The Digital-Sign Revolution

By Don Biggs
From 1976 to 1985, I owned and operated Biggsigns Inc. (aka Wet Paint Sign), a sign and graphic-design business serving Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. I learned with old-school tools and methods. We used lettering quills, airbrushes, mahl sticks, pattern wheels, silkscreens, One-Shot lettering enamels, SprayLat, etc. I’ll never forget the unique fragrance in the shop, late in any given afternoon, from all the paint, japan dryer and thinner in the air, even with the exhaust fans running full blast.
My young team and I were talented enough, but our skills couldn’t compare to my mentors, who had developed their abilities over their lifetimes. The old dogs in the business were quick to welcome me into their community (especially if I brought the beer). Ray Schlusser was three doors down from me in a small commercial complex just off Glendale-Milford in Evendale, and Burt Hayes’ helpers would migrate to my place.
I entered the business just before computer-assisted technology was introduced – Gerber signmakers, large-format inkjet printers and cutters. I stayed in for almost 10 brief and sometimes trying years.
I was recruited out of the sign business to direct marketing and advertising for one of my clients who owned several computer franchises. I immediately gravitated toward a magical little beige box sitting over in the showroom corner that nobody seemed to understand or want to deal with – it was called an Apple Macintosh®. I was fascinated by how intuitive and useful it was. Within a few months, I headed the company’s Electronic Publishing and Presentation sales initiative, which included signage software.
The hardware and software marriage always seemed fairly straightforward to me. I was taught, and cultivated, basic design skills while attending Xavier University. Over time, I dramatically improved those skills in the sign/design business. Later, teaching people to evolve their life-long design skills to Macs and PCs was natural for me, because I had made the transition myself. I spoke their language. I had their respect. It was always important for me to make them comfortable, as if I was one of them.
As for computer-related training, special or program-specific training was always available. The more training I took, understood and put to practical use, the better I related it to clients within our regional sales channel.
In terms of technological impact, the computer has forever changed the design process. For example, to prepare a full-page ad using old technology, for the traditional layout (the keyline), you needed spec the type using the typesetting machine (Compugraphic), a stat camera, and you usually re-touched images, cut the images into place, and do the physical layout. Then, a courier physically transported the art to its destination for approval or print. In most cases, the process took up to three days. Now, with a Mac or PC and the appropriate software and peripherals, you can accomplish the same thing in a few hours.
I billed my ad-design services at $75 an hour at that time. Today’s technology has dramatically compressed the production process and made it more efficient. Now, a designer must drive considerably more volume to even make the same money. And that’s not just relegated to ad layout. The technology allows nearly anyone who has some training to output a usable sign design. I’m not talking about aesthetics, either.
The good thing is, in most cases it still comes down to talent and consistency. The best-looking and best-executed design still gets the best price. But you have to know what you’re doing with these tools – all of them.

EDS growth
Just a few short years ago, many folks in the electronic-digital-signage (EDS) industry were chanting the mantra “content is king.” Let’s attribute that to great marketing by a few persuasive content providers. I agree that content is vital, but without a proven distribution method, it’s nothing more than another file on a hard disc. I don’t care how much you paid for it or how kingly it is.
Future EDS growth is in small-and-medium sized business (SMB). Both distribution and content are kings. When I say distribution, I’m referring to network systems, which come in various forms. SMB customers can’t afford to manage all the complexities of a complete solution, but they can afford to pay a monthly service fee for someone else to do it. Implementing a digital-signage system could repre¬sent an additional revenue stream to an SMB retailer, quick-serve restaurant or commercial business. It may even allow them to utilize and benefit from EDS technology at no cost. And that’s before they put any specific content to work.

How the EDS chain works
EDS and kiosk-application development are complex. A fragmented supply chain has made EDS even more difficult to understand and use. The sales channel includes vendors for displays, a media player, management software, project planning, installation, field service, network connectivity, content creation and advertising sales. Direct-vendor sales conflict with distribution sales and further confuse a sales channel that’s yet to fully coalesce.
So, you really need to know what you’re doing to source components and effectively sell, install and manage EDS. Regardless of what you might hear or read, it’s not even close to the “plug-and-play” world we have in today’s personal computers.
Here’s how we help our clients succeed at InTouch Interactive. We receive a number of daily field referrals and web inquiries to develop specific kiosk applications. The client may need to dispense specific information, collect data to expand their database, or any number of functions.
One client wants to place information kiosks within a portion of its training facilities to instill new employees with a sense of pride and value as they learn about the company’s global reach; the application demonstrates specific examples of energy development in an educational but entertaining format (“edutainment”). InTouch Interactive’s challenge is to interactively engage that viewer.
For most clients, we discuss their goals and desires through a collaborative discovery process. We develop a few ideas and present them with constructive and flexible suggestions within a detailed summary. If the opportunity merits it, we’ll also create a series of storyboards that outline the requested application parameters. We define areas of interest, impact or differentiation, and work together on where and how we can best engage the viewer while presenting information or collecting data.
One example is our work for the T-Rex Café. The primary goal for tableside kiosks in a restaurant environment is to collect information, secure permission to send promotional marketing materials, and entertain and educate all age levels. We accomplished this with creative graphics and illustration, well-executed animations, clever games with interest for all age groups and a surround-sound audio system that individualizes the collective experience for everyone at the table.
We work with the kiosk manufacturer to load the software and prepare the kiosk cosmetically. This could include paint and graphics applied directly to or around the kiosk to draw attention or enhance its presence. We then train users to maintain the kiosks and content, which usually entails some basic reboot instructions. Hardware support is usually contracted with the kiosk manufacturer.
Content development and management can be a complex process, especially in a retail environment. Quality content creation originates with creative agencies that fully understand the intent of the contracting company, like Intouch. It’s formatted to work within the kiosk application. Usually content is managed externally and regularly downloaded to the kiosk through a network connection.
In recent years, a number of technologies have converged for retail applications, tying the kiosk directly into a point-of-sale system. Self-checkout terminals are a perfect example of how this evolving technology has blended the “form” of electronic digital signage with the “function” of sales and transaction processing, into an intuitive visual experience that nearly everyone can easily understand and utilize.

