Gail Chiasson, North American Editor
When I heard the inimitable Phil Lenger, president of Show+Tell, New York, speak at The DailyDOOH Media Summit, May 17, 2016 held during London Digital Signage Week, he showed a slide that said, “I like coming here to watch the displays … said no one”, I was reminded of a small company that I wrote about a few years ago: it was an article about the first digital sign in a small town, and actually was drawing crowds that wanted to see it and watch the content it was showing.
Would that all digital signage content draw a crowd, but, as Lenger said, “People see screens but few may actually be watching. That’s why measurement is so important.”
Lenger, who is always a great speaker on content, knows that world well. Since founding Show+Tell, an environmental digital agency and digital out-of-home media production company in 1989, the mutiple award winner has counted among his clients such firms as: H&M, NBC, M&Ms, BC, JPMorgan Chase, Toys ‘R’ Us. LG and Siemens.
He works with agencies, architects, environmental designers, transit authorities and more, so having him as a speaker always adds a little magic to a program.
“Some people see our industry as loud and obnoxious, so the key to drawing them in is to have better content,” said Lenger. “Too often, the business is seen as one that is interested in adding more screens and players. You have to think bigger than that. Too little time is spent thinking of what you can DO for your audience.
“You have to make friends with your audience. The law of DOOH is that ‘Interesting always wins’. To make it valuable, you have to think bigger. Develop the ecosystem. Curate your audience.”
In a bold statement, Lenger said, “Don’t rely on advertisers to shape the medium.”
He spoke about the need for engagement with consumers, and said, “While there must be investment from both sides, we must think of ourselves as creators of content. Get and use an audience advocate, if necessary, because if you lose an advertiser, you’ll get another, but if you lose audience, you’ll lose both.”
Lenger also spoke of the need for the industry to make friends with communities, mentioning that a consortium from various industry interests in the US is working on a ‘Community Friendly Public Video Guide’.
Lenger concluded his talk with three points to help increase the value of DOOH:
- “Think bigger: Develop the Ecosystem;
- “Develop your product: Audiences first;
- “Get communities on our side.”
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