Measuring the Impact & ROI of Digital Signage Networks

+14%

Avg Sales Lift

76%

Action After DOOH

$5-6

Return per $1 Spent

21

Pages of Research

Computer Vision (CV) Audience Measurement

Example: A CV platform can report that a screen had 5,000 viewers/week with 8-second average attention time, segmented by demographics.

POS/CRM Data Integration

Example: A bank might find branches with lobby displays see +2% increase in credit card sign-ups vs. those without.

Control Stores & A/B Testing

Multi-Touch Attribution (MTA)

Platforms: Vistar Media tracks web conversions (via Mira/Reveal Mobile) and foot traffic uplift (via Foursquare, InMarket) tied to DOOH exposure.

Marketing Mix Modeling (MMM)

Advantage: As privacy shifts limit individual tracking, MMM has gained renewed importance for validating channels like digital out-of-home in a privacy-safe way.

⏰ Dynamic Dayparting

Change content by time of day (breakfast vs lunch) and weather (cold drinks on hot days).

🖼️ High-Quality Imagery

Appetizing food imagery increases sales by 30%; poor imagery decreases sales by 12%.

📦 POS Integration

Auto-stop promoting out-of-stock items. Sync inventory APIs with display content.

⭐ LTOs & High-Margin Items

Use animation to draw attention to limited-time offers and profitable add-ons.

+14%

Avg Sales Lift (CPG)

Grocery TV meta-study

17.6%

Top Performer Lift

Best-performing SKUs

29.5%

Data-Driven Signage Lift

Dynamic shelf displays

🌡️ Real-Time Data Feeds

Integrate inventory, weather, local events. Promote hot coffee on cold mornings. Trigger "last chance" messages when stock is low.

🎯 Localized Content

Walgreens customizes in-store content by neighborhood demographics. Feature regional favorites and language-specific messaging.

🔄 Omnichannel Sync

Synchronize digital signage with other promo materials. When online promo goes live, in-store screens update immediately.

📈 Test/Control Studies

Partner with Circana/IRI for sales lift, mobile data firms for visitation. Provide credible results to CPG brand advertisers.

77%

Perceive banks MORE innovative

80%

Report uptick in sales

2-3%

Product sign-up bump

<2 yrs

Payback period

📚 Educational Content

Short videos on financial wellness. Interactive touchscreens to explore products. Personalized greetings via ATM/loyalty card.

💰 Cross-Sell Integration

Align screen content with current campaigns. A bank reported +2% loan applications where digital posters promoted loans.

📰 Real-Time Queue Info

Display queue info, news, weather. Reduces perceived wait time and improves branch NPS scores.

🏆 Brand Consistency

Treat screens as brand extension. Align with mobile app messaging. Digital signage seen as "less intrusive" than other media.

Consumer Actions (OAAA/Harris 2024)

• 76% took action after seeing DOOH
• 38% watched promoted video/show
• 36% visited a restaurant
• 30% made in-store purchase
• 73% view DOOH ads favorably

Conversion Power

• 51% noticing directional ad visited business
• 93% of those visitors made a purchase
• +5-15% sales lift for CPG campaigns
• $5-6 incremental sales per $1 spent (Nielsen)
• 74% mobile users take action after DOOH

🎯 Audience Targeting

Programmatic platforms (Broadsign, Vistar) enable targeting by location, time, weather, demographics. Dynamic creative optimization.

📱 Mobile Integration

Tie OOH with mobile retargeting. Prompt QR code scans. Run omnichannel attribution via device IDs.

✅ Proof of Performance

Detailed proof-of-play logs. In-screen sensors for real-time impression counts. Third-party verification (GeoPath, Nielsen OOH).

🔐 Privacy Compliance

Anonymized, aggregated data. GDPR compliance. No faces or personal data stored. Post signage about analytics in use.

