Start from your screens, not the software

Before comparing vendors, write down what you actually run, or plan to run. How many screens, in how many places? Which brands and systems are they? Who will change the content, and how often? Who gets the call when a screen is off?

Those four answers narrow the field faster than any feature list. A café with two menu screens and a chain with sixty branches need different things, and a platform that's perfect for one can be hard work for the other.

Setup and devices

The first weeks decide whether screens become part of the routine or end up showing last month's offer. Ask:

  • Who does the setup? Some platforms are fully self-serve: you install the player and follow the guides. Others set the screens up with you. Neither is wrong, but be honest about how much time your team has.
  • Does it run on the screens I already have? Check the exact system: Samsung Tizen, LG webOS, Android, Windows, Linux or Raspberry Pi. "Works with smart TVs" is not an answer.
  • Can I buy ready-made screens from you if I'd rather not choose? Useful for new branches, when nobody wants to compare models.
  • Can different brands sit in the same account? Over a few years, most businesses end up with a mix.

Language, support and the people behind it

Software is only half of what you're buying. The other half is who answers when something isn't right.

  • Can branch staff use the dashboard without training? They'll use it every day, so it should make sense without guessing.
  • Is support available in your working hours? Ask how you reach them: email, phone, a form inside the product.
  • Where is the company, and who would you be signing with? It matters for invoices, contracts and, if it comes to it, disputes.
  • Will you talk to the people who build the product, or to a reseller? Answers come faster from the team that can change it.

Pricing that you can plan around

Most platforms charge per screen, monthly or yearly, but what's inside the price varies a lot. Ask what's included, and what costs extra:

  • Is setup included, or charged separately?
  • Are player licences, hardware or storage priced on top of the subscription?
  • Which features sit on higher plans? Approval steps, single sign-on and reports are common examples.
  • What happens to the price as you add branches?

Compare the total for your own screen count over a year or two, not the headline price per screen. Our post on the total cost of digital signage walks through the other costs to count.

Running many screens and branches

If you have more than a handful of screens, the day-to-day questions matter more than the editor:

  • Can I group screens by branch, floor or type, and send content to a whole group at once?
  • Can I plan content by time of day and day of the week, and set campaigns to end on their own?
  • Can I see, from the office, whether each screen is on and what it's playing?
  • Can I give branch managers access to their own screens without handing them everything?

Security, privacy and the internet dropping

Screens sit in public places and accounts are shared more than they should be. Ask:

  • Does the account support two-step verification, and can you see and sign out the devices that are signed in?
  • What does a screen do when its internet connection drops, and what does it show when it comes back?
  • Where is your data processed, and what does the vendor's privacy policy say? Under the KVKK, the vendor usually processes data on your behalf, so you should know what it handles.

Trying it, and leaving

The best test is one real screen in one real place for a couple of weeks. Ask whether you can run a pilot like that, and who helps you with it.

Then ask the question nobody likes: if we leave, what do we take with us? Your images and videos should stay yours, and moving screens to another platform shouldn't mean replacing them.

In short

Choose on the things that will matter on an ordinary Tuesday: who sets it up, whether it runs on your screens, who answers in your language, what the real price is for your branches, and whether you can see every screen from where you sit.

We've put Jonza side by side with several well-known platforms using these same questions. And if you'd like our answers for your own screens and branches, write to us: our team will tell you what it would take.