R52 Digital SignageJoin the Alliance

Blog

How to Create Digital Signage Content — A Beginner's Complete Guide

· R52 Digital Signage Alliance · 3 min read

Person creating digital signage content on a laptop computer

You Don’t Need to Be a Designer

The most common barrier people face with digital signage is believing they need design skills to create good content. You don’t. With the right tools and a few simple principles, anyone can create professional-looking screens in under 10 minutes.

This guide takes you through the process step by step.

Step 1: Decide What You Want to Say

Before opening any design tool, answer these three questions:

  1. Who is your audience? (Customers in a waiting area? Staff on a shop floor? Visitors in reception?)
  2. What do you want them to know, feel, or do? (Be aware of the offer? Feel welcomed? Book an appointment?)
  3. How much time do they have to absorb it? (3 seconds walking past? 10 minutes waiting for a coffee?)

The answers to these questions define your content. Write them down before you start designing.

Step 2: Choose a Template

The Alliance’s template library has 800+ professionally designed starting points. Find one that fits your purpose:

  1. Log into your Alliance dashboard at app.r52signage.com
  2. Click “Create content”
  3. Browse by category (announcements, menus, promotions, events, etc.)
  4. Filter by colour scheme, orientation (landscape or portrait), or industry
  5. Click a template to preview it
  6. Click “Use this template” to open the editor

Pro tip: Choose a template that’s close to what you want. It’s always faster to adjust an existing design than to build from scratch. Even if the colours are wrong or the photos aren’t right, the layout is worth keeping.

Step 3: Edit the Text

Once your template is open:

  1. Click on any text element to select it
  2. Type your new text
  3. The font, size, and colour are set by the template — keep these for consistency unless you have a specific reason to change them
  4. Keep your message short. If you can’t say it in 7 words, it’s probably two slides, not one.

Common mistakes:

  • Writing text that’s too small to read from 3 metres
  • Using more than three different font sizes on one slide
  • Putting too many words on the screen

Step 4: Replace the Images

Good photography makes a dramatic difference. Replace the template’s stock photography with images relevant to your business:

  1. Click on an image element to select it
  2. Click “Replace image”
  3. Upload from your computer, or search the built-in library of 2 million+ free stock images

Image tips:

  • Use high-resolution images (minimum 1920×1080 for full-screen images)
  • Choose images with a clear focal point that works at the size it’s displayed
  • People’s faces attract attention — use them where appropriate
  • For product photography, use your own photos over stock imagery

Step 5: Adjust Colours (Optional)

If your brand has specific colours, apply them:

  1. Click on a coloured element
  2. Use the colour picker to enter your brand’s hex code
  3. Apply consistently across all elements

If in doubt, leave the template colours. A professionally designed template with original colours is better than a modified template with poorly chosen replacements.

Step 6: Set the Duration

How long will this slide display before the next one?

  1. In the editor, find the “Duration” field
  2. Set it in seconds (5–10 seconds for most content; 15–20 for complex information)
  3. For video, the duration is set automatically to the video length

Step 7: Set the Expiry Date

When should this content stop appearing?

  1. Find the “Remove after” or “Expiry date” field
  2. Set a date that’s appropriate for the content’s relevance
  3. A promotion that ends on 31 December should expire on 1 January
  4. A weekly announcement should expire the following Monday

If you don’t set an expiry date, you’ll need to remember to remove the content manually when it’s no longer current.

Step 8: Publish to Your Screen

  1. Click “Save” to save the content to your library
  2. Navigate to your playlists and add the content to the appropriate playlist
  3. The screen will update within 60 seconds

Your First Content Checklist

  • Clear, single message (one headline, one supporting sentence, one call to action)
  • Text is large enough to read from the viewing distance
  • Expiry date set
  • Duration set appropriately for the content
  • Reviewed on the actual screen before the audience sees it

Getting Better Over Time

Create content regularly, review what works (what generates enquiries, what viewers mention), and iterate. The Alliance’s analytics show you which content gets the most attention. Use this data to improve your next piece.

← All posts