With the climax of the global pandemic seemingly behind us, the world’s sights are set on the future. 2022 is about adjusting to a new normal—and technology, primarily digital signage, plays an important part in defining what that new normal means around the world.

Digital signage will reach $6.9 billion in the US alone by 2025, so if your company hasn't jumped on the digital signage train, now is the time.

So what trends are on deck? Here’s what we’ve found to be on the rise.

1. Visual Explosion

Marketers compete with more screens than ever—on people’s wrists, in their hands, and all over their homes and offices. So how do you capture attention away from those screens? Visual explosions, of course. 

Visual explosions are eye-catching and vibrant graphics that are hard to ignore. Timelapses of beautiful landscapes with popping colors are grabbing people’s attention in some of the most crowded advertising areas in the world, like Times Square.

Designers are taking visual explosions to the next level by developing and implementing 3D advertising. It appears that the video is coming off of the screen and jumping over the crowd. An anamorphic tiger above the city is hard to ignore.

Videos from China and New York City are going viral worldwide for their eye-catching 3D visual explosions, giving these brands more exposure.

2. Interactive Displays

Interactive displays have been gaining popularity since the beginning of digital signage. Before the pandemic, people were already familiar with providing feedback via touchscreens, ordering at restaurant kiosks, and using self-checkouts.

Touch screen displays have become increasingly popular because they are more engaging. When people are more conscious of their health, they’re also safer to use.

There's no surprise that interactivity is adapting to a post-pandemic world as we're now seeing more facial recognition displays, voice-controlled interactive displays, and AI-powered visual sensors.

3. The Rebirth of QR Codes

QR codes were ahead of their time. When they first started to appear, people were confused, had to download a specific app to use them, and they weren’t as convenient as they are today. Thanks to technological advances, QR codes have finally found their time to shine.

Mobile devices have QR code reading capabilities built into their cameras, so users simply open their cameras and hover over the QR code to access the features behind the code.

Businesses stand to gain a lot from connecting digital signage to customers' devices. Integrating a QR code into your digital signage allows your customers to interact with your social media channels or check out new features on your website.

A great way to use QR codes in person is to incentivize them to sign up for your newsletter or follow you on social media to get a discount. QR codes are also cost-effective because they are free to create and easy to update, provided you use digital signage software.

4. Integrations and Use of APIs

Before the pandemic, companies had already seen the benefits of using social walls at live events and integrating APIs to pull live updates on their digital signage in the office.

As people start attending in-person events again, social media walls and other forms of integration will become even more popular.

There are many ways companies are integrating APIs into their digital signage:

• Emergency updates
• Statistics dashboards to keep employees informed and engaged
• Scheduling - meeting rooms, event schedules, transportation updates, etc.
• Registration needs - check-in processes for healthcare facilities, registration at events, visitor logs, etc.

Through APIs, companies are able to use digital signage integrations in virtually any field.

5. Customer Engagement

Customer experience has become a huge focus for companies. 77% of CEOs have said they're prioritizing how their company interacts with customers to focus on growth.

Interactive digital signage is a great way to improve customer experience. For example, in retail stores, digital signage solutions like lift-and-learn technology are being integrated to encourage people to buy products.

Lift-and-learn technology is a great way to engage your customers so that when they pick up an item, the screen will then detect that item and bring up the product details. This helps customers compare items and make buying decisions more efficiently.

Keep Your Digital Signage Ahead of the Trend with Wallboard

We've discussed a few ways that digital signage is trending, but the possibilities are endless when it comes to how companies will use it in 2022.

Wallboard has high-quality solutions and an amazing team to make your ideas come to life. We're committed to pushing the envelope of what's possible with digital signs.

Get in touch with our team for a consultation today.

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