers that use digital signage for “assisted retailing” -- presenting the company’s offerings to customers through detailed, interactive contents displayed on digital signage. A shoe store, for example, may explain to customers why its weight reduction shoes are capable of reducing weight through a 15-inch panel mounted on each counter of the store. An organic goods manufacturer, meanwhile, can explain to customers why product A is better than product B, using a digital signage station that lists information about each product, such as place of origin.

Different applications for different purposes

Yu further points out applications of digital signage are limitless and can help providers do a lot of good. “Digital signage is just a platform,” he emphasizes. “What you build on it is more important.”

For example, a system may be integrated with a camera capable of detecting the gender of a customer in front of it, and then displays gender-specific ads instantly. The camera may also help the provider do some data mining, finding out how many men or women have visited the store. Finally, digital signage at public spaces may be connected to a specific device, such as an IP cam or a thermometer, to give temperature readings or allow visitors see what is going on at the other side of the venue.

Yu also stresses the importance of interactivity and content, the key to successful digital signage deployments. Touch-screen panels will be a trend, which puts the user at control over the information they want to see. Yu states, “For example, I am at a hotel to attend a wedding, and there are five weddings held on the same day. I can find out the one that I want to go to instantly, with touch-screen digital signage,”.

“Well-made contents, meanwhile, may help customers make up their mind more quickly,” Yu says. A hotel operator, for example, may want to get the customer to upgrade to a higher-level suite. A digital signage system, supported by well-made video and photo content of the suite may help the customer make the decision instantly.

Advantech @ COMPUTEX TAIPEI 2010
In the upcoming 30th anniversary COMPUTEX TAIPEI 2010, Advantech will display digital signage solutions, both for indoor and outdoor environments, with panel sizes ranging from seven to 65 inches. Outdoor displays will have showerheads next to them to show that they are really waterproof.

Yu explains, “COMPUTEX TAIPEI for providing a platform for Taiwan IT manufacturers to showcase their technologies. It would even be better if additional show space were provided for segment-oriented pavilions and exhibitions held in conjunction with COMPUTEX TAIPEI.”

Please visit Advantech at booth numbers C610, C612, C709, C711 of first floor of TWTC Hall 1 (COMPUTREND) under the Digital Signage category.