One of areas where digital signage has found a unique use is in schools, colleges and universities. Always trying to ensure it is at the forefront of technology, educators have found digital signage to be an effective way of providing key information to students, staff members and visitors.
The same message can be distributed to multiple machines around an educational complex, in different buildings – and even different sites across town – ensuring everybody on campus that day gets to see the information.
Here are five reasons why schools are finding digital signage, even outdoor digital signage, a great communication tool:
- Digital screens let staff and students keep up to date. Information such as timetable amendments, news about school trips or open days can be difficult to distribute. While the trusty school notice board was used for this sort of information dissemination it was only effective when somebody visits it to read the notices. With digital signage screens can be placed all over a site ensuring everybody on campus will see it.
- Modernity is important for schools, not just to ensure they are providing the best image but it is vital when you consider that young people are growing up with technologies many adults have to learn retrospectively.A digital signage screen may seem modern and exciting to an adult but a to a young person I is ‘normal’ to see such screens, and out-dated communication methods such as notice boards are just to archaic for a generation used to email, the internet and mobile phones.
- Emergencies – One are where digital signage is unrivalled is in emergency situations. Evacuating a school is only part of the challenges when there is an emergency; as campuses are so large these days, preventing, or forewarning latecomers on the campus can be difficult and was also a source of criticism during a recent campus shooting in the USA where an outdoor digital signage network could have saved lives
- Other uses – The great thing about digital signage is its flexibility. One minute you can be relaying important school information, the next you can use the screens to display the latest school sports results or even the lunchtime canteen menu.
