DIGITAL SIGNAGE COMPANY LAUNCHES ON-HOLD MESSAGING SOLUTION

Louisville, KY (Press Release) June 27, 2012 - Captive Indoor Media announced the addition of an on-hold messaging feature to its web based digital signage tool, Codigo. Used throughout the financial industry to manage thousands of digital signage units, Captive’s Codigo software now has the capability to send audio marketing messages directly to users’ phone systems. With the release of Codigo Voice, the company says it has taken steps to transform itself from a platform that only manages digital signage networks to one that offers management of multiple systems from a single login.

“Over the course of the last year Captive has spent a lot of time researching which product categories are of the most value to customers and how to integrate them to reduce the time and complexity required in managing these services” said Brian Nutt, Captive Indoor Media’s Founder and CEO.  “The first product added is on-hold messaging, which is widely deployed within our current customer base right now.  Codigo Voice will be an attractive alternative” said Nutt. 

Customer collaboration played a big part in the launch of Codigo Voice. When asked why on-hold messaging was chosen, Nutt said, “We asked our customers what systems they were using and how we could make it easier to manage them. Most replied that they wanted an easier way to manage their on-hold marketing messages.  So, we just added that functionality to a tool they were already using.”

Codigo Voice offers subscribers more than 7,000 songs in every genre to play while callers are on hold or to serve as background music for their own marketing messages. Uploading audio clips is easy, but users can also choose to work with Captive’s award-winning creative team, utilizing professional male and female voice talent to develop high-impact audio commercials.  The online systems allows users to schedule their messages remotely, managing their on-hold messaging from anywhere with an internet connection. Visit their website for more details about Codigo Voice.

When asked what was next for Captive, Nutt replied, “We have aggressive plans to launch several other products under the umbrella of our flagship system, Codigo.  Through continued collaboration with our customers, we foresee helping them to influence retail buyer behavior in a broader way than currently possible” added Nutt.

To learn more about Captive’s products and services visit their website or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

Using Data to Build a Content Strategy

Does your company have the ability to leverage customer data? If so, how is it being used? And, if not, is it something that should be considered? A February 2012 survey from DataXu showed just 30% of US executives reported the ability to leverage the value of their customer data. Although, a May study from CMO Council showed different results. According to the study 51% of marketers world-wide said they leveraged data moderately well, with 7% reported that they did so extremely well. 

So, how are marketers 'leveraging' this data? CMO Council says that 65% of marketers world-wide use customer data to enhance their marketing programs. That makes sense, right? The more marketers know about their customers, the better they can fine tune their marketing messages to target new prospects or existing clients. The study found that 72% of marketers world-wide use data to craft more timely, targeted messaging and 52% use it to directly influence the bottom line by cross-selling or up-selling current customers.

How can marketers attain the data they need to enhance their marketing programs? One would think that most would reach for the trusty CRM system, but CMO Council found that only 30% had access to this tool. So, the majority of marketers utilize email -75%, web analytics and optimization - 72%, and social media monitoring - 56% to procure the data they need. 

                        

The collection of customer data should be the primary task of any marketer who's considering digital signage as  a retail marketing tool. To get the most from a digital signage system, understanding foot traffic is vital - Who is in the store, when are they in the store, why are the in the store, etc. Knowing customer data such as demographics, what products they've products purchased, and what time they visit can help to paint a clear picture of what content to design and at what time is the best time to display it. 

How is your company utilizing customer data? If you have a digital signage system, do you use customer data to design and schedule your content? 

Mobile Marketing Mayhem

Do you own a smartphone? I'm sure you have been asked this question sometime in the past year. As smartphones have decreased in price and increased in popularity, they found their way into millions of American pockets - 97.9 million to be exact. In a December 2011 study published by comScore, they reported that smartphones have penetrated over 40% of all mobile subscribers. With more and more people seeing the benefit of smartphones, marketers have found a new way to reach their customers - mobile advertising.

The rise of smartphones has lead to consumers going everywhere with their very own direct-response tool. With their smartphones, consumers can respond to other media such as in-store, magazine, poster, and TV ads where ever they are. According to a March 2012 study from Google, conducted by Ipsos MediaCT and TNS Infratest, a marketer's chances of reaching potential customers are steadily increasing.

Google's study showed that 43% of smartphone owners used their phone to search in response to television ads at least once a month. Even more interesting is that 40% reported searching in response to ads they saw while in stores. While searching based on magazines and out-of-home ads were less common, the report suggests that search will increase as people get more used to using their device to get information.

The report showed that 58% of respondents typically research products on their smartphones while at home, 43% searched while "on-the-go", and 31% searched while in the store. Retail was reported as the #1 out-of-home place where smartphone users take action. 

As marketers see the potential in in-store mobile marketing, they will look for more creative ways to push people to interact with their brands through these devices. This presents a great opportunity for digital signage. Google's report shows that 43% of smartphone users search in response to TV ads and 40% search based on ads seen in-stores. So, what would happen when we combine the two? 

Using in-store digital displays to grab the attention of shoppers and push them towards using their smartphones to dive further into product information, promotions, or sign up to receive the latest deal. Integrating mobile marketing with digital signage makes measuring both a little easier. Marketers can use mobile marketing to measuring the effectiveness of their digital signage and digital signage as a distribution tool to promote their mobile marketing campaigns - Two very complementary marketing methods 

Please share how your company is capitalizing on this mobile marketing mayhem. Are you using digital signage? If so, how have you integrated the two?