BROADCASTS.com

It’s always been important for people to know where they should be going, but with the coronavirus pandemic turning how people are gathering or clustering into a matter of public health, it’s never been more critical.

One of the best ways to keep people safe is to make sure there’s messaging letting people know things like how long a line is or how many people are in a certain area or displaying regulations about social distancing, masking or direction of traffic in a space.

That requires both a hardware solution and a software solution, which is why Dan Baker, Sales Engineer at LG, and Craig Marshall, Product Manager at Omnivex, have teamed up to provide solutions for businesses looking at digital signage during the pandemic.

Those solutions can go far beyond simply putting up a monitor and showing a static message, Baker said, pointing out a place like a hotel check-in desk, where you want to both provide hospitality but keep a safe distance between guest and desk clerk.

“One real nice solution that LG has now is our transparent OLED display,” Baker said. “That really can be a nice way to interact with someone. Put their information on a screen that’s see-through, and you can see the person on the other side and interact with them that way. So, you’re kind of getting a shield and display in one and not only protecting yourself but heightening your customers’ experience.”

While digital signage is critical during the pandemic, it’s also a strong long-term investment for either improving the look and function of a retail outlet or serving a different purpose in the office.

“If you did go ahead and implement a bunch of digital communications for this purpose, you’re going to wind up using this stuff for all sorts of other things, whether it’s tracking key performance indicators of your business, acknowledging real-time successes and wins, or having virtual huddles and letting people know what’s going on in the businesses,” Marshall said. “Everyone is just more connected, more engaged. Communications are the silver bullet, and this is just going to carry on.”