Digital Signage Need to Know: Demand Attention and Target Your Audience With Outdoor LED Signs

- Scott Hofheins

Outdoor LED signs are communication tools. In a matter of seconds, they let the public know about your organization, directly and indirectly through scheduled content. The impression you leave with the viewer will help them understand and answer certain things your organization like your physical existence, what you do, and why it should be done with you specifically. Your content, and the way it is scheduled will play a large role in the viewers response. By targeting both aspects, the content and the scheduling, you can greatly increase the effectiveness of your sign.

The Scheduling

The options you have and how easily they are implemented are often determined by the manufacturer of your LED sign and the software they provide. Unfortunately, many sub-par manufacturers rely on outdated software, or software developed overseas with limited options and is difficult to use. This has been a harsh reality for many end users who paid a lot of money for a sign manufactured by an entity that viewed software as an afterthought. This can make it more difficult, but still worth the effort to make sure your scheduling content that is targeted to your audience.

Fundamentally, you want to reach your audience by giving them information relevant to their situation. Certain types of people drive past your sign during certain times of the day. By scheduling specific messages to play during these times, you can speak directly to them.

Rush Hour

This is the most common, and my minimum recommendation for scheduled content. Every LED sign should have least some content specifically for, and directed to rush hour traffic. This is typically from 7-9am, and from 4-6pm in most locations.

You want to schedule messages that talk directly to these drivers. Do some research, and try to determine the demographics of these drivers.

• Where are most of them traveling too? Tech jobs? Manufacturing jobs? Tailor your content accordingly, talk to the techies, talk to the skilled factory workers, what is important to them?
• How fast are they traveling? If you have a consistent “stop and go” situation near your sign, take advantage of that time, and modify the play length, or quantity of the content accordingly.
• If you have trouble isolating certain groups, you can always go to the one common trait: they are driving. Create content that speaks to them, let them know they can take a break from traffic and pull into your place for coffee and donuts. They can beat the traffic on the way home and join you for happy hour specials. Take some time, and think of some ways you can incorporate their immediate situation, with what your organization has to offer.

Lunch

Lunch time is another consistent time frame you can schedule for. If you're a restaurant, it’s pretty straightforward, let them know why they should come in NOW! Advertise your lunch specials and the reason they should spend their money with you, instead of the competition.

For other businesses, you can still market to this group. These drivers may have some time to stop by your place to do some household shopping, get their hair cut, or attend a midday church service. Remember, it’s not just workers who are out during lunch hours.

School Time

Are you near any schools, day care, or other youth facility? You may have certain drivers dropping their children off in the morning, or picking them up in the afternoon that drive by your sign. What demographic is picking them up, and dropping them off? Who is riding with the parents? Look into your specific location, and let your sign talk to them during these hours.

Conditional Scheduling

Software provided by some manufacturers supports the ability to play certain messages depending on conditions, like temperature or weather. This can be a useful tool to grab the attention of drivers with messages like “It’s cold today! 10% off all coats for a limited time!” or “Looks Like Rain! Tire Safety Inspections Today!”.

Specific Situations

Think about other situations that you can target and schedule content for. For example, local events like music festivals will give you a certain groups to target. Holidays are also a good thing to link your content too. What is going on around you, and how can you incorporate it with your messages?

The Content

This is a well documented factor in the effectiveness of your LED sign, and we discuss it often. Remember, you are fighting for attention against cell phones, tablets, and other forms of communication that incorporate colorful and attention getting graphics. You must adjust your LED sign content accordingly.

The content must be beautiful, readable and relevant. The days of text only LED signs are going away. People just don’t notice them as much any more. They are looking for larger fonts and bright text, with a clean and active colorful backdrop. Animations are a plus, and the advertisement really needs to “pop” to get their attention.

Professional content is becoming more important as consumers expectations continue to rise. This is true for both indoor digital signage, and outdoor LED signs. Hiring a graphic designer, or using a content creation service will save you time and effort, and help get you the results you need to stand out from the other signage in your area. Good, tasteful content is key to turning heads, and will make any LED sign better, and a good sign great.

