You probably already know that large Video Walls are a great technology tool to create visual impact at a trade show or other event. But what many people don’t realize is that even though big can instantly draw attention, it’s important to do more than put up your usual content if you want to get the greatest impact out of this technology.  You need to create specific content and images for a video wall and then make sure your content matches well with the video wall specifications.

Tip 1: Your Content and Video Wall Need to be a Good Match

When it comes to your content, certainly you can start where you always do with content by knowing your goals and purpose. But while it might be okay to sit down and noodle around on a PPT with only a vague notion of what you want, before you rent a video wall it’s important to know specifically what you want to portray in your content and images.

Then you’ll want to discuss your content with the experts at your video wall rental company who can help make recommendations.  Before you finalize your video wall configuration and specs, or your content, you want to make sure they are a good match. For instance:

  • You need to create content according to the resolution of your chosen video wall. Specifically, your graphics should match your resolution; i.e., high resolution graphics for high res screen and low resolution graphics for low resolution screen.
  • You need to know whether you’re going to run different content on each screen (where each monitor acts independently) or whether you want one large image splashed across all screens (maximizing the size of your image), or a combination of both.
  • You need to know whether your video wall will need to be an unusual configuration to fit your space – an unusual configuration will influence your content/images so that everything appears as you want it to.
  • Content that matches the native resolution of the screens is going to have the best quality.

So, now that you see some of the reasons it’s vital that your content and video wall specs fit nicely together, here are some tips for the content itself.

Tip 2: Remember that a Video Wall is not just a Really Big Television

For some reason, when many people sit down to create content for a video wall, they tend to think in terms of a large screen television and so end up with issues such as content or ads that run too long. In other words, just because something is big and grabs a viewer’s attention initially, it doesn’t mean they are going to pull up a chair to sit and watch your masterpiece.

That means that like other effective content and images, your message should be loud and clear and easy to quickly understand.

In addition, if you think of a video wall like a big television, you’re missing out on some of the truly creative things you can do. For instance, a video wall allows you to run many different images at once on different screens. That doesn’t mean you have to do that, but it’s good to know your options so you can strive to create content that is fresh and innovative rather than something viewers have already seen before.

If you’re not used to envisioning content in a video wall kind-of-way, creating the content can be daunting. Lest you are tempted to use some old content that’s not going to work well at all, you might want to consider using a designer that specializes in video wall content. They can help you create content and images that not only get your point across effectively, but take full advantage of the video wall technology.

Tip 3: Video Wall Text Basics  

Just as the content for your video wall should not be created as if it’s for a large television set, the text itself should not be designed for a monitor-sized display.

Be warned: just because a certain text or text size looks great on your PC or Mac screen, it does not mean that it’ll look great up on a video wall.

Your text needs to be based upon the actual video wall screen size. Any and all text should be big (big for your video wall, not your monitor) and super easy to read upon first glance. Avoid fancy shading and effects or anything else that will likely make your content appear blurry.

You need to know just how close – and how far away – people will be when they are viewing your wall. For instance, if you are renting a video wall for your trade show, viewers might be standing right in front of your wall, or they might be all the way across the trade show floor. So know the display floor distances, and make sure all of your content is easy to read from every distance.

According to Extron.com, as a general rule of thumb, you should aim to have a minimum text height of 1 inch for every 15 feet of viewing distance.  And remember that font size is not equal to pixel height. The difference varies by font, but in general, pixel height is about 1/3 larger than point size.

It’s also good to think in terms of contrasting colors. Approximately 80% of the adult population has some form of a visual deficit, which makes proper color contrasting even more important.

According to a study done over 20 years ago, some of the best contrast combinations include black on yellow, black on white, yellow on black, white on blue, yellow on blue, green on white, blue on yellow, and white on green.

With content that is well-thought-out, matched to your video wall specs, and formatted properly for the best video wall viewing, you’ll have not only greater impact but much more effective results.

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