More than 50 pages longer than the previous edition, Sign Gallery 6 presents recent Signs of the Times competition winners, honorable mentions, and others in this expanded edition of electric ...
LED displays evolve from early obscurity to their flourishing use today.
In 1978, when I began my career as a peddler of electronic-message-center (EMC) signs, I was a young lad of 25. I spent most of my time prospecting for sales and explaining the then-nebulous advertising merits of a programmable sign. I worked in the Midwest, which had few such displays, and those were predominately the single-line, 18- to 24-in., 30W lamp variety. A proposed multi-line display was a very big deal. Today, 26 years later, while most in my chronological set bemoan their graying hair and expanding waistlines, I'm having the time of my life — professionally speaking. The tiny closet business in which I've toiled for almost three decades has emerged as a burgeoning industry.
Historically, electronic-sign-industry growth was limited by customer acceptance. Few industry segments relished the image of flashing-lamp, text messages. For those few who recognized the advertising benefits, many were limited by restrictive zoning. Others protested the maintenance issues and high energy costs.
Today, the technology can portray virtually any visual impression in any size, shape, color, brightness, presentation format and schedule. The display media are more functionally sound, more energy efficient and very low maintenance. This medium is more passive than intrusive, which has spawned a slowly evolving acceptance by the same governments that fought to restrict the older technologies.
Currently LED displays now deliver adequate brightness and resolution. Newer technologies, such as organic LEDs (OLEDs), are just a few years away from signage viability. Liquid crystal displays (LCD) are emerging in outdoor-brightness, television sized formats. The functional, viable technology of the future is here, and it's affordable and available from various sources.
The sign seller's role has come full circle back to the media's creative aspect. Today, when a sign salesperson proposes programmable-display technology as advertising, his arguments have "teeth." Few dispute the impact of a programmable sign's impact on a busy thoroughfare as an effective advertising medium.
Now, the important discussions concern how we use this medium. In-depth studies and evaluations continue to examine the most effective uses of the new technologies. $image1
Outdoor advertising
The Outdoor Advertising Assn. of America (OAAA) held an operations seminar in Nashville in January and an executive seminar in Chicago in May. This influential industry body has formed a committee to study the most effective use of the new "digital media."
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