One of the strongest aspects of digital signage in connecting with viewers is its ability to present an ever-changing mix of content. That, in turn, adds a level of complexity to the content decision that doesn’t exist in paper forms, such as determining how long each piece of content needs to be on the screen and how frequently the entire set of content pieces—the playlist—will be repeated or replaced by a different playlist. The wait time and length of the playlist loop are directly connected.

One component that directly affects how many times a piece of content plays on any one screen is determined by frequency of visits at the venue, which is a huge consideration that will keep the content fresh and watched. This is more or less difficult based on the type of network. In a Point of Sale (POS) network, for example, in a department store, content can be changed once a month because most people are unlikely to visit more frequently and therefore have less chance to become overexposed.

Changing content based on what time of day it is and what day of the week it is can critically affect the impact of digital signage content on customers and associates. The same loop that is effective for the demographics of morning customers or midweek customers will not necessarily appeal to customers who frequent the business at other times.

The time of day, the activities in which the viewer is engaged, and even the weather can be important considerations in developing content. Combining the viewer’s profile with the network’s environment will help the programmer make important decisions about how to assemble individual content elements into complete programming loops and how to determine the length and frequency of change of each element and loop.