If you have an existing outdoor LED sign, make sure you're allowing it to reach its full potential by targeting your audience with scheduling, and good content. If you're looking at getting an LED sign, make sure the sign you buy will provide you the tools to schedule and market your organization effectively. As I mentioned earlier, an LED sign is a communication tool for your organization, make sure your voice is heard loud and clear!

-Scott Hofheins

Digital Signage Need To Know: Full Color LED Signs vs Single Color Red or Amber

-Scott Hofheins

Full color LED sign,or single color (monochrome) sign? Decisions, decisions; what is the better investment? This is an important question presented to many potential LED sign buyers that will have long term consequences. Traditionally, single color signs are less expensive and you can get a larger physical size for the same amount. Unfortunately this is where the benefits end, and the reality of the current trends in LED signage begin.

Look just above the following pictures, not directly at them:

Which one draws your attention more? For most people, it will be the color graphic. Human instinct tends to focus on the most prominent object in a given area, perhaps an ancient survival tool used long ago. The public is going to make the decision to look at your sign, based heavily on their peripheral vision.

Which advertisement looks more appetizing? Its a proven fact that colors communicate specific messages to the human subconscious. Fast food companies like McDonald's and Wendy’s have been capitalizing on this for decades.

Which message communicates love and peace more effectively? Its not just corporations that can use colors to maximize the effect of their message. Supporting graphics, and colorful text add much more meaning to the LED sign content.

Separate Yourself

In a world of static signs and manual copy boards, single color LED signs create quite an impression. However, in a world of higher resolution full color LED signs, single color signs just don’t stand out like they used to. The public is much more picky about where to divert their attention.

This is not to say that single color signs are completely out of the game, far from it. They still have some very effective applications that focus on pure data delivery and where viewers are somewhat captive. Locations like factory floors, outdoor way-finding areas, stock tickers, loading bays and security checkpoints are all great examples. However, when it comes to demanding the attention of the public, full color signs are the way to go.

You want to separate yourself from the others. Drivers have plenty to look at, why choose you? By using a color sign, and rich content, you give them the push they need to see your messages. It’s not just text anymore, they are seeing close up shots of great food, great products, or important religious symbols. Simple text advertisements are replaced with a fully branded call to action, colorful and exciting.

Investment

The cost gap between full color and single color is continuing to close. New technologies, manufacturing techniques, and the proliferation of LED signs across the globe have been extremely helpful in making these signs affordable to churches, schools, small businesses and municipal organizations everywhere.

This means that the extra investment in a full color unit is much more valuable (in most cases) than the money you would save on a single color.  If you intend to advertise anything on the sign including products, your organization, or offsite ads, you're going to want to lean toward a full color unit, especially if you are in a high visibility location.

An LED sign is a long term investment, and it’s worth a little more upfront cash to ensure a maximum return on the investment over the lifetime of the sign. I recommend you really look at the reasons you need an LED sign. Are you trying to draw attention to your location? Are you advertising products, people, events or righteous path? Is your sign have access to a large number of potential patrons or advertising partners? If the answer is yes to any of these, seriously consider a full color unit.

-SH

I hope this post has been informative and helpful. As usual, I welcome ALL constructive comments. Please feel free to comment and add anything I’ve missed, or additional tips you may have regarding this topic. Please visit www.vantageled.com for many other resources, white papers, and of course: Great looking LED Signs!

**All posts/thoughts/writings are strictly the viewpoint of me and me alone and do not reflect nor speak for Vantage LED’s beliefs, attitudes, thoughts, etc. unless specifically stated.

Digital Signage Need To Know: The New Expectations for LED Sign Content

-Scott Hofheins

You guessed it; another post on content. I know we hammer on this pretty hard (content), but it is for good reason.  We see too many people using LED signs ineffectively, and we truly want to change that. Let me preface this by clarifying that I am talking about outdoor LED signs, viewed by moving vehicles. Specialized LED signs like indoor wayfinding screens, or stock tickers have their own unique approaches to content.

