It’s one of those matters that nobody ever thinks about: digital signage solutions. Everyone takes them for granted in the city, on the highway, and even on bulletins inside the stadiums where sports events take place on TV. As technology moves forward, we’re coming to expect a progressively more digital approach to information conveyance, thanks to the convenience and efficiency of digital display technology.
Electronic billboards are more than about the modern look, however. Here are five solid reasons why old isn’t always gold when it comes to signs.
The first and most obvious benefit of electronic signs is the modular nature of what they display. They can cycle through advertisements, announcements, and other potentially useful information that can be quickly changed within minutes from a computer. No more ladders and hardware tools — once installed, a digital sign can be an infinite number of signs all at once. The breadth of communication permitted by this adaptability allows for displaying crucial, up-to-date information in an instant. This is not only economical for businesses, but also a safety improvement for travelers.
There’s something to be said for bright and flashy, especially at night. Crosswalk signs, traffic status panels, and even the neon “OPEN” signs in store windows all do their part in establishing situational awareness. Businesses like this because it draws attention to their locations during the hours when everyone else is closed. During the day, the bright colors of a powered sign also stand out amidst the sun-bleached panels used by surrounding stores and infrastructures. Not only are digital signage solutions safer, but they also ensure the message is sent clearly.
It’s hard to deny the aesthetic impact that steel and concrete art deco signage has on the posture of any location that uses it. However, while in some ways less dignified, digital display technology also has a high-profile look-at-me way about it that says “confidence” in the most pragmatic fashion. In a day and age where input-output ratios are rising and productivity is everything, the clean-cut practicality of electronic signage tells potential clients that a store is not only confident in their services, but they’re focused on getting straight to the point — no time wasted.
The vast majority of us now are used to interacting with at least one form of digital display technology on the daily. With the advent and ubiquity of smartphones, we’ve come to subconsciously associate displays with interesting content, which not only draws our attention to displays more readily, but also makes us more receptive to what they’re conveying. Aside from the obvious implications for advertising, this helps to subtly classify the ever-changing content of a digital sign as “important” while traditional signs serve as sources of less urgent information.
It’s actually not as bad as one would think. Although there’s an initially higher cost of installing digital signage solutions, the above listed benefits of these signs alongside the efficiency of LED technology means they more than pay themselves off in the long run. Bear in mind that non-digital signs still use a source of light, and while they may be kept off during the day, they use considerably more power than digital signs when they’re turned on at night.
Conclusively, digital signage solutions offer minimal drawbacks and are more effective than traditional signs across the board — pun intended. After all, if it weren’t for this great technology, you probably wouldn’t be reading this right now.
