Shopping for an LED display can be a daunting task. That’s mostly because the industry is segmented in an odd way, putting led screen manufacturers, led display installation companies, and led wall end users at odds with each other. The market will probably adjust over time but there are a few important factors that result in things being so screwed up. I’ll outline them for you and give my suggestion of better options.
The most obvious reason why things are thrown off within the industry is that most LED signage requires that the user applies for a permit. Going down to town or city hall seems like a daunting and scary task. It shouldn’t be. The people in those offices have jobs because they work for you. Your taxes pay their salaries. Also, an LED display, which serves to market your business and therefore increase your sales and their tax revenues, means that your interests are aligned. Rather than handing it all off to an installation company, try applying for a sign permit on your own and see where that takes you. You’ll be surprised how easy it is.
Next is the install itself. Sign companies traditionally install LED displays because they are also designing signage that surrounds them. You need someone to manufacture that signage and put it all together for you. If however, you just want the digital signage part, you can easily do that yourself. Just buy an LED display and then hire an electrician for the afternoon to hook up the power. Most of these displays are so simple that anyone could install them if they had the technical skills needed to set up a desktop computer. Most people these days are technically equipped to that level so skip the sign company and install it yourself.
The final piece is the manufacturers of the LED signage themselves. Some of these companies base their business models only on selling through sign companies. This gives them greater exposure to a given marketing without having to sell themselves directly to consumers. The problem here is that the sign company they are selling through (the installer) is usually marking up the signage by about 150-200%. They are charging all that extra money to make a bit on install but then to give free service calls for the next 5 years or so. Problem is that most LED display don’t have to be serviced more than once every few years if they are any good. You’re prepaying a TON for service that you don’t need. There are a few LED display manufacturers in the market that sell directly to end users and you should try to find one of them rather than going through the traditional model of selling through a distributor.
LED signage is a great tool to use for marketing your business but the way the industry is organized today, buyers have a really hard time finding a good value. The distribution channels are set up so that all the costs are passed on to them with very little benefit. Take a look at your options and examine all possibilities before making the investment in an LED display.