Static signage divides space. Digital signage shares time.

Consider a shopping center with twelve tenants.

With a traditional static pylon, each tenant may receive approximately one-twelfth of the available sign area. Every tenant is technically visible to passing traffic, but each individual logo may be small, difficult to read and visually lost within a directory of other businesses.

A digital display creates a different opportunity.

Instead of permanently occupying one-twelfth of the sign, a tenant can receive a scheduled share of the display. When that tenant’s message appears, it can occupy 100% of the display.

The question is no longer simply:

“How much sign space do I have?”

It becomes:

“How much impact can I create with the time I have?”

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Reach Isn’t the Same as Impact

A static tenant panel may technically be seen by every vehicle passing a property.

But visibility alone does not determine marketing value.

A small logo that is difficult to read at the viewing distance—and surrounded by eleven other tenant names—may produce very little recognition or response.

A full-screen digital message can provide:

• Greater visual presence
• Larger, more legible branding
• Promotional messaging
• Calls to action
• Product or service information
• Time-sensitive offers
• Multiple messages throughout the day

Digital signage therefore introduces an important distinction between reach and impact.

The objective isn’t simply to be present in front of an audience.

The objective is to communicate effectively with that audience.

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From Signage to Marketing

Traditional signage primarily performs an identification function:

“We’re here.”

A digital display can do much more:

“We’re here.”
“Here’s what we offer.”
“Here’s today’s promotion.”
“Come in now.”
“Try this product.”
“Save $10 today.”

That transforms the sign from a relatively static identification asset into a dynamic marketing asset.

For a stand-alone business, the display can alternate between identification, branding, promotions and advertising.

For a multi-tenant property, the display can provide scheduled exposure to each tenant while also creating opportunities for property messaging and, where appropriate, third-party advertising.

The physical sign doesn’t have to become larger.

Its capabilities become larger.

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Digital Modernization: Don’t Replace What You Already Have

Many businesses and property owners already have valuable roadside sign assets.

They have:

• Established locations
• Existing visibility
• Supporting structures
• Foundations
• Electrical service
• Existing sign faces
• Established recognition with passing traffic

Digital Modernization evaluates whether those existing assets can be converted to LED technology rather than automatically starting over with an entirely new sign.

Depending on the property and applicable requirements, an existing sign structure may provide a foundation for the modernization.

The result can be a properly sized digital display that makes substantially better use of the existing roadside asset.

Potential candidates include:

Pole Signs
Stand-alone retailers, restaurants, convenience stores, banks, car washes, hotels and other roadside businesses.

Monument Signs
Businesses, medical facilities, corporate properties, hospitality, schools, churches and other institutions.

Shopping Center Pylons
Multi-tenant retail centers, mixed-use developments and other properties where limited physical sign space must accommodate multiple businesses.

Every property is different. Structural, electrical, zoning and sign-code requirements must be evaluated before determining whether a particular sign is a suitable candidate.

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A Different Way to Think About Sign Value

A static sign is typically evaluated as a physical asset.

A digital sign can also be evaluated as a media asset.

That creates an opportunity to compare the cost of the digital investment with the cost of reaching the same audience through other forms of advertising.

Traffic counts, location, visibility and demographic information can provide the basis for estimating audience exposure and calculating an indicative cost per thousand impressions (CPM).

This doesn’t replace a business-specific ROI analysis. Actual sales performance depends on the individual business, its margins, customer behavior and other factors.

But CPM provides another way to answer an important question:

What is the cost of reaching this audience through an owned digital marketing asset compared with purchasing that exposure through other media?

That changes the conversation from simply:

“How much does an LED sign cost?”

to:

“What is this marketing asset worth?”

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From Space to Time

The fundamental concept behind Digital Modernization is simple:

Static signage allocates physical space.

Digital signage allocates time.

Those two models can produce very different marketing outcomes.

A tenant that occupies a small portion of a static sign may have permanent exposure but limited visual impact.

A tenant that receives scheduled time on a digital display can temporarily command the entire visual field.

The most effective allocation depends on the property, the audience, the tenant mix and the marketing objectives.

But digital technology makes something possible that static signage cannot:

The same physical sign can serve many different marketing purposes without adding more physical sign space.

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Digital Modernization Is More Than an LED Upgrade

The objective isn’t simply to replace a static sign face with an LED display.

It is to rethink what the sign can accomplish.

A modernized sign can become:

An identification asset
for helping customers recognize the business.

A promotional asset
for communicating offers and incentives.

A marketing asset
for delivering recurring brand messages.

A media asset
for generating valuable exposure to a defined audience.

A revenue-generating asset
when appropriate advertising inventory can be made available to tenants, partners or third-party advertisers.

That is the larger opportunity.

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