Today, I’m going to talk about what an LED sign IS, is NOT, and what it CAN be. But first, let’s begin with what an LED sign WAS. The first outdoor LED signs were an evolution of incandescent reader boards that used a matrix of lights to create messages like Time and Temperature, or scrolling stocks. Using smaller, more efficient lights like LED’s were a natural evolutionary step. Their operation is reflected by some of the terms carried over from that era like, Moving Message Center, Scrolling Marquee and Electronic Message Board. Seeing text move across a message center, away from Las Vegas, was a unique experience for viewers who were used to static signs or manual letter boards. If the business could afford a full color unit, it was even better. Text was king, and simple stick figure animations were top of the line.

Cut to 2013/2014. The power of our technology has increased exponentially since the 80’s, 90’s and early 00’s. We hold smart phones in our hand that we watch HD movies on, take calls, level and hang a picture, and play games with flying birds. We get news, media, and updates on our friends in rich full color content. Static signs, neon, and letter boards aren’t even a blip on the radar compared to what viewers expect to see these days. They want their information Fast, Relevant, and Beautiful.

An LED Sign is: An outdoor advertising tool able to demand your viewers attention through colorful, fresh content.

It is NOT: A outdoor wrist watch with a date feature, or a massive temperature notification device.  

This used to get peoples attention, but not anymore. Use conditional messaging instead if your software offers it. That way, your temperature message will only play when people want to see it, if it’s extremely cold, or extremely hot.

An LED Sign is: A place to provide relevant, colorful communication that is direct and to the point

It is NOT: A bulletin board with as many listings of events as possible on one screen.

Drivers have so many other things to focus on, including other LED signs. You must make sure your message is simple, quick, but still colorful and memorable.

An LED Sign is: A dynamic call to action, with regular content updates and real time information.

It is NOT: A Ronco “Set it and Forget It” rotisserie grill.

The content must be fresh and updated to speak directly to your target viewership. Display your message, then tell them what to do next.

An LED sign is: An outdoor display, meant to be viewed from a distance by moving vehicles or cars.

It is NOT: An HD television.

Content for an LED sign must be formatted for the sign size. LED signs may contain thousands of pixels (64x128), but an HD television contains millions (1920x1080). Thats a pretty big difference and it MUST be accounted for to produce readable content.

I believe this last comparison is one of the most important. You cannot scan a business card or event poster and put it on a typical LED sign. It will NOT look good. It would be like taping your business card to a wall 6 ft away, and trying to read it while driving past. .

So what CAN your LED sign be? Content plays a significant role in this. Just “getting the information out there” isn’t enough anymore.

Demand Attention

I don’t mean sign twirling, flashing, or crazy messages. Viewers are smarter than that and those approaches will give you negative attention. I’m talking about demanding attention by classy, professional content. It’s more than just formatting the resolution of an image or typing the right text , you have to format the layout, text size, contrast, colors and shape.

Readable

“Come on in and see our beautiful new bedroom and living room sets, on sale now until new years day” might be just fine for a print ad,  but it’s effectiveness drops considerably on an LED sign, even though it may technically fit on the screen. Your message has to be to the point and readable. Put yourself in the viewers shoes, are they really going to need all that text to get the message? The answer is usually no. Simplify your messages, and make them readable. Grab their attention with “Big Sale!” then follow up with details “ New Bedroom & Living Room Sets” then close with “Sale Ends New Years Day!”.

Relevant

Keep it updated! Talk to your audience directly throughout the day. Schedule specific messages for groups like commuters, lunch goers, families, and tourists. Know your audience, and talk directly to them.

Beautiful

As I mentioned before, viewers demand much more out of their content these days. The content has to look good. Details matter, and will be noticed by viewers sometimes consciously, but often subconsciously. This will determine in the few seconds they have whether they want to pay attention to your sign, or not.

If you don’t have the time to focus on managing your content, then do not be afraid to have someone do it for you. Use a content creation service, or contract a designer who specializes in LED sign content. It will be well worth it.

