Digital signage is the future of creating the ultimate customer experience. We're starting to see more and more interactive displays that look like they've been plucked from a sci-fi movie and brought into reality.

As more and more businesses adopt digital signage into their marketing strategies, you might consider a do-it-yourself option. Hey, there are all kinds of free tools out there, right?

Even though this approach appears to offer some benefits, there are far more reasons why you may want to think twice before taking it on.

Let's take a look.

‍1. It's A Lot of Work

Creating your own digital signage solution is no small feat. Unless you or your team is ready to add the workload of roughly five different roles, it might be worth reconsidering that DIY option. 

When you opt to DIY your digital signage, you automatically take on:

And that's just for starters.

Even if you have some technical skills, it's important to remember that this is a complex project that requires a lot of time and effort—all of which could be better spent on other areas of your business.

2. You'll Most Likely End Up With a Subpar Product

Look, we get it. Not every business has the budget to support high-end digital solutions and is always on the hunt for budget-friendly options. 

Free or lost-cost subscription tools like Canva, Microsoft PowerPoint, and Adobe may seem really appealing. They come preloaded with templates, color pallet options, and easy-to-use interfaces, letting you create a variety of digital displays.

But even if you create the most beautiful digital signage, what are you going to do about the different things that you're going to need for your digital signage to succeed?

Sure, you could spend a few hours creating a static menu board or other digital sign, save it to a thumb drive, and hook it up to a monitor. While this may work for your business at first, there are plenty of examples of digital signage fails on the internet.

Like this sign that has an extension request blocking the promotional message: 

Or this sign, where the automatic playback failed to loop.

Or this digital display whose playback was ruined by pop-up messages.

Even if you are willing to put in the time and effort required to get your digital signage up and running, there's no guarantee that you'll end up with a high-quality product. 

Without experience in designing, developing, and maintaining digital signage content, it's very easy to make mistakes that will result in an inferior final product—which leads us to our next point.

3. You Could Jeopardize Your Brand

It's easy to chuckle at those digital signage fails, but how do you think that reflects on their business? For instance, how much confidence would you have in this tech repair store, whose digital displays are malfunctioning?

One of the most important things to consider when creating any kind of marketing content is how it will reflect on your brand. With digital signage, there's a lot of potential for things to go wrong. 

The first place DIYers go wrong is cutting corners when it comes to content creation in an attempt to save money. This leads to subpar content that reflects poorly on your brand (like we mentioned before).

It's important to remember that your digital signage is often one of the first things potential customers will see, so you want to make sure it's of the highest quality.

Another place DIYers go wrong is having inconsistent messaging across your content. This is because different teams have different ideas about what the content should be and how customers will interact with it—potentially confusing customers.

If you're not careful about how you create your content, you could inadvertently violate copyright laws or other regulations, which could lead to costly penalties.

Finally, many DIY digital signage solutions are limited in terms of functionality. This means you are not taking advantage of innovative features that are available on the market.

4. You Won't Be Able to Keep Up With the Competition

This one piggybacks with the points above. If you have a subpar product that damages your brand, how on earth are you going to keep up with your competitors?

The digital signage market is constantly evolving, with new features and functionality being continually added, like creating omnichannel experiences, real-time displays, and immersive content. 

For example, major retailers like Under Armour and Nike utilize innovative technology to create a unique shopping experience for their customers. Nike has RDIF smart fitting rooms that automatically bring up information about what the customer brought in. 

Meanwhile, Under Armour built their Brand House that features numerous displays to engage and entertain customers as they browse through the store. 

But not all digital signage solutions need to be flashy. 

The clothing retailer Kohl's recognized a gap in their customers' shopping experience. Instead of the customer leaving the store if they can't find items in their size, they can utilize one of their self-service kiosks to search their company's inventory.

It's easy to see how a DIY solution cannot keep up with emerging technologies. It will quickly become outdated and less effective if you're not continually updating your solution..

5. Optimizing Your Content is Frustrating 

Even if you manage to create a working digital signage solution, there's no guarantee that it will succeed. 

You have to ensure content is optimized for the various types of devices and screens that it will be displayed on. The fastest way to destroy your content is by having it distorted because you didn't get your ratios correct.

It's also difficult to ensure that your content is engaging, informative, and relevant to your target audience. Different people respond to different types of content, so creating signage likely to resonate with your target audience is important. 

Plus, if you're not tracking the right metrics for your digital signage, you won't know how they perform. You'll need to consider the viewing distance, the amount of time viewers will have to take in the content, and more.

Furthermore, content must be updated regularly to avoid becoming stale. This can be challenging because you must constantly update your content to reflect industry or product offerings changes.

Finally, you'll want to create a good balance between static and dynamic content. Static content is boring and easily forgotten, while dynamic content creates memorable experiences for your audience.

If you want to ensure that your investment pays off, it's probably best to leave the project to those with more experience.

A Digital Signage Solution For Any Budget

At Wallboard, we have a wide range of digital signage solutions we can tailor to suit any business or organization's needs. 

From small businesses wanting a customized solution to large corporations who want to operate a vast network, our team works closely with you to determine what works best for your company and how we can help.

Our solution makes it easy to create, schedule, and maintain your digital signage systems. With our drag-and-drop interface and content-enhancing widgets, you'll be able to take your digital signage to the next level and keep up with your competition. 

See just how easy it is to use our platform: 

Let's work together to create the best possible content for your business. Schedule a free consultation.