General

• DS the best way to reach consumers directly at point-of-purchase or point of decision, while in TV, Radio and Print there is always a time and distance gap between the ads and the advertised product.
• DS communicates with shoppers who are ready to buy. It is more targeted, with In-store demographics becoming increasingly available to enable more accurate day-parting, cost per month calculations, and other measurements.
• DS content can be adapted depending on regional or local interests, demographics and buying patterns.
• DS audiences are ‘ready to act’, while all other media audiences are passive ‘potential consumers’.
• Ads are easier recall and retention in DS is better than in any traditional advertising media.
• DS advertising expenses are easier to account for, as it can be tracked directly to sales uplift.

Advantage over Static signs (Outdoor, POP, etc.)

• DS can deliver exponentially more ad spots occupying the same space.
• Full-motion DS ads have more impact.

Advantage over TV & Radio

• Viewers tend to observe TV and Radio ads as un-necessary interruptions. By contrast, shoppers are more responsive to DS ads when they convey timely, helpful and relevant info that helps them make the right choice.
• Viewers will find it hard miss DS ads.
• Viewers are using devices like DVR and Tivo just to avoid the commercial.
• TV & Radio ads are not specific to the item that is being sold, while DS is specific, informative and hard-to-ignore

Advantage over Newspapers & Magazines

• Newspaper ads are usually viewed once a day (Mostly in morning) at the most, while DS delivers more ads at a higher frequency and continuously.
• DS can be time specific, age-group specific and product-specific
• DS ads are more convincing because of the ability to show full motion video.
• DS ads are more flexible; they can be custom-made and aimed at smaller target audiences within a larger audience
• DS has lower CPM (Cost per Month) than most newspapers and magazines, while having a higher targeting ability and impact.

Advantage over TV/VCR/DVD combos in retail

• VCR/DVD content gets outdated quickly, distracts employees and takes a long time to change
• DS networks allow operators to sell measurable ad space to advertisers and retailers, while TV/VCR/DVD combos have limitations in creating this revenue channel.
• DS networks are largely automated and remotely operated, while TV/VCR/DVD combos require manual management and thus consume employee time.

• Seemingly high cost of deployment. This is only true in comparison with some outdoor networks. However, newer technologies are making DS more inexpensive. The price of hardware has dropped noticeably in the past years. In fact, digital signage networks are much cheaper to build than a TV or radio station ad with comparable audience size.
  
• True there are not many studies and reports out; however, it's only a matter of time. Big market research companies like Arbitron, Nielsen, Media Research and others are already conducting reports and studies in this field.
  
• DS network audiences are often smaller than those of TV. However, this parameter is quickly changing. For instance, Wal-Mart's in-store network can be compared to a large TV network in terms of audience size.
  
• DS ads are consumable, much like broadcast ads. Shoppers cannot keep a DS ad for future reference the same way they hold on to newspaper ads. Concurrent maintaining or web-streaming of the same content on the web actually creates more audience nationwide or even worldwide. A small retailer puts the ads in store and on his website with title and online purchasing revenue from out of area