Design principles for an outdoor LED sign

by | Oct 20, 2014

Outdoor advertising, also known as Out-Of-Home (OOH) advertising, seems like it can go to extremes. However, if you want to maximize your ROI, there are a few basic design tips that you should follow in order to improve the response to your outdoor LED signs.

It is a known fact that billboards that are uncluttered see a better response because in most cases, drivers have just 5-10 seconds to notice your sign, read it and process the information. By cramming too much information, you are making it more difficult for drivers to read it. The lesser the words, the better the chance of them understanding it. Ideally, there should be three main components in an outdoor LED sign: a strong image, a unique benefit or an emotional headline, and the business name or contact info.

When working with colors for your sign, bold and contrasting colors are more noticeable in OOH advertising. As for fonts, avoid thin and fancy fonts. Stick to thicker and simple styles so that they are readable even at greater distances. Make sure there is plenty of space between letters as this will cause blurring, and it is also best to avoid all capital letters on your outdoor LED sign. The font sizes should be large, so as to make them readable from far away, hence giving passersby more time to read and process the information. Not only do huge fonts assist in legibility, they also add excitement to your message.

For outdoor LED signs, high resolution images are compulsory. Keep in mind that displaying one big image creates a better impact rather than several tiny images. Moreover, you have the audience’s attention for just a few seconds and you want them to read only the most important information in that much time. Therefore, displaying multiple features and unwanted details is a bad idea; instead, your message should focus on one unique idea. In addition to that, narrow down your target audience. If you try to target everyone, you will end up reaching no one. Cater your outdoor LED sign to the specific needs of your narrowed down audience.

To make your LED sign more attractive, use images and story elements. The reader should have a vivid mental image upon reading your sign. Aim to provide bored drivers with a quick source of entertainment. No one likes to read dull signs. You might think a sign is nutty or crazy, but little do you know how effective it is in successfully conveying your message. Once your sign is ready, show it to a few people for 5-10 seconds and get their reviews. Make amendments based on their responses.

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