DSF PRESS RELEASES
Shikatani Lacroix Design goes for immersive experience in Boston Pizza project
In March, Toronto-based Shikatani Lacroix Design won an APEX Award gold medal for its work on the Boston Pizza Digital Experience project. The company’s work with Boston Pizza began about three years ago, and the first location featuring the digital design opened in April 2017 in downtown Toronto.
Another new restaurant in the Medicine Hat neighborhood in Alberta, Canada, recently celebrated a grand opening featuring the design. According to Richard Dirstein, EVP of creative and innovation for Shikatani Lacroix Design, Boston Pizza has also expedited a rollout plan to inform franchisee owners on how they can adapt their location to the new design in scalable components that will be available across Canada, as well as the U.S. and Mexico.
As part of the process for this chain, Shikatani Lacroix Design completed strategy and execution for all digital components of the restaurant.
“For the chain’s flagship location in particular, it is one of the best places in Canada for customers to immerse themselves in a sports dining experience, and it provides a blueprint for the rest of the chain,” Dirstein said.
Components of the design
As part of the award-winning design, the welcome area has a large digital screen which communicates brand messaging and welcomes BP rewards members, special event groups and teams. An interactive touch screen in the waiting area features dishes and special events content, and allows customers to interact with a digital menu.
Throughout the restaurant are large screens where customers can watch all major sports. To enhance the experience, smaller portrait screens provide dynamic, RSS-driven, digital content that updates in real-time. According to Dirstein, these screens cycle through things such as team and player statistics, news, schedules and information for fantasy leagues which allow guests to have all their favorite scores displayed in close proximity to the game feeds they are watching.
Boston Pizza Experience.
“The result, customers don’t need to use their phones to check their scores. They can put their phones down and be immersed in the Boston Pizza experience,” he said. “I think the end result shows that, from a digital perspective, the number of screens in the restaurant and their ability to provide up-to-the-minute, relevant information, really transforms the customers’ viewing experience.”
Aside from the “immersive” Boston Pizza Experience, Dirstein described some of the macrotrends emerging in digital signage, specifically in the restaurant space:
- Graphics on signage, walls, or digital screens can help create a distinctive brand identity and add personality to a space. They provide an opportunity to use color, shape, imagery, and words to reinforce or support a brand message and create a more interesting experience.
- Don’t focus all of the attention on advertising. If all you’re doing with the technology is trying to convince your customers to spend more, they will eventually learn to tune you out.
- Retailers and restaurateurs around the world are using AR and VR to tell unforgettable brand stories, and neuromarketing is being used more often than ever to test and validate new concepts.
DSE 2019 Call for Speakers is Open
Don’t Miss Your Chance to Share Your Expertise with Our Audience!
DSE is currently accepting speaking proposals for DSE 2019 upcoming events.
If you are an expert in innovative digital display and interactive screen technologies with a presentation that is interactive, engaging and energizing, we are interested in hearing from you!
Key Topics Include:
Content Design & Management
Customer Experience
Digital Signage Budgeting
Digital Asset Management
Mobile Integrations and Applications
Submissions are due September 14, 2018.
However, it is highly recommended to submit proposals as soon as possible as spaces will be filling up quickly.
In order for nominations to be considered, the online proposal form must be complete along with all the presenters’ names, titles and contact details.
Questions? Contact:
Helen Kang, Conference Director
hkang@exponation.net
NOMINATE YOUR PROJECT FOR THE 2019 APEX AWARDS -Grab Your APEXMOMENT!
GRAB YOUR #APEXMOMENT
NOMINATE YOUR PROJECT FOR THE 2019 APEX AWARDS
The DSE APEX Awards, presented by the Digital Signage Federation, recognize and honor achievement in the creation and installation of compelling viewer content and interactive technology. Since inception, the APEX Awards have honored hundreds of companies for innovative projects that have met and/or exceeded project goals while providing meaningful ROI and ROO for clients, thereby advancing the digital signage industry.
Enter by October 12, 2018 to save $50 on entry fees!
$145 entry fee per project entered; fee is $195 after October 12.
SUBMISSION DEADLINE IS DECEMBER 21, 2018
MTA Arts & Design Unveils New Digital Artwork “Skyyys™” Now on Display at Fulton Transit Center
MTA Arts & Design Unveils New Digital Artwork “Skyyys™” Now on Display at Fulton Transit Center
Just in time to mark the start of summer, the award-winning Digital Arts program administered by MTA Arts & Design has unveiled its fifth digital artwork at the busy Fulton Center Transportation Hub in Lower Manhattan. Titled Skyyys™ the new video installation by interdisciplinary artist Dave Greber playfully mimics the constant stream of visual information that we all experience daily. He remixed recognizable, colorful kinetic objects into an entertaining and witty new universe of familiar objects such as balloons, bouncing balls and stuffed animals.
