5 Programmable LED Sign Practices to Stop Doing

Here are the common mistakes of scrolling LED sign owners to take note of today.

Business establishments benefit nicely from a scrolling LED sign, no doubt, as this signage is exceptionally bright and is visible even from hundreds of meters away. In some cases, however, businesses might not be getting the benefits this sign offers because of some bad practices they may be doing. Just like any marketing strategy, how you use your programmable LED sign matters big time.

If you think you have not maximized your sign and suspect you might be doing something wrong, here’s a list of the common practices to avoid:

1. Not getting the right measurements.
2. Not using the right color of LED bulbs.
3. Trying to look cool by displaying the sign at an angle.
4. Going with lowercase letters.
5. Allowing multiple scrolling lines and using stationary and scrolling simultaneously.

#1 Not getting the right measurements.

First, you need to take time to get the measurements of the location where you will install the sign and the height. Otherwise, you risk getting the wrong size and wasting all your effort. Although free returns are possible for most LED sign sellers, time is wasted.

To avoid making this mistake, make sure that you are getting the correct size. A two-inch tall sign can be seen about 80 feet away, while a four-inch-tall unit is visible up to 160 feet. So if you need an indoor scrolling sign installed in an office lobby, a two-inch high unit is ideal, as the four-inch will be huge for that area. On the other hand, a six-inch-high unit or more is suitable if you are installing it at a high place.

#2 Not using the right color of LED bulbs.

If your business is in the food industry, the best color of LEDs to use is red. Red is known to stimulate appetites and excitement, which is why many fast food chains like McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, Wendy's, In-N-Out, and Dairy Queen use red in their logos and other marketing materials. A study also proves that this color is incredibly effective in luring customers in, so there is no reason not to use red LED signs for your food business.

As for educational and health institutions, green, blue, and purple are perfect. This is because these colors can be very calming and relaxing, especially in cool, muted hues. They're the perfect sign color for schools for older students, hospitals, wards, waiting areas, and spas.

But this does not mean you should only use one color. A combination of two to three can effectively stir excitement, especially in industries that cater to kids and pets and other businesses that provide entertainment services.

#3 Trying to look cool by displaying the sign at an angle.

Sometimes, being different makes you stand out from the crowd. However, it does not work all the time. One such example is installing the LED sign at a weird angle to grab attention and curiosity. No doubt, it will catch people’s eye, but it may be doing more bad than good.

Reading messages in a diagonally-placed sign is extremely uncomfortable, especially when it scrolling or flashing. Our brains are wired to read text horizontally, so we read faster for horizontally arranged than for vertically arranged texts by 24 percent. So try to look cool and catchy in other ways instead of putting up signs in weird angles.

#4 Going with lowercase letters.

Messages in lowercase letters give off a more welcoming vibe than all capital letters. However, the latter is better if your goal is to get your message across. Lowercase letters are generally smaller and have more curves, so messages may not come off as striking and compelling.

There is an exception, though. If you are installing your LED sign in a small area, like the hallway or a place where people can read the sign a couple of feet away, using lowercase letters is acceptable. But of course, it is always better to use all caps to make your message quickly capture people’s attention.

#5 Allowing multiple scrolling lines and using stationary and scrolling simultaneously.

Finally, never make the mistake of scrolling multiple lines, as human brains find it difficult and confusing to read messages conveyed this way, despite the sign being very noticeable. 

On the same note, combining a scrolling line with a stationary one is also not recommended. Two or more formats can make reading very confusing and might even lead to misinformation. Stick with one format or use static for all lines.

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Ready to purchase a scrolling LED sign for your business? Check out AffordableLED.com and choose from a variety of programmable LED signs of various purposes, sizes, and colors. Feel free to contact us if you need any help with shopping on the site. Hablamos Español!