Digital displays provide unparalleled opportunities for sharing and delivering thought-provoking content to prospects, customers, guests, and employees in a fun, engaging way. A vital component in both retail and corporate settings, displays deliver valuable insight and information to audiences, delivering real-time metrics that allow for better decision-making, wayfinding, upselling, customer experience, and more.

The overwhelming success of displays used indoors has led to their increasing use outdoors, resulting in the necessity for solutions that can tolerate extreme conditions – from intense brightness, high heat, heavy rain, a sandstorm, and even vandalism.

Marketing Potential Abounds

Not just for corporate shindigs or retail settings anymore, these days, digital displays are being used in a wide variety of locales, particularly in alfresco venues – from a plethora of displays at a music festival, to the poolside screen at a luxury hotel, to the TV suspended on the exterior of your country club’s pro shop – providing an engaging medium with far-reaching capabilities and endless marketing opportunities.

Let’s take, for instance, a concert. The popularity of music festivals throughout the U.S. is on the rise, with nearly every state having their own unique take on this type of event. Through the strategic use of digital displays, concert-goers have access to a vast amount of valuable information throughout the day. Guests can arrive on-site to a bright welcome video that leads them inside the venue, building anticipation. Promotional videos can play throughout the festival, providing event information, band highlights, key messaging, and sponsorship advertisements.

Also, high capacities at these events can make it difficult for everyone to be near the stage – digital displays allow every audience member to see the stage, no matter where they’re seated or standing, via live-action streaming.

Promotional videos can play throughout the festival, providing event information, band highlights, key messaging, and sponsorship advertisements. Also, high capacities at these events can make it difficult for everyone to be near the stage – digital displays allow every audience member to see the stage, no matter where they’re seated or standing, via live-action streaming.

However, if a display can’t handle the harsh conditions of its outdoor environment, these informative and/or promotional opportunities diminish rapidly…along with your ROI. And each outdoor setting has its own set of potentially risky variables – soaring temps or sleeting snow at a concert, a cannonball splash that soaks that poolside display, or the occasional golf ball gone astray that pings a hole-in-one right on your screen.

Display Environment Considerations

Creating the right content is a major consideration for any application, certainly, but displaying that content in harsh outdoor conditions is the first challenge to overcome – and all video displays are not created equal. When making a decision on an outdoor display, here are some key factors to consider:

  • Will the display perform in direct sunlight? If your display will be running outside all day, direct sunlight causes glare that can hinder viewers from engaging with your content while also causing display malfunctions.
  • Will the display handle extreme changes in temperatures? Operating temperatures affect the display’s brightness, maintenance, energy consumption, and functionality; the right display will thrive year-round regardless of fluctuations in temperatures.
  • Is the display weatherproof- and resilience-rated? Outdoor displays must be fully sealed to prevent moisture, dust, and insect filtration with glass that is tough enough to resist impact and deter vandalism.
  • Do you know how to handle issues with your display? Having the ability to remotely monitor your display allows you to detect problems and help to recover from power outages or other issues without necessitating an on-site service call.

Overall, finding an outdoor display that can survive your region’s extreme conditions is crucial for the success of your message.

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