For as long as I have been knocking out Sixteen:Nine posts, people have been debating what to call this industry – as not that many people are entirely happy with digital signage, but the alternative handles haven’t resonated either.
How about Experience Management System? I could argue the pros and cons of that one for an hour or two.
I mention that because I came across a post on Linkedin from an unfamiliar company called Centro, referencing itself as offering an Experience Management System, with the tag line of: Empowering Digital Storytelling in Every Environment.
The Linkedin post says the Kansas City, KS company has north of 200 employees – but not one associated with the company’s Linkedin profile. Weird, I thought.
So I looked up the address and realized Centro is much more a product than a company, and it falls under the umbrella of the experience design and build firm Dimensional Innovations … which I DO know about.
DI calls its product the Centro Experience Management System, but it is digital signage. The Why Centro question even answers: Centro offers the tools to display captivating digital signage messages that resonate with your diverse audience, fostering meaningful engagement throughout your building. Elevate your communication strategy with Centro and unlock the potential for deeper tenant engagement and community connection.
I think it’s an interesting descriptor for what this industry does, but I’m not convinced it is one the broader industry should adopt.
First, the acronym is EMS, which many or most people will instantly relate to emergency medical services.
Second, look up Experience Management System and the search brings back all kinds of varied pronouncements about experience management and customer experience management, often relating it to products from tech giants like Microsoft, Adobe, Oracle and Salesforce. I very happily don’t sell software, but if I did, I would not want to compete with Fortune 100 companies for customer attention and business.
I also worry that the term experience would get a lot of people thinking experience equals experiential, and that experience management means big, expensive, visually-driven experiential projects like giant video walls in office towers and airports. Companies like Moment Factory and DI do experience, but a lot of digital signage CMS software companies are much more about delivering needed communications – like pricing or guidance – at scale.
But … I could also argue experiential could be much more broadly applied. I like the monumental, digitally-driven displays that are signature experiential features of new or revitalized airports. But I also like simple information displays in airports that just help me get through the process and to a departure gate or arrivals and baggage. That’s as much part of the airport experience as the expensive and flashy stuff.
What do you think?