Cross Media Marketing – Digital Signage
History
Manatee County was unofficially founded in 1855 and has continued to grow and thrive thanks to the diversity of industries, residents and business leaders. It should be no surprise, with all of the great people and businesses in Manatee County the local Chamber of Commerce is a driving force for the success of our area. The Manatee Chamber of Commerce has won the following accolades:
- National Chamber of the Year
- Three-time Winner, Florida Chamber of the Year
- 5-star accreditation by the United States Chamber of Commerce
The president of the Manatee Chamber, Bob Bartz, has been on the forefront of bringing new ideas and approaches to the area and remains focused on growth and innovation. When the idea of bringing digital signage was brought to Bob, he immediately saw the benefits and tasked his “right-hand woman” Carey Miller with helping develop the campaign.
Challenge
The Manatee Chamber of Commerce has two office locations in the county, and the needs of each location are slightly different. Their east county office is shared with the United Way of Manatee County so the layout and design of that sign needed to be slightly different. The Chamber also required a way to easily update their signs and populate the calendar items.
Process
During planning and strategy sessions with the Chamber, it was determined the following items would be of primary importance for display on the signs:
- Platinum sponsors
- Local events
- Weather forecast
- Rotating scenic and business-related photos
Once we determined the items that needed to be displayed on the digital sign, we were able to design a layout that would be friendly and informative for lobby visitors.
Results
The Chamber has racks of business cards and print brochures throughout their lobbies. As the Chamber continues to promote their Green initiatives, it makes sense to begin transitioning toward a more eco-friendly platform to promote local businesses. When asked how visitors react to the digital signs when they enter their lobbies, Carey Miller offers, “We saw the benefits right away. The digital signs draw immediate attention from our visitors and our staff can easily keep them up to date.” She adds, “We use our signs to promote events, show photos of the area, and give additional exposure to our Platinum Members. It’s a great marketing piece!”