As they go through their day, the general public are surrounded by screens. As digital signage enthusiasts, this is a fact we love. The businesses using them are benefitting from a wealth of advantages, enabling their customers to process their information quickly and engage them more effectively.
Nevertheless, as in any competitive environment, your digital signage needs a way to stand out. That’s where animated digital content comes in. If you’re hoping for engagement, distinctiveness, and the ability to tell a broader story with your signage, animation is the solution for you.
Animated Digital Content can take an expert to get right. The team at James Hogg Display have put together a handy guide to make sure that your business follows the golden rules of animated content.
Rule 1: Choose Your Moving Images Wisely
It’s not uncommon to see content designed to be printed simply uplifted onto a screen. With some static imagery, you’re wasting an opportunity to be more eye-catching and engaging. Choose some elements to add life to through animation or video, making sure to choose to draw attention to the parts you want your customers to see first. No matter how tempting it might be, it’s equally important not to overdo it. If everything is moving, the only thing your customers will be doing is looking away.
Rule 2: Keep Things Bright, Clean and Clear
To truly follow this rule, it takes a two pronged approach. Firstly, by choosing a high quality digital display, your equipment will have the capability to show content in true colours, with deep blacks and intense brights. This will catch attention and maintain a feeling of quality when your customers are looking at your displays. Furthermore, when commissioning your animated digital content, make sure that your supplier knows not to overcrowd the information. With good design comes a clean layout and clear fonts that will ensure your content is making the right impact.
Rule 3: Don’t Cut Corners On Images
Your customers are in your location to see your product. Food services and retailers alike are guilty of simply choosing a stock image, but to truly make an impact you should always use a high quality image of your own product. Invest in good photography - you won’t regret it.
Rule 4: Consider Sound
Sound is something that’s often not considered when planning digital display content. It’s not suitable in every location, but for some it can be the difference between a user interacting and walking straight by. If you’re creating educational and informational content, whether it’s an infographic or an animation, you should be considering the added dimension that sound would add to your user experience.
Rule 5: Remember That You’re Not Limited To Screen Size
Those used to creating content for print will often make the same mistake when they’re designing for digital display: they design for one page. A lot of skill goes into fitting a wealth of content into one page, but it’s no longer necessary with a digital display. With unlimited amounts of space, easily updated with multiple rotations and screens, you no longer have to squeeze everything onto one page. Let your content breathe and let your customers focus their attention on one idea at a time.
Rule 6: Get Interactive
With a tiny touchscreen in every pocket, your audience are more than familiar with the opportunities for interactive digital screens. Interactivity offers hundreds of opportunities to connect with your customers, from DIY meal choices to bespoke directions and everything in between.
If you’re ready to talk Animated Digital Content, why not call James Hogg Display today and take advantage of our 15 minute challenge. We’ll answer all your questions and find the best solution for you in 15 minutes or less. That’s the expert touch.