Finding the Best Touchscreen Development for Advanced Manufacturers

Are you in need of an interactive touchscreen for your sales team at your advanced manufacturing firm?

If you’ve been researching your options and think an interactive touchscreen experience might be the best option to help showcase complex products or solutions in a visual, engaging way, it’s probably time to start scouting out your options.

Maybe you’ve already read some blogs (like this one) that suggest an interactive touchscreen specialist or interactive design agency (specialising in creating interactive experiences) is the way to go. Or, perhaps you’re not exactly sure where to begin!

Many first-time clients who come to use have been inspired by a touchscreen experience they’ve seen at an event, at a corporate headquarters or even in a museum or gallery, and love the idea of being able to show their customers exactly how their solutions work in an immersive, fun way.

Especially for advanced manufacturing firms where content can be quite dry and information-heavy, an interactive sales tool such as a touchscreen can provide new ways for customers to connect and learn about a brand.

Still, knowing the benefits is one thing – knowing where to start when finding someone to develop your touchscreen experience is another. As touchscreen specialists who have experience of helping many clients bring their products and solutions to life through touchscreens, we’ve put together some tips.

1. Consider your goals, objectives and audience

The best place to start is by looking at what you’re hoping to achieve with your interactive touchscreen experience. This is something we’d highly recommend thinking about BEFORE you approach a touchscreen specialist or interactive agency.

Once you’ve pinpointed the goals or objectives you’re hoping to achieve, you also must consider how those goals line up with those of your customers – in other words, the people who are going to be using your touchscreen development.

As an example, perhaps your main goal is to perfectly demonstrate the difference your product or solution can have on your audience – to ultimately lead to more sales and advocates of brand. You may also just be looking to raise awareness for your brand, or capture more leads.

Regardless of what you’re hoping to achieve, it’s vital to think about the actions you’ll want people to take when using the experience – and how you’re going to persuade them to take those actions – along with the bigger picture. What’s all this for, exactly?

One example would be if you were looking for potential customers to fill in their contact details in return for something they’ll find of value. The question is: what can you offer them? Perhaps some media or key information (such as videos or PDFs)?

2. Think about the hardware and surrounding space

When most people think about interactive touchscreen development, the hardware is a big consideration – and in a way, it is. For instance, you’ll want to take into account the space your interactive touchscreen is going into, how many people there will be and other physical requirements of the room.

For instance, not everyone always thinks to ask if there’ll be WiFi in the room or area in question – a vital element if you want your touchscreen experience to be able to connect to the internet (for things like live feeds, or just allowing your touchscreen to communicate with 3D objects, lighting and other objects in the room).

Perhaps you’re already picturing people interacting with your experience using touchtables, video walls, or lecterns, for example. Just bear in mind that the type of experience you want people to have – and the types of interaction you’re providing – should really dictate the hardware you choose.

TIP: No-one will want to enter their contact details on a massive video wall, for example – so you may wish to consider something a little more personal if going for this option.

Uncertain of your options, or need some advice/guidance on going forward? Then it’s time to get in touch with an interactive design agency or touchscreen specialist who can help.

Tip: You could also check out our recent blog post: 7 things you should know before choosing an interactive touchscreen solution for your business.

3. Seek out 2 – 3 specialists or agencies

We use the term ‘interactive touchscreen specialist’ for a reason; because you’ll need someone who is experienced – and specialises – in creating engaging and immersive experiences that are completely bespoke.

We’d always recommend someone like this over a company who perhaps specialises in hardware or developing websites or software, as touchscreen experiences are an entirely different beast, with a lot to consider when creating an interactive and engaging experience for users.

Elements such as the screen size and nature of a touchscreen experience means that the entire layout, content and navigation is altogether different from creating a website. Keeping users engaged with fun and immersive features is vital, and you should be able to leave them with a lasting impression.

Our best advice is to seek out 2 – 3 interactive touchscreen specialists, and get a feel for how they do things. They should be happy to engage with you, and ask you all the right questions in order to better understand your goals and objectives (see point 1.).

Even if you’re not altogether ready to develop something of your own just yet, they should still provide you with some impartial advice and guidance, so you can be prepared for when you do decide to take that first plunge into the realm of interactive experiences.

4. Ask them the following vital questions

The work doesn’t just fall to an interactive touchscreen specialist, of course. It’s also on you to ensure you ask them the right questions to decide whether or not they’ll be a good fit for what you’re hoping to achieve.

Try asking them the following:

1. What’s their experience in developing interactive touchscreen solutions?
2. Do they specialise in developing experiences rather than just supplying hardware?
3. Can they also provide you with hardware, or is that something you must arrange separately?
4. Will your interactive touchscreen experience be unique and utterly bespoke to your brand?
5. Can your interactive content be adaptable/futureproof – if necessary? (Always good to know you’ve got that option)
6. What does their typical process look like when creating touchscreen experiences for clients? 
7. What will they need from you in order to deliver the end result?
8. Do they have all the right in-house design and user experience (UX) skills?
9. How much can you roughly expect to spend on your touchscreen solution?
10. On average, how long does it take them to develop an interactive touchscreen experience?

They should be happy to answer all of the questions above. If possible, it’s also wise to ask if you can see some previous examples of their work, along with some client testimonials. It’s always a good idea to get a feel for them as a company.

They may not be able to pinpoint at this early stage how long your touchscreen experience will take to develop, and other more specific questions, but these are things that should become clearer once you’ve received a more detailed proposal of the work involved.

Which brings us nicely to point 5.

5. Look over their proposal and ensure it covers your needs

Once you’ve spoken in-depth to your chosen interactive touchscreen specialist or agency, they should then be able to come up with a proposal to meet your needs. What should that proposal include? Well…

• A quote detailing all of the work involved and full costs (no hidden extras)
• Estimated timescales for your project, including a final delivery date
• A moodboard to give you some visual examples of their ideas for your touchscreen experience
• A project outline, including a timeline of sign-off stages, what to expect, and what they’ll need from you at each stage of the project 

This should hopefully provide you with a detailed overview of the project, without being too overwhelming (most agencies should be prepared to do most of the hard work for you!).

Advice from the touchscreen specialists

When deciding on an interactive touchscreen specialist or interactive agency for your project, it’s always wise to choose someone who not only makes you feel at ease, but is readily available, communicative and takes the time to listen to your needs and goals.

They shouldn’t leave you in any doubt about what’s expected of you as the client, or what you can expect from them in return. Once you’re feeling completely comfortable and fully informed, you can commit to going forward in what should be a pleasant, exciting and mutually beneficial relationship.

The result should be a visually engaging, immersive and fun experience for your event that your customers will love.

Get better acquainted with touchscreen development

Need an interactive touchscreen developer to work with you when creating an engaging and immersive experience that perfectly showcases your products or solutions?

When it comes to developing touchscreen experiences, many advanced manufacturing firms have a good idea of the type of thing they want, but not how to go about it or where to find someone who can help.

Remember to consider your goals and objectives, along with the physical requirements of the room and surrounding space – this is always a good starting point and should help you hit the ground running when it is time to reach out to a specialist or agency.

At POPcomms, we have years of experience helping advanced manufacturers create the ultimate interactive touchscreen experience – and we’re ready to add you to that list. To talk about your ideas, get in touch today on +44 (0)117 329 1712 or hello@popcomms.com. We’d love to hear from you.