🎲 Signal-to-Noise & Causation

Isolating signage impact amid seasonality, promotions, and other marketing is difficult. Small sample sizes may not yield statistically significant results. Without controlled experiments, there's risk of mis-attribution.

🔗 MTA Complexities

Device identity matching is imprecise, often probabilistic. Different attribution providers can give different answers for the same campaign. "Walled gardens" don't easily share data on OOH influence.

🔒 Data Privacy Concerns

Facial detection and tracking raises privacy alarms if not handled correctly. GDPR requires disclosure and sometimes consent. Emotion recognition may be deemed intrusive or pseudoscientific.

📏 Data Reliability

CV audience counts can miscount clusters or misclassify demographics. Foot traffic relies on panel data with extrapolation bias. Sales lift studies are sensitive to model specification and baseline selection.

Pioneer in CV audience measurement. Measures real-time impressions, views, dwell/attention time, demographics. Software-only, works with common webcams. GDPR compliant.

AI-driven facial detection with bundled hardware sensors. Captures age/gender, sentiment (mood), engagement time. Integrates with various CMS and vehicle top displays.

Leading digital signage CMS and programmatic ad platform. Provides playback logs and integrates with measurement partners like Quividi. Part of the ad tech stack for enterprise networks.

Programmatic DOOH DSP/SSP with heavy focus on measurement. Integrations for brand lift surveys, foot traffic studies, web conversion, sales lift. Partners with Foursquare, Circana/IRI.

Location intelligence for foot traffic attribution. Identifies devices near ads, then sees if those devices visit specific locations. Calculates cost per visit and visitation lift.

Location analytics for retail real estate. Measures foot traffic, dwell times, competitive benchmarking. Helps correlate presence of signage with traffic patterns.

ROI Example: One $500 digital menu board needs to sell just 2 extra combo meals a day to pay for itself in under a year. Track featured item sales before/after → if daily sales increase $50 from upselling, that's ~$1,500/month return.

ROI Example: 50 screens × $1,100 investment = $55K. With 1% sales lift on $100K/store/month → $50K/month incremental revenue. Even at 30% margin → $15K/month profit → payback in ~4 months.

ROI Example: 1,000 screens × $500/year TCO = $500K/year. 1% comp sales lift on $1B retailer = $10M, 30% margin = $3M profit. Add $1M ad revenue → total benefits $4M+ → ROI 700%+.

What is the typical ROI for digital signage?

Studies show 3-15% sales uplift depending on vertical and implementation. QSR typically sees 3-5% sales increase from digital menu boards, with payback in 9-12 months. Retail media networks report +14% average sales lift for advertised products. ROI of 300-500%+ is common when signage is properly optimized.

How do I measure digital signage impressions?

Computer Vision (CV) systems like Quividi and AdMobilize use cameras to count viewers, measure dwell time, and estimate demographics. For DOOH, impression multipliers based on traffic data are common. Many CMS platforms provide proof-of-play logs. Manual observation and foot traffic sensors are lower-cost alternatives.

What's the best way to prove signage drives sales?

Control vs. test comparisons: run stores with signage against stores without, controlling for other variables. A/B testing within digital signage content is also effective. Integrate with POS data to correlate content exposure with transactions. For the most rigorous proof, commission third-party sales lift studies from providers like Circana/IRI.

How do DOOH networks measure foot traffic attribution?

Mobile location data providers (PlaceIQ, Foursquare, InMarket) capture device IDs present when ads play, then track if those devices later visit specific locations. This enables cost-per-visit calculations and visitation lift metrics. 51% of those who notice directional DOOH ads actually visit the business, and 93% of those make a purchase.

Are privacy concerns a barrier to signage analytics?

Leading vendors use anonymized, aggregated data only – no faces or personal data are stored. GDPR compliance is standard for reputable platforms like Quividi. Best practice includes posting signage informing about analytics in use. 80% of consumers perceive public touchscreens as potentially unhygienic, so touchless options are also gaining importance.