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To get the most from a hired digital sign, set one clear goal, keep the message short, put the sign where your audience already passes, change the message to suit the time of day, and track enquiries during the hire. For the cost side, see what affects the cost of LED sign and VMS hire.
A hire sign is only up for a set time, so it pays to plan how you will use it. These tips come from the hire signs we deliver around Australia for shops, schools, churches, councils, clubs and roadworks crews.
Start with a clear goal
Before the sign goes up, decide what it is for. For example:
- getting more people through the door
- telling people about a new location, service or opening
- bringing people to an event, such as a fete, open day or carnival
- warning drivers about roadworks or a detour
- getting the word out about a community project
A clear goal shapes the message, the spot and what you can expect from the hire.
Keep the message short
The best signs share one clear message at a time, in big, bold text that people can read in a few seconds. For example:
- NEW STOCK IN STORE
- NOW OPEN: COME IN TODAY
- FETE THIS SATURDAY 9AM
- ROAD CLOSED SUNDAY, USE DETOUR
Be specific about dates and times. When people can see exactly when something is on, they are more likely to plan for it. Avoid squeezing several messages onto one screen, so nobody has to guess what you mean.
Where should a hire sign go?
Even the best message won’t work if nobody sees it. Place the sign where your audience already passes:
- outside your shop, to catch foot traffic
- on a busy road where cars stop at the lights
- near the entrance to an event or car park
If traffic comes from both directions, a double-sided sign covers both. Our solar trailer signs need no power, so they can stand on a verge, in a car park or beside the road. Not sure where it should go? We can suggest a spot based on how visible it is, how traffic moves past and any council rules. Read more about where to put a digital sign.
Match the message to the time of day
You can schedule different messages through the day, for example:
- breakfast in the morning
- lunch from 11.30am
- event reminders in the late afternoon
Start a message before the crowd arrives. For a Saturday event, have the sign up and showing the details from Thursday or Friday, when people are making their weekend plans.
Should you change the message during the hire?
Don’t set the message and forget it. Change it from your phone as the day gets closer:
- FETE IN 3 DAYS
- FETE TOMORROW
- FETE TODAY: TURN LEFT HERE
A message that changes gets noticed again by people who pass every day.
How do you know a hire sign is working?
A sign is harder to track than an online ad, but there are simple ways to see if it is working:
- ask customers how they heard about you
- compare foot traffic, enquiries or takings with the weeks before the hire
- put a QR code on the sign that goes to its own web page, and count the visits
- keep track of phone calls and enquiries
Even a customer saying “I saw your sign on the corner” tells you it is doing its job.
What comes with an iCatcher hire
- hire from half a day to months or years
- delivery and pick-up anywhere in Australia, often on the same day in Perth
- set-up on site, and a quick lesson on changing the message from your phone
- help writing or designing your message, or a check of what you already have
- help with council approval if your site needs it
We have been making signs since 2002 (as Running Signs), and as iCatcher since 2019. Some customers start with a hire sign and go on to buy one of their own, as Stafford Motors did.
See LED sign hire in Perth and read why hire a digital sign. For council approval, see our guide to council approval for LED signs. Then book your sign, or call Aaron on 0416 053 335 or the office on (08) 9335 7944.
