Need a little help creating content for your free digital signage? This article looks at what you need to consider when planning your various campaigns, and introduces some free tools you can use to create content without the help of a graphic designer: text, images, presentations and videos.
Your digital signage needs to be readable and dynamic to attract the attention and interest of your target audience. For free, high-quality digital signage, it's important to master the basics of screen communication and to know the right free tools at your disposal. Your digital signage software may offer you the possibility of creating videos easily using template, but you also need to find the right sources of free, royalty-free images and videos.
The success of your display depends on your content
To create a professional digital signage display you'll obviously needquality screens and an easy-to-use content management system. But the attention your audience will pay to the message you want to get across will depend solely on the message itself.
However, creating one can seem difficult, especially if your budget doesn't allow you to call on the services of a graphic designer or agency. But don't panic! By following a few simple rules and using the right tools, you can create eye-catching content much more easily than you might think.
→ If you're new to digital signage and content creation, check out this article on the ABCs of creating visuals for screens.
Give visibility to your digital signage content
First and foremost, make sure your content is easily visible. Make sure your screens are at the right height, not obscured by a pole or store furniture, and that the chosen location is not too bright.
→ Here are all our tips about choosing the right location for your screens.
- If you're using text, check that the font and font size you're using make it easy to read your message, despite the distance between the audience and the screen.
- In the case of a video, will the audience take the time to watch it in its entirety? If your target audience is waiting in line or in a waiting room, you'll have a little more time(1 minute maximum). On the other hand, for a window display, opt for eye-catching content for immediate immersion(10 to 20 seconds).
Simplicity and efficiency for your free digital signage content
Having too much text on the screen can look cluttered and confusing. Instead, invite your audience to come and meet your team and chat, or to visit your website at read more. You don't have to cram everything into your content.
Simplicity also applies to fonts and colors: don't use too many. If you don't have a graphic charter, set yourself some limits. Imagine a color palette that matches what you want to convey. Would you prefer bright primary colors? Relaxing natural colors? Or deep blacks or grays?
→ To make your visuals more striking and harmonious, you can use some photography rules that the PetaPixel site summarizes.
Update your content frequently
Make sure you have enough content on your screen so that you don't bore your audience by playing the same message over and over again. If you can't find enough, you can add dynamic feeds from external data (weather forecasts, social networks, traffic).
→ Reminder of the rule of three in digital signage: content, container and context !
Free content creation tools at your disposal
➡️ Sourcing images
The search for new images is a daily challenge for marketing professionals. Shooting is expensive, but many image banks allow you to download royalty-free or licensed images free of charge. Always check the rules for using images (commercial, editorial, etc.) and whether you need to credit the photographer. Here are some of our favorite image banks:
➡️ Video creation
Canva is a graphic design tool with an intuitive "Drag & Drop" interface and hundreds of templates to use. Our tips for using Canva :
- To create content suitable for digital signage, use "presentation" or "video" templates.
- You can use the"Animate" tool to give movement to your texts and make a simple presentation dynamic.
- The ratio should always be that of your screen: 16:9 or 1920x1080 (or 1080x1920, depending on your screen's portrait or landscape orientation).
- Hundreds of fonts are available, as well as a large library of images and videos (not all free).
Lumen 5 is a video creation tool designed to transform static written content (articles from blog, product brochures) into video. The software extracts key phrases and overlays them onto your own video footage or royalty-free footage. If you enter an article link, Lumen 5 automatically retrieves the associated content and fills in your storyboard. If your content is offline, copy and paste it directly into the video editing tool. Lumen 5 includes a bank of royalty-free videos, images and audio tracks. The free version lets you create 5 videos per month, and paid versions are available from $19 per month.
→ In addition, here are 5 tips for creating effective (and profitable) videos for your screens.
Other useful tools :
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Cenareo offers an intuitive, scalable digital signage solution perfectly adapted to the needs of communications professionals. Discover our digital signage software.
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