Print signage has been at the forefront as a communication tool in commercial environments for many years, but that time as the kingpin of delivering messages may be over with the rapid growth of the Digital Signage sector. As forms of signage, both print and digital have their advantages over the other, but which will come out on top?

The cost is an obvious big difference between the two, Digital Signage has an understandable higher initial investment cost as you are purchasing state of the art signage software and a commercial grade screen. Print has a much lower initial cost in comparison but that leads to the next point; updating. Where Digital Signage really shines is in its ability to offer real-time updates directly to an entire network of screens. Updating print signage however is a much more arduous and labour intensive job as it requires additional expenditure of reprinting of the content and the further time and money spent on distribution or someone having to physically go to each print poster location and replace it. This is okay to deal with if you are just one retail branch. But if you consider the cost of having to change an entire series of print posters around the country, the cost builds up. Updating a Digital Signage network is done with just the click of the button and best of all there are no traditional distribution costs.

When comparing the two visually, once again Digital Signage bests print. With a much brighter and vibrant display that can allow images and videos at its bare minimum, the lifelessness of print signage really shows. Going digital also allows another layer of interactivity for users if you decide to add touch functionality to your screens. The cost of commercial touch screens is coming down all the time as the technology usage grows, adding a commercial touch screen allows your customer to become fully engaged in your message while also increasing brand and product awareness.

Both Digital Signage and print signage can be recycled after their use. Print is a more fleeting form of communication and is not meant as a long term solution. There are a lot of environmental issues surrounding the ink used in traditional signage. Digital Signage is a more permanent fixture but is a lot more environmentally friendly during its lifetime like our Slimline screens that have a power timer that switches the display off when it is not needed.

When it comes to Digital Signage and print they will continue to work side by side for many years to come. Digital Signage is the clear winner but print has not completely lost the battle. They can work alongside one another for advertising, as well as general information dissemination, purposes. Print is a suitable solution for most short term marketing efforts but if you really want to make a solid investment, the many positives that Digital Signage has over print make it a worthy one.

Tom Rock

Tom Rock is a Marketing Manager for Allsee Technologies. His background is in Digital Signage and Graphic Design.