Image credit: Images_of_Money, Flickr
Despite the drop in the price of the technology, digital signage is still perceived by some organisations as a communication solution that is not accessible to everyone. Yet, there are many ways to finance a project without having to spend more than you are willing to.
If you haven’t convinced your CEO to give you all the money you need, then here are some alternative routes you want to consider. The following are a variety of ways that digital signage can be affordable at any price point.
- Get a loan. If you haven’t got the money, ask it from those who do. You’ll want to begin to gather documents that prove your ability to pay back a loan over time—for example: a credit report and income tax forms. See if there is anything you can do to optimize your credit score. Paying any outstanding bills and even fixing a discrepancy on your report will help you get a better deal.
Next, you’ll want to do some research on potential lenders. This can include banks, credit unions, or even family and friends. If you buy a digital sign using a loan, your purchase is usually tax deductible, which will pay off later on.
- Lease the hardware. Unlike loans, leasing requires no down payment, so if you lack capital in the short term, use this option to purchase your screens and media players. Furthermore, leasing the equipment protects your business from depreciation issues and obsolete technology while allowing you to manage your cash flow better through regular, fixed payments. Certain digital signage integrators such as One Digital Solutions (that help you put the solution together) offer leasing solutions to make the products of your choice available to you.
- Factor in savings from other sources. Once you convert to digital signage, you will be saving money on a lot of other services. For example, you will not need to pay someone to design signage for you, to print it, and to subsequently ship it to your office. You also will spend less on labor because no one will be needed to spend time changing all the signage in and around your business. You can employ a freelancer to compose and design digital content and send that to all the screens within your network, a service that can also be offered by the digital signage integrator that will help you with the system’s install. This tactic will imply that your accounting and human resources departments will be less taxed because they won’t have to manage as many accounts and people, respectively.
- Find creative ways to save money. If you’re working on a small scale and are looking to implement digital signage in a small business or indoors, you can find creative ways to save money on your project. For example, you can buy an Android bundle– media player with an Android OS and digital signage software- a cost-effective alternative that saves you the hassle of choosing the hardware and software powering your screens. Re-use content you already possess or ask your graphic designers to create templates that you can easily update by yourself so you don’t have to pay for new ones. If you want to use generic, ready-made content then BlueFox is one of the companies offering a variety of content packages for as little as 9 euros/player/ month. Digital signage software providers like Dynamax and integrators alike can come to your help and recommend the products that suit your needs and budget.
- Solicit sponsors. If you want to increase your return on investment and the context of your organisation allows it, consider dedicating some space to advertisements of other businesses and partners. This can be a great way to generate revenue and make connections with local companies.
If you want to invest in digital signage, there is definitely a way that you can make it work. Whether you seek some form of financing or take a do-it-yourself option, digital signage can reduce costs, boost revenue, improve efficiency and customer service.
This article was written in collaboration with John Gower. John is an analyst for NerdWallet, a personal finance website providing tips on investing, banking and insurance.
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