I challenge you to take a new look at your LED sign, and see what it CAN be. Even older LED signs can be improved by quality content and management. Talk to your sign company, search on google, see what you can find out there to help you utilize the full potential of your LED display.

-SH

I hope this post has been informative and helpful. As usual, I welcome ALL constructive comments. Please feel free to comment and add anything I’ve missed, or additional tips you may have regarding this topic. Please visit www.vantageled.com for many other resources, white papers, and of course: Great looking LED Signs!

**All posts/thoughts/writings are strictly the viewpoint of me and me alone and do not reflect nor speak for Vantage LED’s beliefs, attitudes, thoughts, etc. unless specifically stated.

Digital Signage Need to Know: Boiling Down the 7 Key Elements of Digital Signage

There are a million lists that define "Must Haves", "Absolute Requirements", "Sage Industry Advice" and "Never Dispute These Points" in our LED sign world today. Promises are made and assurances are given and specifications are sworn to and sealed with a few drops of the CEO's blood before the project is shipped.

So many claims, so little time. How does a Sign Company wade through all the hyperbole and overstatements and make the correct choice when selecting an LED display manufacturer?

It's hard to trust anyone or their claims made . Even Holiday Season claims are in doubt 'He's making a list, checking it twice, going to find out who's naughty or nice!" How did he do this? A phone tap or CCTV installed in a kid's room? No, more than likely just a way to try and control the behavior of an unruly child for 364 days per year.

But, borrowing from the spooky 1990's, American TV show the X-Files- "The truth is out there!"

In the LED Sign Industry, the holy grail of reasonableness regarding LED sign selection is called "The 7 Key Elements of Digital Signage".  This list is embraced by the Digital Signage Federation and the list makes a lot of obvious sense:

1. Hardware
2. Software
3. Connectivity
4. Content
5. Operations
6. Design
7. Business

During a recent MSSA (Mid-South Sign Association) seminar mentored by Brian Gorg, Director of the Digital Sign Federation, he suggested focusing on just 2 of these elements rather than all 7. The assumption is made that top manufacturers all execute at a high level with respect to hardware having had many years to refine their product. What then to focus on?

Brian suggested that Software and Content were perhaps the top 2 of the 7 Key Elements. Adding to these 2 elements he further suggested that "Partnering" was an additional component to consider.  The following is my review of these elements:

Software: Cloudware, Cloud-based software is the future. No need to store, edit, constantly update software and waste time with antiquated systems. What about simplicity? Plug and play is not quite a reality yet, but it's a lot closer than just a couple years ago. Speed? Reliability? Yes, and more yes!

There are superior choices available in the marketplace- do your research but state-of-the-art software is now a reality.

Content: Many end-users buy an expensive LED sign and then run poorly produced content. In the early days, when LED signs first hit the streets, their uniqueness and rarity brought a lot of attention to any business running any message. Even a gray-scale (monochrome) LED display used to attract a lot of attention even without animation or graphics. This is not so true today. Great content is must to deliver on the economic promise of the LED sign. What manufacturer provides content as part of standard offering?

Much debate also exists as to "great" content. If you are an end-user, skilled in making world-classs pizzas, and your 9-year old gifted son, a master of Photoshop provides you with and example of "great" content, it may or may not be all "that great"! Professionally produced content, using USA designers and digital artists, is the way to produce consistent and high impact content!


Partnering: Trust is the key word. Is your manufacturer committed to making your Sign Company an outrageous success by doing end-user demos and not selling their LED sign directly to your customer and "allowing" you to install it? What about listening to your issues, responding quickly to changing business conditions and having engineering talent available to support you?

The 7 Key Elements of the Digital Sign Industry are comprehensive and are a good source of reference. The assumption that only 2 (or so) of the  Key Elements are vital is based on the assumption (again) that you are working with a top supplier. First you have to identify and select a top supplier. If you are still importing or trying to find some miracle LED sign product that gives you world-class quality at a deeply discounted price then then you need to study all 7 Key Elements and perhaps another dozen or so before buying anything. There is a difference in suppliers.