EDS evolution
Future hardware will consistently improve, and software will become more flexible and powerful. I don’t need a crystal ball to make that statement. But, specific applications and content development will always require some level of customization. Distribution and delivery systems will also dramatically improve in the coming years. Migrating comprehensive and relevant enterprise solutions to the SMB market is the challenge facing many corporations that are trying to crack into those opportunities.
But the question remains: How will a robust, digital-signage solution get into the hands of SMB business owners who don’t have the capital or knowledge to utilize it? For example, EDS makes sense for small regional companies looking for ways and means to more effec¬tively compete with national franchises by emphasizing high-profit items and incentives that drive additional business. The problem is, a small business might find it difficult to justify the expense of an EDS implementation.
And that brings us to measuring the benefits of installing an EDS network. The ROI question is a challenge left to those who feel they have a superior methodology and enough data to measure. It’s up to the rest of us to poke holes in their assertions to help make the process relevant, unbiased and more effective for our customers.
So, can your company make the transition to EDS? Well, your success depends on many factors. All sign companies aren’t created equal. Competence levels extend beyond the traditional and obvious need of an extensive technical knowledge base, as well as service and support infrastructure. The question also reaches into personnel certification and development, as well as finan¬cial capabilities, capitalization and liability.

The future-now of EDS
In the coming years, EDS will be everywhere, from billboards to the not-so-obvious grocery shelftags. Even now, it’s probably more a question of where EDS won’t be utilized. The medical sector is one of the most apparent EDS markets that are booming. Banking opportunities are enormous, but they are under-capitalized for the moment. Even cemeteries have dived in headfirst, looking for directional wayfinding applications.
Without going too far out on a limb, tableside self-serve ordering will finally make its long-awaited appearance in quick-serve application as the cost drops. Restaurant menuboards will display dynamic, moving images that feature sizzling hamburgers, sumptuous fries and carbonated bubbles popping out the featured soft-drink cup. The images will be presented in vibrant, if not enhanced, color, in ultra-high resolution.
Call-center management, help-desk and remote check-in/registration will figure prominently as growth areas. Kiosk applications will blend into the mix with a vast array of interactive applications, including wayfinding, directories, data and video collection, payment processing, all forms of vending, etc.
If you plan on joining the evolution, it means you’ll need to invest yourself and your resources in the transition. On the other hand, if you haven’t started already, all is not lost. You may be able to manage these factors by outsourcing, or acting as an agent for a company that may be better positioned.

Affect vs. effect
EDS is indeed the future of signage. Static images will give way to dynamic content that will include sight and sound to engage the viewer on a new and different level. Technology makes content easier to develop, display, deliver and manage.
LCD panels are becoming thinner and more flexible. Dynamic content can be wrapped around irregular shapes to acquire added attention. “Gesture” technology can animate projected content. Projection film is now being manufactured; it dramatically increases light refraction and brightness to allow high-lumen, projected images to be easily seen in direct sunlight. The technology will continue to improve and become more cost effective.
In the process, I fear EDS will write the final epitaph on a bygone industry and trade, as it ushers in everything digital on a bright, vibrant, high-resolution display. I feel both saddened and energized by the prospect. Sign lettering/painting is an art. Airbrushing is an art. Goldleaf application is an art. The old business of signmaking is/was an art.
On the other hand, the new business of signmaking is more a process, almost as easy as putting a drop-shadow effect on an object in Photoshop. As cool and slick as current and future technology may make everything appear, I’m a little distressed about what we will probably lose as things evolve.
IT-savvy companies will be better prepared to make a digital transition. Digital signs probably won’t replace high-touch, handcrafted, routed, sandblasted 3-D signs. However, vinyl, which was a game-changer itself once upon a time, will certainly be impacted. One thing is for certain, you can count on the fact there’s a lot more coming to enhance the digital-signage experience. It’s just the beginning.

Advertisement

Don Biggs is the director of marketing and business development for Atlanta-based InTouch Interactive, a tech-based marketing company that helps companies understand how to use technology as a marketing tool and develops self-service kiosks, EDS and web applications. He owned his own sign company for nearly 10 years, and transitioned into the computer world and digital-signage business.