Teem
September 8th, 2021

RELATED REPORT

The State of Workplace Tech

Digital signage is becoming a standard element of the modern workplace. Not only can office digital signage be used to establish your brand’s identity, but it can also help you make employees and visitors feel welcome and create an easier way for people to navigate your office environment.

As an IT leader, you have tremendous power to encourage your organization to embrace new technology in the workplace. In a world where new tools and digital advancements are introduced every day, it’s not always clear how to identify which solutions are right for your company.

Here’s a closer look at the benefits they offer and an overview of six digital signage future trends that should be on your radar as you navigate the evolution of work and enterprise IT.

Why office digital signage is important

Gone are the days of wandering around in search of your meeting room or getting lost on your way to find where the desk you booked for the day is located. Office digital signage cuts back on wasted time so it can be reallocated to more meaningful work.

Plus, unlike paper signs, office digital signage can be updated instantly to communicate important updates without needing to create new signs to replace signs containing outdated information. By cutting out time-consuming, manual processes, everyone can make informed choices based on accurate and timely information.

Post-pandemic, the office will be used as the hub for frictionless collaboration — a place where everyone can get involved with company culture. But for employees to thrive in the new era of work, companies must evolve their approach to evaluating new technology. Today, it’s critical for IT leaders to know what options are available so they can identify solutions that balance business goals with employee expectations. In doing so, they’ll help employees truly make the most out of their time in the office.

6 emerging digital signage trends to watch

Interactive office digital signage

In recent years, we’ve seen an uptick in technologies and processes centered around engagement. To be more specific, there’s been a growing emphasis on solutions that engage employees and customers. Attention is one of the most valuable commodities. And with so many distractions bombarding them constantly, holding a user’s attention has become increasingly challenging. From UX experts and IT managers to workplace leaders, nearly every tech professional has been striving to solve this problem.

We’ve already seen progress in the form of touchscreens. Now, expect to see further developments in additional elements, including advancements in tools such as facial recognition software. You can also anticipate seeing more digital signage software that’s designed to simplify processes like conference room booking and visitor management, tasks that were traditionally time-consuming, tedious, and completed manually.

digital-signage-interactive

Wayfinding digital signage trends

As workplaces become more mobile and companies embrace flexible seating arrangements — for instance, desk hoteling and hot-desking — employees may find it difficult to locate people and places without wasting too much time. Wayfinding signage has evolved over the past two decades from fixed, non-digital displays to more advanced, interactive screens that help guide users around your workspace with ease.

In the coming months and years after the pandemic, we expect wayfinding to become even more useful. Expect to see more point-by-point directions and more robust back-end functionalities, too.

Currently, the best workplaces use wayfinding signage with modern features including:

  • Interactive maps that allow users to select spaces, people, and book meetings in just a few taps or clicks
  • Advanced search capabilities allowing users to search for people, rooms, and desks across multiple floors
  • Customized views that allow users to visualize spaces as either interactive maps or lists, based on their needs

Advanced customization options

One of the biggest pet peeves IT and workplace leaders have with many digital office signage solutions is the complete lack of customization. Software designed with only the provider’s logo and colors rather than your own organization’s branding creates a disconnected experience for visitors and employees.

The best digital signage software allows enterprises to customize digital displays to reflect their brand’s look and feel — one of the digital signage trends we definitely expect will continue to advance in the years ahead.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and AI-driven personalization

Although tech experts have been predicting massive advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) for decades, we’re finally seeing new AI developments being used to enhance workplace technology.

Among the many benefits of using AI, is the ability to synthesize workplace analytics, streamline the process of collecting information, and deploy experiences driven by that data. One of the best applications of AI in the workplace is personalization. People will not only see their names on your screens, but eventually, we will see displays automatically configure themselves to meet each individual users’ specific needs and accommodate their habits. The best types of interactions don’t happen by accident — they happen because employers prioritize end-users and fully understand the value of delivering personalized experiences in the workplace.

For years there has been buzz surrounding the possibilities of capturing and analyzing big data, and now we’re finally seeing more opportunities to reap the reward from a surplus of information. It won’t be long before AI will be used to carry office digital signage into the next era.

8k screens

8k, the highly anticipated successor to 4k, has arrived, and it’s flying off the shelves in the form of consumer products.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was announced that the 2020 Summer Olympics was going to be the first event transmitted in 8k. Analysts predicted that would ignite the market for this advanced screen tech, however — due to the health crisis — the games were postponed.  After being rescheduled this year, 200 hours of the event were broadcast in 8K.

As experts predicted, 8k displays have taken off in popularity, and an increase in 8k-enabled devices will continue pushing 8k adoption as this trend picks up steam in the coming years. Why? This resolution is effectively as good as the human eye can see, which makes it an excellent investment, and one that isn’t likely to be “outdone” anytime soon.

Office digital signage with sophisticated integrations

The future of the workplace is connected. Your enterprise systems and applications become more powerful when you can pull data from a variety of places. The same holds true for office digital signage: It’s only as good as the integrations it provides. After all, if your office digital signage displays don’t connect to your office’s ecosystem, information can’t flow easily and they aren’t as user-friendly for employees. That can hurt adoption rates, and in turn, limit the benefits.

Moving forward, you can expect to see more office digital signage options that offer integrations with a variety of apps and solutions. These include:

You’ll also see more advanced APIs so you can find new ways to combine and connect your workplace data and help you focus on putting your workplace data to good use.

How to evaluate your options for office digital signage

These digital signage trends provide an exciting glance into the future of the workplace. Office digital signage is already an essential part of a high-functioning, highly productive workplace. Organizations have long relied on this technology to assist employees and visitors with the check-in process, make it easier to find their way around, provide a better way to book spaces, and more. And tech leaders have relied on the ability to collect important data and inform decisions that further enhance the employee experience.

These six innovative digital signage trends we’ve shared above provide an exciting glance into the future of the workplace. Over time, the benefits they offer will serve to improve your workforce’s day-to-day experience, giving them the power to do even more while they’re working from the office.

If you’re considering adding any of these digital signage trends to your workplace, make sure you choose hardware that integrates with the technology you already use — or technology you anticipate using. To make sure it’s still relevant in the coming years, it should allow for customization, personalization, and interactivity.

Teem integrates with the most popular office digital signage systems today, including Alexa for Business, Apple, Crestron, Enlighted, GE Current, and many others. Our integrations are designed to help you create a powerful, connected workplace so you can focus on the success of the business and your workforce.

To learn more about the new standard of enterprise technology and the emerging trends influencing it, we surveyed nearly 300 IT leaders to ask about their future plans. Discover the results in The State of Workplace Tech report. 

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Teem

Teem by iOFFICE provides enterprises with space scheduling and management, workplace analytics, building, and campus wayfinding, and visitor management to help cultivate workplaces that fuel productivity, efficiency, and creativity.

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