The truth is still out there and is easy to find. The "Googler" awaits! But don't stop there. Call manufacturers and speak to real people. Ask to speak to and engineer and find someone to verify and validate how they support the 7 Key Elements.

Execute due diligence or discover the phrase "Caveat Emptor", let the buyer beware, the hard way.

Check it out!

These comments belong to me, Mike Prongue, and do not reflect the views, opinions, hopes or dreams of anyone else, anywhere else and this includes Vantage LED. I appreciate your constructive opinion which may be sent to me at michael@vantageled.com. 

 

Why LED Signs: Use Outdoor Digital Signage to Give Thanks, Spread the Holiday Cheer, and Grow Your Organization.

-Scott Hofheins

The holidays are coming! Retailers, charity organizations, churches and small business owners look forward to this season for different reasons, but with one common goal: communicate to the public. The message can be the need for donations, Sunday services, or charity events. It can also be advertising your holiday specials, black Friday sales and Christmas gifts. LED sign owners are resting easy knowing that these targeted messages are playing 24/7 to help spread their cause, grow the organization, and/or increase sales.

LED signs have revolutionized the way we advertise to the public, and have made it even easier to focus your message in relation to specific times and seasons. A static sign lets everyone know you exist at that location. A changeable copy board will give you limited control of your message. But an LED sign gives you 365 days per year of customized messages and targeted advertising 24 hours a day. I posted about this last year, and included some tips on pre-planning your messages. This year, I would like to focus on why you should consider an LED sign for your organization in general.

Powerful and Easy

LED signs do not require manual letters to be changed outside in the weather. You can program the schedule from the comfort of your home (if your software is cloud based) or office. This means a boost in the quantity AND quality of the messages you put on the sign.

Targeted

Your messages can be targeted to a range of groups and demographics, depending on a host of variables like the time of day, day of the week, holidays, and current events. Messages can be tailored for these groups in ways that would be much to difficult with traditional signage.

Instant

Messages can be changed instantly to suit your needs. When local or national events occur it takes just minutes for you to customize your messages to match. Charities can advertise immediately for local disaster relief, businesses can use media trends to highlight their own content.

Full Color - High Res

LED signs are now able to communicate your message in full color and at a much higher resolution than ever before. The LED’s are brighter, last longer, and manufacturers are increasing their warranties to match. Full color motion and graphics have replaced the old pixelated one color signs of the past and owners can display their existing branding to the LED sign with little effort.

The Return

LED signs have rightly become an investment, not just a business expense, with a return that typically pays for the sign very quickly. Many organizations are now investing a significant portion of their yearly advertising budget to invest in a sign that will provide advertising benefits for 5+ years. Unless they've purchased a sub-par product, it is extremely rare to see an organization that does not get a full return on the investment.

Growth

Your LED sign will make you stand out and help the public recognize your organization from the rest. As more traffic passes your sign and more people see your messages they will respond and remember you. This will help grow your business, expand your congregation, or increase donations and awareness for your cause.

If you don’t have an LED sign yet, I encourage you to consider the benefits I've mentioned here and that are exemplified so well during this holiday season. For those that already own LED signs, don’t forget to use it! Remember to keep it updated and relevant to the season. Use this time to expand your message to a wider audience by tailoring the content to align with the public’s thoughts. Family, Food, Good Will, Happiness, Giving and Receiving and Thankfulness.

-SH

I hope this post has been informative and helpful. As usual, I welcome ALL constructive comments. Please feel free to comment and add anything I’ve missed, or additional tips you may have regarding this topic. Please visit www.vantageled.com for many other resources, white papers, and of course: Great looking LED Signs!

**All posts/thoughts/writings are strictly the viewpoint of me and me alone and do not reflect nor speak for Vantage LED’s beliefs, attitudes, thoughts, etc. unless specifically stated.

Digital Signage Need to Know: CMYK vs RGB and Other Design Factors for Digital Content on LED Signs.