“Dave’s fun and inventive digital work featuring objects often associated with childhood and play gives additional dynamism to the mixed use elements of Fulton Center — its myriad shops and this vital transportation hub,” said Sandra Bloodworth, director of MTA Arts & Design. “The energy and mixture of colors, stuff and patterns are simply joyful.”
The fluid pace, whimsical imagery, and prismatic palette of Skyyys™ creates harmonious visual-music that complements the pace of commuters at Fulton center, a likewise kaleidoscopic space of transition as riders make their way throughout the busy subway hub served by the 2 3 4 5 A C and J lines. Skyyys™ was created using the artist’s unique approach of filming carefully constructed sets that are then re-envisioned as entertaining digital worlds. Greber’s work across mediums references ideas of pop culture, advertising and spirituality, generating a mystic reading of contemporary society using video and sculpture.
The immersive, captivating videos air simultaneously for two minutes at the top of each hour on 52 digital screens throughout the Fulton Center complex and the Dey Street pedestrian tunnel that connects multiple New York City Transit lines to the World Trade Center PATH station. The Westfield Fulton Center network synchronizes 44 LCD video walls, totaling more than 1,200 square feet and nine locations of LED screens, totaling more than 2,100 square feet. The complex media network plays in one and two-minute loops, offering news feeds, sports, weather, advertising, transit information and digital art. The MTA Arts & Design Digital Art program is presented with technical support from Westfield Properties and ANC Sports.
“The network at Fulton Center is a unique palate for new media artists, and the back end synchronization allows the content to be displayed as designed,” said Yaling Chen, Deputy Director and leader of the Digital Art team at MTA Arts & Design. “Dave worked with our team and our partners from Westfield Properties and ANC Sports and the outcome exceeded his expectations,” added Chen.
MTA Arts & Design has won three DSE APEX awards for its new media installations at Fulton Center, most recently a Bronze at DSE 2018 in the Transportation Category for “The Fluid” created by Brooklyn-based interdisciplinary artist Chris Doyle. Skyyys™ will be on display through fall 2018.
About the artist
Dave Greber (b. 1982, Philadelphia) is an installation and video artist who addresses concepts of spirituality, marketing, and pop culture through his work. Greber creates vibrant, quirky, revelatory images and installations using a combination of video-loops, sculpture, and painting. Dave Greber studied at Temple University, Universiteit van Amsterdam, and Tulane University. After a stint as a filmmaker/freelance commercial video producer, he found his calling in the contemporary art resurgence of post-Katrina New Orleans, creating video loops and site-specific multimedia installations. His work has been featured in museums and galleries including the Whitney, Crystal Bridges, Minneapolis Institute of Art, C24 Gallery, and Staten Island Arts’ LUMEN Festival. For more information about her work, visit http://www.thesculpted.com/
About MTA Arts & Design
MTA Arts & Design, formerly known as MTA Arts for Transit & Urban Design, encourages the use of mass transit in the metropolitan New York area by providing visual and performing arts in the transit environment. In November 2014, Arts & Design launched the Digital Arts program that feature works of contemporary new media artists throughout MTA’s digital media network. The Percent for Art program is one of the largest and most diverse collections of site-specific public art in the world, with more than 300 commissions by world-famous, mid-career and emerging artists. Arts & Design produces photography installations as well as graphic arts and live musical performances in stations through its Music Under New York (MUSIC) program, and the Poetry in Motion program in collaboration with the Poetry Society of America. It serves the more than eight million people who ride MTA subways and commuter trains daily and strives to create meaningful connections between sites, neighborhoods, and people. For more information, please visit mta.info/art
MTA Arts & Design New Media Call for Artists – Deadline Extended
The award-winning Digital Arts program administered by MTA Arts & Design, a DSF member, has extended its call for artists to July 31st, 2018. The original closing date was scheduled to be June 29th. Through this call, MTA Arts & Design is seeking to establish a deep pool of fresh new media artists to be considered for upcoming installations and opportunities at Fulton Center in Lower Manhattan and other digital assets across the MTA network. Professional Artists working with digital media with prior experience on multiple channel installation, and capable of creating a dynamic environment with moving images, are encouraged to apply.
Artists looking to apply must submit up to 5 completed works in dynamic format and up to 10 still images at www.mtaarts.submittable.com along with a short application form, a bio, CV, and brief artist statement. All artists interested in being considered for projects must apply through the online platform by 11:59 pm EST on Tuesday, July 31, 2018.
