Digital Signage

Many firsts in one project

Digital Signage has emerged just recently and its full potential is yet to be elaborated upon. YMCA of the North recognized the potential of these screens and asked us to create a pilot project not only for this YMCA but, if successful, for all YMCAs out there. Five Jars embarked on a discovery journey to evaluate the available software and hardware solutions as well as their compatibility with the YMCA environment. It was not only for YMCA of the North the first digital signage project but for us as well. How exciting! Moreover, Five Jars was the first developer to combine Open Y and digital signage solutions - ever.

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Innovation for an enhanced experience

The reason why the YMCA sought a digital signage solution was simple – visitor experience. YMCA buildings are often big and many events take place simultaneously. This meant that staff was required to bring lost visitors on the right path. Besides causing higher overhead for the YMCAs, the hard-to-navigate buildings caused a negative visitor experience right at the beginning of their visit.

Dynamic content display through third-party integrations

The digital signage solution must offer a smooth integration with the existing infrastructure which is based on Open Y. This requirement was crucial as only with a simple process of updating the screens, our solution can ultimately prove effective. To guarantee the highest possible level of simplicity, we integrated third-party services through API.

More specifically, Five Jars implemented various modules catering for every possible event and built everything on Open Y. The integration of GroupEx Pro, Personify, Daxko and ActiveNet allow the versatile use of the technology and foster visitor experiences.

When creating the design for the digital signage, Five Jars integrated the common YMCA website layouts. Our solution not only allows YMCA of the North to innovate but, foremost, to innovate with recognition. Corporate design and identity are of utmost importance for any customer-centric experience. Eventually, our digital signage solution truly feels like YMCA.

A solution for all the YMCAs out there

Five Jars developed a solution usable beyond the initial circle of clients. We designed the entire project in the most reproducible manner to foster digital innovation across the entire YMCA. Not only is the project reproducible but also publicly available. Together with the client, Five Jars has published the project on GitHub for the world to use. The reason to do this was simple. Up to this date, digital signage solutions were expensive due to the software required to use the technology. This meant that many of the smaller YMCAs could not take advantage of the innovation prior to this project. However, through Five Jars approach and the accessible software solution, nobody is left out.

Five Jars demonstrated what openness to innovation and a collective purpose combined can achieve. Our solution inspires not only one YMCA group but the entire YMCA movement – and far beyond.