Design

Display

Consider the display device used: Keep your ads in the proportion that the display is in. This is typically a 16:9 ratio, although there is nothing holding a device to these proportions.

• Text: Keep it short. Each page should present only one idea or list and do it clearly and succinctly. Use a large, readable text font that will be readable by your audience from their normal viewing distance. Use text colors that contrast well.
• Dwell time: Make sure that screens and scrolls are on the display long enough for them to be read by the average reader. The average reading speed can be setup in the preferences.
• Graphics: Either upload the digital file or scan an image and upload it and you’re in business. Just because a graphic works in a brochure doesn’t mean that it will work in a digital sign. Make sure that the graphics (and any text on the image) are bold enough to be viewed from a distance. A lot of times people want to take graphics, especially charts with numbers and legends, and convert them to digital sign content. If the text elements are too small, your viewer will lose interest in all your signage content. It’s better to take a few minutes and adjust the image appropriately for the digital signage application.
• Split screens: Remember that split screens significantly reduce that amount of screen space that is available for graphics and text. This means that graphics need to have greater impact and less detail. Text, too, needs to have more impact and less verbiage for a smaller space.

Deployment

Is the system going up a piece at a time or to be installed and operational within a set time frame? Consider a bank with headquarters and 150 branches that has just committed to digital signage.

Purpose

There could be a singular purpose as in a menu board or as complex as multiple resources to multiple screens. Let's look at the 150 bank branches. Content is generated mainly by CTV, and partially by the bank. Content includes marketing information promoting the bank and its services, atmosphere clips, music channels and external resources — such as news feeds from the Web and from Channel 2 TV, broadcast four times a day. In addition to customer-oriented content, the bank's digital signage network includes internal communications and e-learning programs. Once a week, the bank produces an internal news program for employees.

Environment

The environment is really the major determining factor when one is planning a project. Where are the displays to be used and seen, indoor vs. outdoor. Size of the screen needed for the viewing distance and content to be presented. Does the display need to be in a custom designed cabinet so that it may become interactive as with a kiosk?