-Scott Hofheins

There is a reason why we talk about content so much on this blog. Content is the driving force behind your viewers ability to notice your sign, retain the information, and act. You want them to do this quickly and without confusion or delay. This is why investing in a content creation service who specializes in LED signs, or training your own in-house designers on outdoor content is worthwhile. The days of text only signs are going away, making way for full color advertising machines, ready to take whatever you can throw their way.

What is CMYK and why won’t it work on an outdoor LED sign? Why do some signs look great and others look blurry and hard to read? Content for print media is different in many ways than content for digital media. Additionally, content on an outdoor LED sign is different than content on an indoor Digital Sign (LCD Monitor). Knowing how to handle these differences is key to providing a dynamic readable message on an outdoor LED sign.

CMYK vs RGB

This is a common difference that comes up a lot when designers familiar with print media are working on digital media. The bottom line is this: CMYK is for print media, and RGB is for digital media.

• CMYK: Stands for “Cyan (blue) Magenta (red) Yellow and Kent (black)” These are the colors of the ink that printers mix together to created printed media.

• RGB: stands for “Red, Green, and Blue”. These are the colors of light, that mixed together can create all the different colors we see on TV Screens, HD Projectors, and of course outdoor LED signs.

Any content made for digital displays of any type is being converted to RGB in one way or another. CMYK works for print media because you are ‘coloring’ the paper with ink. This ink will reflect light to produce a certain color. However, displays are physically producing this light to create colors, so they work in terms of Red Green and Blue. When mixed together in equal values they create white light. When they are all off, they create black.

In most cases you need to physically change the ‘color pallet’ of any files you send to a digital device from CMYK to RGB. This embeds the correct color information into the file so there is a direct translation value for the colors in the file, and the corresponding Red, Green and Blue light values.

DPI Value

This is another common term used in print media. It stands for Dots Per Inch and measures the amount of data the file contains “per inch” of the printed page. This is an important value in print media because a print with 300 dots per inch is going to be higher resolution than a print with 72 dots per inch.

However, it means absolutely nothing for digital media. Digital media is being displayed directly on a display with a set number of pixels that will not change regardless of how large the display is in inches. Saving content used for digital media with a high DPI only increases the file size, not the quality of the file.

Content Pixel Resolution

Monitors are typically 1024x768 or higher. This means 1024 pixels wide by 768 pixels high. However, outdoor LED signs are much larger and viewed from a distance, so they don’t need that many pixels. They range from 16x48 pixels all the way up to digital billboards that push 200x400 pixels.

Designers who feel comfortable with web design, or print media won’t usually have a hard time with billboard content. However, most outdoor LED signs are not billboards and have a lot less space to work with. Knowing how to use this space effectively can mean the difference between a viewer saying “Wow, that’s a great deal!” or “What did that sign say? I couldn’t read it.”

Font Size and Style

Font’s take up a certain number of pixels depending on their size. Sizing these fonts correctly according to the size and pitch of the sign is important. Fonts that are too small won’t be readable, or appear blurry.

Font style is important as well. The quick readability of a font is important and there are some that are good for LED signs (thick and bold) and other that are not (fancy and thin). Knowing how to use a variety of font styles while maintaining readability is extremely important for LED sign content.

These are just a few of the factors that designers need to take into account when creating content for outdoor LED signs. There are many others including pixel pitch, road speed, color matching, viewer distance, and a host of others that must be taken into account. This is why I feel the investment in a content service or an in-house designer is worth the cost. It’s not enough to just have funny quotes and smart text on an LED display anymore. Viewers expect dynamic, colorful content that is readable and memorable. Let a pro handle it, and give yourself a little more time to focus on what you do best, operating, building and expanding your business.

-SH

I hope this post has been informative and helpful. As usual, I welcome ALL constructive comments. Please feel free to comment and add anything I’ve missed, or additional tips you may have regarding this topic. Please visit www.vantageled.com for many other resources, white papers, and of course: Great looking LED Signs!

**All posts/thoughts/writings are strictly the viewpoint of me and me alone and do not reflect nor speak for Vantage LED’s beliefs, attitudes, thoughts, etc. unless specifically stated.