Read the Full Press Release Below
Chris Doyle, artist, photographed for Boston College Magazine, Fall 2017 issue. Fulton Street Station video art and his studio in Brooklyn, NY
Chris Doyle, artist, photographed for Boston College Magazine, Fall 2017 issue. Fulton Street Station video art and his studio in Brooklyn, NY
Read the Full Press Release Below
MTA Arts & Design New Media Call for Artists – Deadline Extended
Contact: Paul J. Fleuranges
212-878-7026
MTA Arts & Design New Media Call for Artists
Deadline Extended through July 31, 2018
The award-winning Digital Arts program administered by MTA Arts & Design has extended its call for artists to July 31st, 2018. The original closing date was scheduled to be June 29th. Through this call, MTA Arts & Design is seeking to establish a deep pool of fresh new media artists to be considered for upcoming installations and opportunities at Fulton Center in Lower Manhattan and other digital assets across the MTA network. Professional Artists working with digital media with prior experience on multiple channel installation, and capable of creating a dynamic environment with moving images, are encouraged to apply.
“Digital arts is such a dynamic field, with endless potential to delight and excite passersby, said MTA Arts and Design Director Sandra Bloodworth. “We want to build on the success we’ve had so far and continue to engage our riders with dynamic works that inspire a thought that makes them pause or smile along their journey,” added Bloodworth.
At DSE 2018, MTA Arts & Design won its third APEX Award, a Bronze in the Transportation Category for “The Fluid.” Created by Brooklyn-based interdisciplinary artist Chris Doyle, “The Fluid” focuses on the rhythmic aspects of water at every scale, from phase change to the global water cycle, and the fragility of that cycle. Presented as a constant flow, the piece drifts between forms of representation and abstraction to mirror the tidal motion of daily commuters passing through Fulton Center, the busy subway hub served by the 2 3 4 5 A C and J lines.
The Westfield Fulton Center network synchronizes 44 LCD video walls, totaling more than 1,200 square feet and nine locations of LED, totaling more than 2,100 square feet. The complex media network plays in one and two-minute loops, offering news feeds, sports, weather, advertising, transit information and digital art. The program runs for two minutes at the top of every hour throughout the Fulton Center complex and the Dey Street pedestrian tunnel that connects multiple New York City Transit lines to the World Trade Center PATH station. The MTA Arts & Design Digital Art program is presented with technical support from Westfield Properties and ANC Sports.
“The network at Fulton Center requires a good deal of back end synchronization for the art content to display as designed,” said Yaling Chen, Deputy Director and leader of the Digital Art team at MTA Arts & Design. “For that reason alone, we strongly recommend that artists looking to apply visit the installation in situ, or on our website prior to applying if at all possible,” added Chen.
A selection panel comprised of arts and design professionals will review submitted materials and select finalists to develop art proposals for digital art programming throughout 2019. Finalists will be given a detailed overview of the technical specifications to create a site-specific proposal, for which they will receive an honorarium. Following the panel’s review of proposals, up to three finalists will be selected per project in each calendar year. Project budgets and honoraria will be determined depending on the nature of the project, and may include coding, pre- and post-production. As part of this honorarium, the selected artist will be required to oversee the production and installation of the artwork, with project management by MTA Arts & Design.
Eligibility is based upon artistic merit as evidenced in previous work, exhibition history, awards, honors, and demonstrated proficiency and technical knowledge of digital and new media. Artists working primarily in other mediums are welcome to apply, provided they submit a detailed explanation of technical expertise and/or collaboration with technical partners within the application.
The display duration for potential installations is expected to be a minimum of three months. Commissioned projects may be assigned to additional digital assets throughout the MTA network. Technical specifications for digital assets will be provided upon artist selection.
Artists looking to apply must submit up to 5 completed works in dynamic format and up to 10 still images at www.mtaarts.submittable.com along with a short application form, a bio, CV, and brief artist statement. All artists interested in being considered for projects must apply through the online platform by 11:59 pm EST on Tuesday, July 31, 2018.
About MTA Arts & Design
MTA Arts & Design, formerly known as MTA Arts for Transit & Urban Design, encourages the use of mass transit in the metropolitan New York area by providing visual and performing arts in the transit environment. In November 2014, Arts & Design launched the Digital Arts program that feature works of contemporary new media artists throughout MTA’s digital media network. The Percent for Art program is one of the largest and most diverse collections of site-specific public art in the world, with more than 300 commissions by world-famous, mid-career and emerging artists. Arts & Design produces photography installations as well as graphic arts and live musical performances in stations through its Music Under New York (MUSIC) program, and the Poetry in Motion program in collaboration with the Poetry Society of America. It serves the more than eight million people who ride MTA subways and commuter trains daily and strives to create meaningful connections between sites, neighborhoods, and people. For more information, please visit mta.info/art
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Five Steps Retailers Can Take to Keep Shoppers Coming Back
Five Steps Retailers Can Take to Keep Shoppers
Coming Back
Jeff Hastings, BrightSign CEO
On the surface it would seem brick-and-mortar retailers are in trouble. Big legacy brands like Sears and JC Penny are dramatically scaling back their storefront presence, while retailers like Toys R Us are shuttering altogether. True, e-commerce is causing havoc in the brick-and-mortar space, but I firmly believe that reports of the demise of retail are greatly exaggerated.
