Award-Worthy Security Checkpoints Take More Than Traditional Digital Signage Content

We’re proud to announce that two of our clients have been nominated for the 2025 Digital Signage Awards (DSAs) for innovative checkpoint experiences! A pilot expansion of our Better, Faster Security Checkpoints program created for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is nominated for three awards, and Annie’s Airport Journey at Orlando International Airport (MCO) is nominated for five.

Security checkpoints are traditionally source of stress for passengers and airport operators alike. Passengers approach the checkpoint worrying over policy changes, shifting queues, and more. Airports often see congestion around the checkpoint and may receive complaints in an area they can’t control.

Digital signage content is a popular solution to these challenges. But without the right approach, signs can become visual noise, competing for passengers’ attention and adding to their stress.

The right strategy, content, and solutions work together to create security experiences that are smoother, more efficient, and award-worthy.

How can the aviation industry move beyond traditional digital signage content to award-winning experiences? Learn how our clients did it below.

TSA Creates Calmer, Clearer Checkpoints with Smarter Content

Our long-term collaboration with the TSA has created the only digital signage and visual communication solution featured in their Checkpoint Requirements and Planning Guide.

As the country prepares for a decade of mega-events, airports and agencies are exploring new solutions to increase throughput and efficiency amid surges of passenger traffic. With the newest iteration of our Better, Faster Security Checkpoints program, security screening is becoming speedier and simpler than ever.

Three unique ReadySeeGo form factors ensure passengers are engaged, informed, and entertained at every step:

• ReadySeeGo Vision, the classic tower, is impossible to miss, easy to install, and easy to move, designed to capture and keep passengers’ attention in the queue.

• ReadySeeGo Glance, a small-footprint, high-impact display, delivers just-in-time information, replacing paper stanchions with always-accurate information.

• ReadySeeGo Focus, located just above the conveyor belt and bins, delivers contextual audio and visual instructions to help passengers smoothly divest and prepare for screening.

Synect’s Better, Faster Security Checkpoints program is designed to meet airports’ operational needs and enhance the passenger experience:

• Educating passengers on the next step of screening reduces congestion and increases throughput.

• Entertaining content keeps them engaged and reduces perceived wait times.

• Informational content keeps passengers informed and reduces anxiety.

• Automations and local control minimize the need for verbal instruction and intervention from checkpoint agents.

Together, this solution creates a calmer, more orderly, and more efficient checkpoint. It benefits passengers, the TSA, their officers, airport stakeholders, and more, and the efficiency gained by helping passengers prepare for the checkpoint before they enter are monumental. As Austin Gould said in Synect’s panel at FTE Global 2024:

“A calm, sterile checkpoint is the way to go. If effective communication can help shave off a second or two for over two million passengers, you’ve really done something.”

Synect’s Better, Faster Security Checkpoints program is a finalist for three DSAs:

• Results-Driving, Customer-Facing Solutions

• Customer and Partner Support

• Temporary/Pop-up Projects

MCO Uses Strategic Storytelling in Annie’s Journey

At Orlando International Airport (MCO), Annie’s Airport Journey delivers fun, memorable, shareable moments for nearly 160,000 people every day.

Hand-built by Synect’s Orlando studio, the experience plays on two overhead video walls as passengers wait to enter the checkpoint. It features MCO’s beloved mascot, Annie the Astronaut, on her own journey through a digital version of the airport. At each step, she shares just-in-time information, such as TSA-approved screening tips and concession recommendations, guiding passengers through the checkpoint and highlighting post-security amenities and concessions options.

Annie’s Airport Journey is a key part of the airport-wide visual communication strategy that MCO has developed over a decade of work with Synect. Every implementation is focused on making the airport more efficient, more accessible, and more enjoyable for every passenger.

Annie’s Airport Journey features a number of airport Easter eggs, including the famous carpet.

This launch marks a significant creative and technical milestone for Synect: it’s one of our largest single-sign projects at an airport by duration, creative complexity, and client collaboration. It’s nominated as a finalist in five categories at this year’s DSAs:

• Innovation in Management and Control Software

• Immersive and Experiential Environments

• Relevant, Timely Data-Driven Displays and Creative

• Helpful Information

• Large-Format Digital Canvases

How does Synect help airports create content strategy?

Synect’s CEO, Yahav Ran, emphasized that the key to achieving tangible outcomes lies in effective communication during our panel at FTE Global 2025.

When airports have to compete for passengers’ attention in high-stress areas, creating effective visual communication requires smart strategy.

Synect’s three-stage content strategy framework helps airports meet passengers where they are at each step of the journey:

• Attract: capture passengers’ attention with eye-catching graphics and well-timed motion to deliver the right information at the right time.

• Relate: address passengers’ needs to increase trust and reduce anxiety.

• Engage: give passengers clear directions to influence their behavior and guide them toward an outcome that improves their experience.

Throughout their journey in the airport, passengers are seeking to fulfill different needs, as Yahav went on to explain. They may be seeking information, a sense of control, or they may wish to explore their options within the airport. Proactively meeting these needs helps airports increase revenue, improve their reputation, and enhance operational efficiency.

Digital Signage Content Transforms the Airport Experience

Smart digital signage content transforms the airport experience. When airports start with strategy, they can leverage content, strategy, and technology to create moments of unexpected delight while solving problems for passengers and operational teams alike. Even classically stressful areas, like security, become an opportunity to impress passengers and build award-winning experiences.

Leading airports are already reaping the benefits. If you’re ready to build an award-winning checkpoint, get in touch with our expert team today.