Does Design Matter? Tips for Selecting Your Digital Wayfinding or Signage Display

Imagine you’re driving down the freeway, and you see three billboards up ahead. The first two billboards are static, old school, blasé; you pass by with nary a second glance.

The second billboard? It’s massive, colorful, digital, enticing, and it moves. You pay attention to this one, craning your neck to catch every last word on the display. Why? Design, design, design.

At Oppna Digital, we believe a digital wayfinding system’s design is just as critical as its functionality. As an end-to-end solutions provider, we’ve implemented extensive digital wayfinding solutions in a variety of large-scale facilities throughout the U.S., and no matter the industry, aesthetic, modern, functional design is key.

If you’re considering a digital wayfinding solution for your facility, heed these design tips for success.

Consider the Available Space

Because efficient navigation is a primary goal of any digital wayfinding setup, the size and layout of your available space are essential considerations when selecting your display’s design. While grand, eye-catching displays might provoke more passersby attention, they’re not appropriate or feasible in every setting.

When selecting your hardware design and size, you must factor in the existing structure of your space and consider how your digital wayfinding setup design will complement the functionality of the space. With interactive screens, the idea is to enhance the existing spatial design.

Select an eye-catching hardware setup that will command enough attention so that visitors gravitate toward it, but not so much that the display is the sole focus of the space. 

Size Matters in Digital Wayfinding

Every piece of digital signage and each digital wayfinding kiosk within your space must have a clear objective. Whether that objective is to push promotions, deliver important information, or help visitors find their way, the size of the display should always reflect the goals of the installation.

Massive digital screens, such as the flight displays found in airports, command attention – appropriately so. With a flight display, the objective is clear: help fliers find their gates and get to their flights on time. Naturally, information must be presented in a manner that’s impossible to ignore.

On the flip side, in a high-end shopping center, a massive display isn’t just unnecessary; It detracts from the overall feel of the space. Choose your screen size carefully based on the information you play to convey.

Consider Mobile Platforms

For many businesses, assessing which wayfinding display options are best for their business depends on the demands and preferences of their customer demographics. One of the biggest examples of this is the rise of mobile device usage in the past decade.

It’s safe to say that most consumers use their smartphones or other mobile devices as navigational tools on a weekly – if not daily – basis. Providing your customers or users with mobile synchronization opportunities or the option to download a mobile app allows them to still access your digital wayfinding or signage content, but on the convenience and accessibility of their own phone.

Investing in mobile app development allows your business to cover all the bases in regards to customer convenience, while still being able to spread brand awareness through custom content management systems.

Explore New Visual & Voice-Related Technologies

Some of the latest advancements in digital display technology are changing the way users interact with their wayfinding and digital signage devices. Technologies such as Augmented Reality (AR) and 3-D Virtual Tours allow users to visualize wherever they wish to go before they even get there.

While these digital resources require more advanced display software and superior maintenance and support, there’s no denying their potential for attracting new users based on sheer intrigue alone.

Other technologies such as voice activation and artificial intelligence (AI) can do wonders for upgrading the customer service components of your digital wayfinding or signage displays. By allowing users to simply ask a question to the digital signage screen and receive all the necessary information they need, you can easily enhance the user experience by increasing convenience.

Take Accessibility Into Account

One of the most overlooked elements for successful digital wayfinding or signage displays is how accessible they are to all walks of life. For starters, the design of your signage displays should have ADA guidelines implemented to ensure optimal usability for all users. This means taking into account everything from screen placement, touchable components, language options, customizable visual settings, etc.

Your signage display should also consider visual disabilities like vision impairment or color blindness, allowing such users to alter settings for color scheme recommendations, screen brightness, or braille pads, so they can have the best user experience possible.

Hardware Appearance & Functionality

All commercial-grade displays are not created equal. When selecting your design, a variety of factors play into how your audience responds to the system and how well the hardware caters to user preference.

Important considerations include:

●        LCD, LED, or OLED display

●        Shape, thickness, and bezel width

●        Processing capabilities and inputs

●        Brightness, contrast ratio, resolution, and usable viewing angle

●        Display control and image appearance

●        Hardware reliability and energy efficiency

Not one for technical specifications and jargon? Choosing the perfect digital wayfinding or signage design for your space doesn’t have to feel like rocket science – not when you partner with a design-savvy, end-to-end solutions provider like our team at Oppna Digital.

Cutting-edge, functional, user-centric digital wayfinding design is our specialty, and our work speaks for itself, in terms of both aesthetics and ROI.

Can Digital Wayfinding Enhance Your Space?

At Oppna Digital, we strive to stay on the cutting edge of digital wayfinding software and hardware design. As an end-to-end solutions provider, we take care of your entire system design, from software functionality to hardware procurement, content management, and everything in between.

To learn more about how our custom-designed solutions can enhance your facility, contact our team at 651-237-5677 or reach out to us on our contact page.

Curious about what our systems are capable of? Start the conversation by requesting your demo today!