While the D-Tools study is based on data from more than 1,500 North American integrators, the underlying trends are equally visible across the EMEA region. Competition is intensifying, projects are becoming increasingly standardized, and customers are shifting from product purchases to service-based expectations. At the same time, AI and automation are creating additional disruption. The key takeaway is clear: standing still is becoming a risk.
Commentary: “The Collapse of the Middle, and Waiting Is Not a Strategy”
For digital signage and ProAV integrators, the first step is to critically reassess their business model. Many companies still generate the majority of their revenue from hardware sales and project-based work. Yet this is precisely where margin pressure continues to increase. Services such as consulting, content management, remote monitoring, managed services, and operational support need to become a larger part of the value proposition and be positioned as revenue-generating offerings in their own right.
Diversification is equally important. Integrators who already enjoy trusted relationships with customers should evaluate which adjacent technologies and services can be added to their portfolio. Network infrastructure, workplace technology, security applications, and data-driven services often offer greater growth opportunities than traditional display and AV projects alone. Expanding the customer basket not only increases revenue potential but also strengthens long-term customer retention.
The study also demonstrates that future growth will increasingly depend on operational efficiency. More proposals are resulting in more contracts, but win rates remain largely unchanged. As a result, integrators need to accelerate internal processes. Modern CRM, project management, and automation platforms are no longer optional investments but prerequisites for remaining competitive. The same is true for the use of AI in proposal generation, project planning, and service delivery.
Another opportunity lies in improving project qualification. When multiple proposal revisions are required before a contract is signed, valuable resources are consumed. Integrators that define customer requirements earlier and more accurately can improve profitability while freeing capacity for new business.
Companies operating in the traditional mid-market segment should be particularly attentive. This is where many digital signage and ProAV businesses have historically thrived, yet it is also where pressure is increasing from both directions. Large IT service organizations are winning enterprise customers, while standardized plug-and-play solutions are absorbing smaller projects. The strategic question therefore becomes: do you want to become bigger, or more specialized?
The most successful market participants typically pursue one of these two paths. Either they expand their managed services capabilities, regional footprint, and recurring revenue streams, or they develop deep expertise in specific verticals such as retail media, corporate communications, smart workplace solutions, hospitality, or AI-powered digital signage applications.
Above all, integrators should avoid relying on market averages. Industries do not evolve uniformly. While some companies are growing rapidly, others are losing significant ground. What matters is not the industry average, but an organization’s position relative to the best-performing competitors.
The business environment for ProAV and digital signage is changing faster today than at any point in the past decade. Intensifying competition, new market entrants, and the rapid advancement of AI are forcing the industry to rethink long-established assumptions. New processes, new business models, and above all a willingness to innovate will become the defining factors for future success.
At invidis, we call this transformation NextGen Signage. There is a reason why we dedicated our latest yearbook to this topic. The central message is simple: the future will not belong to the largest providers or the lowest-cost suppliers, but to those who adapt most quickly to changing market conditions.