Customers still enjoy the experience of going shopping – most people are not so reclusive that they wish to curtail in-store shopping altogether. They don’t want to live life between four walls with everything brought to their door. They like to get out, to meet and interact with people including knowledgeable retail assistants. There’s an upside to seeing and handling certain products before purchase.
The key to recovering foot-traffic in retail is the shopping experience itself. Here are five examples of our customers around the world going to extraordinary measures to enhance the brick-and-mortar retail shopping experience:
- Make The Customer’s Experience Smooth and Seamless: Robinsons 200,000 sq. ft. flagship store in the Dubai Festival Mall has signage that can be instantly updated by store staff. Customers are welcomed by way-finders directing them smoothly not only to the relevant department, but to the brand that they’ve come to see. Each department has brand columns featuring video content provided by those brands. In the VIP check-out, further screens advertise special promotions to the most affluent customers.
- Encourage Interaction: Travel is a top online purchase, but the UK’s first interactive holiday store, Cruise 1st in Manchester, offers customers a truly unique space in which to select their next cruise holiday. Passing shoppers are attracted by in-window screens and a 2×2 video wall showing 4K video content and images. In-store, live TV content from Cruise 1st’s own Sky TV channel is displayed on a video wall. Touchscreen kiosks make choosing a holiday a game for the entire family.
- Beacon Technology: Improves the overall digital signage experience by increasing audience engagement and creating a personalized experience on two screens. Using Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) beacon technology, 2-way communication between digital signage and mobile devices is achieved and allows for the delivery of highly targeted promotions based on location as well as the ability to control digital signage playback from a mobile device.
- Use Social Media On The In-store Signage to Engage Customers: Vegas EXP has embraced digitally enhanced experiential shopping. It has a total of 28 screens, with a 55-inch interactive display in the heart of the store. When idle, the screen displays content such as notable Instagram feeds and the local weather forecast. When customers engage with the display, they can browse the online catalog but also have fun with the “selfie mode,” scrolling through and taking selfies in front of various iconic Las Vegas backdrops.
- Create a “wow” factor: El Palacio de Hierro’s flagship store located in Mexico City has replicated a large overhead stained glass ceiling with a 60-inch LED sphere and full-ceiling LED display installed atop the store’s 66-foot-high main concourse.
With innovations like these, it’s clear to see we’re not even close to end-times for the physical retailer. The dip we’re seeing in retail is a sign that retailers haven’t yet hit on the right formula to stay relevant in this digital age. But savvy retailers are facing the issue head-on and using digital signage to deliver the right experience to keep customers coming back.
Morey’s Piers Water Parks Grows Sales and Marketing Reach with Mvix Digital Signage
Morey’s Piers, Beachfront Water Parks and Hotels, a 6-block beachfront amusement park featuring 100+ rides & attractions on the Jersey Shore, has implemented a digital signage network of more than 30 networked screens across its ticket booths and restaurant facilities.
Morey’s Piers has been family owned and operated since 1969 and serves an estimated 5 million guests annually. Voted the 2015 best seaside amusement park in the world by Amusement Today and #1 Best Beach Boardwalk by Family Vacation Critic in 2015, the amusement park spans over eighteen acres and includes three amusement piers and two beachfront water parks.
The Challenge
The sales staff at Morey’s Piers often found that they spent more time explaining the various pricing options to visitors than they were actually selling tickets. Therefore, they required a simple and effective way to convey the best deals for the customers.
DailyDOOH Interviews from InfoComm with Members of Our Board
Massachusetts Boys & Girls Club Engages Families with Digital Signage
The Boys & Girls Club of Greater Holyoke, one of the oldest affiliates of the greater Boys & Girls Clubs of America, implemented a digital signage network powered by Mvix. The goal is to engage parents and club members to increase participation in club events and activities.
The Holyoke Club serves more than 350 youths daily and operates 3 satellite branches, including a teen mentorship program. The Club runs childcare services and several academic and recreational after-school prov grams for kindergarten through high school students.
The Challenge
The staff at Holyoke Boys & Girls Club pinned announcements on cork boards but saw very little engagement from parents and kids.
Crowne Plaza Dulles & Conference Spaces get a Digital Signage Upgrade
The Crowne Plaza Dulles Airport, located just outside of the nation’s capital, launched a digital signage network powered by Mvix for their hotel lobby, corporate meeting rooms, and employee spaces.
Conveniently located two miles east of Dulles International Airport, Crowne Plaza recently completed a $14 million renovation. The renovation included upgrades to its 327 guest rooms, 12 conference spaces, and the addition of Starbucks, Houlihan’s Restaurant and Bar, and the Executive Club Level & Lounge for business travelers.