Take your business to the next level by adopting intensive cost-cutting tactics using the right digital signage content management system. But using professional digital signage services can be costly. So, this calls for reducing operational costs by creating your own digital signage designs. However, digital design presentations may seem intimidating or complex if you have zero skills. The good news is that they are quite easy to design. All you need is a set of tips for creating digital signage content and everything else will fall in place for you. Read on to familiarize yourself with some of these practical tips.
Top 10 Tips for Creating Digital Signage Content
Below are practical design tips that you can use to generate the best digital signage content for your target audience:
1. Check Your Digital Content Layout
Layouts for your digital signage displays are available today. Each layout provides a balance for the composition of your display. It also increases the readability/legibility of both the light texts and the lines of text.
Consider the following elements when laying out your digital signage content:
- Leave some outside space
- Put elements where your eye line moves
- Apply the 3 by 5 text rule
- Organize your digital content by hierarchy
- Test call to action or CTA
2. Pay Attention to Your Digital Signage Display Resolution
Whether you are showing static or dynamic content, you need to pay attention to your display resolution. In this regard, the resolution is the number of pixels that a digital screen can display. The more the number of pixels, the better the picture quality and vice versa. In other words, the high-quality digital content display is determined by the screen resolution.
3. Consider Digital Signage Ratios
Digital signage displays in the form of digital TV screens come in the same ratios. The horizontal digital signage screen has a 16:9 ratio, while the portrait type of screen is available in a 9:16 ratio. Therefore, your digital signage design layout should match the 16:9 or 9:16 ratio for the regular TV screens.
If you are designing content for an iPad, then you need to factor in the 4:3 ratios. Make sure to check your device screen size before you start working on your digital signs. Alternatively, use the Canvas app or similar digital signage software to generate perfect 16:9 content.
4. Take into Account the Image File Size for Your Digital Signage
Apart from ratios and pixels, the actual size of your digital content matters too. For instance, 2.0 to 3.0 megabytes (MB) is ideal for your digital signage. This image size is of high quality. But you may have trouble displaying it on a weak WiFi network. Bear in mind that most digital solutions need to show content. So, if your WiFi is not strong enough, your device may experience some difficulties.
5. Settle for Contrasting Colors
When it comes to creating digital signage content, contrasting colors play a significant role. In this sense, use contrasting palettes such as dark text on a light background and light text on a dark background to increase the legibility of your content.
6. Use the Right Text Sizing and Clear Fonts
Quite a number of digital signage displays/screens use text that is too small to see and read. In your case, use san-serif fonts such as Verdana, Arial, or Helvetica. In addition, adjust to 20-30-point font to enhance visibility and readability from at least 7 feet away.
7. Make Use of Image Overlays
Add dark overlay to any background images when creating your digital signage content for both basic colors and bright colors. Vice versa should also be true for white text on dark images or dark background overlay. This type of color scheme will enhance the visibility and readability of your text.
8. Create Zones
Zoned digital signage displays can help you maximize your on-screen space. The zones can also show multiple pieces of high-quality digital content at a given time. Select the best zoning templates that can determine how to split the digital screens into several sections.
9. Check the Sound on Your Digital Signage Displays
Digital signage screens with sound are a perfect choice for streaming, animations, live video playlists, a news feed, social media, and Youtube. For that reason, ensure that the sound on your digital signage displays is clear and appropriate for your surroundings.
10. Determine How Long Your Digital Content Can Show
It is prudent to know what digital content to display and when to do so. As a rule of thumb, create the duration with which your content can show. For instance, provide short-term, mid-term, or long-term viewing of content to suit your target audience’s needs.
Over to You!
Digital signage is an essential medium for content creation. This form of content design needs some little experimentation to capture your viewer’s attention. In this case, you need practical tips for creating digital signage content for your project. Most of these content design tips can help you acquire basic skills for content management. They can also enable you to enthrall your target audience. Take advantage of the above-listed tips and build the best digital signage content for your business.Â