Ready to get started?
Exploring digital signage? Our team is happy to assist. Simply complete the form below or call: 703.382.1739.
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
A digital bulletin board is a TV screen that displays announcements and important news and is an excellent way to take advantage of digital signage in your school or workplace. Traditionally, you would litter a bulletin board with flyers, sticky notes, and posters to communicate.
The global market for bulletin boards is growing, as they have become essential in the corporate world, schools, and sports groups. This market was worth $1.6 billion in 2019, and is still expanding. Forecasts show it’ll grow at a 7.6% CAGR between 2020 and 2027.
Some of the factors driving market growth include:
Today, bulletin boards are part of the digital signage industry that has paved the way for communication transformation. Thousands of electronic bulletin boards populate the internet today, also known as newsgroups in large collections. Each newsgroup focuses on a single topic, such as skin defects, roof-repair, and computer languages.
Any person who has access to an electronic bulletin board can respond to the message they find there. However, access is only through registration, which allows a visitor to have posting privileges. Nevertheless, anyone can start a discussion on a specific topic and wait for replies from community members.
The initial posting and all its subsequent replies comprise what is known as a “thread.” It can be weeks or months before a thread ends conclusively. Long threads attract several responses that sometimes do not relate to the original post. A person who joins later in the conversation may have longer threads to unwind before getting to the original post.
Unfortunately, a question or statement may sometimes not attract any replies or comments. Where there are replies and the discussion is ongoing, digital information boards provide an open discussion forum for issues in diverse nature.
A bulletin board system (BBS) refers to a computer network that facilitates electronic communication between users. They can share data by having their computers linked through satellite links, dedicated cables, telephone lines, or other communication forms.
In most cases, BBSs use phone lines in transferring data to users through chat rooms where they can interact with each other. This is an upgrade from the previous systems that used modems in the late 1970s for connection. Modern BBS systems comprise a central computer that serves as a message store that also sends messages to callers. The computer stays permanently connected to a phone to send messages to callers. The dial-up internet system offers global access and ease of use.
For your computer to reach the central computer, you’ll need internal communication tools and digital signage software. This is responsible for controlling the transfer of information between computers. Besides, you can use public domain communication software or commercial programs.
One of the most significant advantages of these digital boards is that they are public. This makes them easy to access, giving users a broad scope of information sources. Besides, each source has a high possibility of providing original and unique information, sometimes from a global perspective.
There are numerous advantages of a digital notice board. The major advantages of using a digital notice board are:
Electronic message boards utilize the latest technology in both display and software. For example, in the corporate world, they play a crucial role in keeping employees updated, thus promoting effective workplace communication. It becomes easy to reach workers at their specific location and to send messages to multiple places. Digital message boards have also made it easy to conduct web-based video training. Companies can use simple interfaces to add their content to the company bulletin board.
Setting up a digital bulletin board is not costly. With a few hundred dollars, you will have a platform where you can share unlimited notices.
Digital signage message boards help save the environment. They eliminate the use of paper printouts and help reduce the carbon footprint.
Electronic bulletin boards allow you to use graphic digital signage design, rich text, animations, and colorful photos. This combination of elements makes them more engaging than paper printouts. It is also easy to update content on electronic notice boards quickly without the involvement of printers or designers.
Companies and institutions that use regular bulletin boards spend much money to print pamphlets, posters, and announcements. Paper communication is expensive because you keep printing paper when making new announcements. On the other hand, you only need a single screen to set up a digital bulletin board.
If you haven’t installed digital signage in your organization, you miss out on its ability to streamline communication. Unlike emails and sticky notes that are easy to miss, everyone in your school will see TV screens. Digital bulletin boards are perfect for disseminating information to many people, such as in a college.
Traditional bulletin boards typically feature overlapping layers of flyers and pamphlets that interfere with the accessibility of information. If you want communication to flow smoothly in your organizations, you should look into digital signage solutions. Moreover, your audience will quickly spot the relevant content of digital bulletin boards, which creates convenience.
One disadvantage of using a static medium like paper is the minimal engagement you create with your audience. Digital bulletin boards excel in grabbing attention, as you can showcase dynamic content like videos, GIFs, and animations. Moreover, employees and students are more likely to watch entertaining announcements, which is why you should embrace digital signage.
While the advantages completely outweigh the disadvantages of an electronic notice board, there are still some flaws you should be aware of:
Since they are public places, they are often unedited and open to troublemakers who like controversies. They hide behind their screens to badmouth the users and the content posted.
Digital bulletin boards also face the risk of the influx of unwanted ads or spam. As such, they require massive computer resources to monitor and weed out spam messages.
The boards also lack archive features for each thread and post. This means that content can disappear with time as new posts come up.
Digital bulletin boards can be used by any organization that wants to improve internal communication. Schools and businesses have found success with digital signage, thanks to benefits like increased engagement and real-time display of information. Similarly, government offices, places of faith, hotels, fitness centers, and other business can use digital solutions to share:
You can explore the uses of digital bulletin boards below to see how they fit into your organization or industry:
Efficient communication is an essential ingredient for company success. However, many companies are still using old-fashioned and inconvenient bulletin boards. If you want to improve your organization’s internal communication, your best bet is implementing digital staff communication displays.. In addition to improving mass communication, your company will attract benefits like:
Your employees are overwhelmed with emails, phone calls, and social media, which is why they miss information on printed paper. Above all, digital bulletin boards allow you to use entertaining mediums to grab your staff’s attention and deliver information.
Digital bulletin boards can display real-time information regarding meeting schedules, client visits, and ongoing projects.
You can use digital bulletin boards to automate your company’s corporate digital signage solutions. Digital signage solutions are customizable, and you can display reminders, employee achievements, conference room schedules, and new company policies.
If you want to modernize your school's communication modes, you should consider digital signage for education. Digital displays can help you communicate and engage with students through creative content. For example, you can use digital signage in libraries to showcase new books and library hours and cafeteria to show menus and nutrition guides.
Another area to use digital signage is to replace traditional cork bulletin boards with digital solutions. Digital signage software for K-12 schools is especially useful since colleges which struggle to communicate to students between library hours, classes, and extracurricular activities.
Students are naturally visual-learners, and they now use screens more than ever to access information. Paper flyers aren't as entertaining as mobile phones and laptops, which are popularly used by most students in K-12 schools and collegiate level. You can display information like:
You can create your digital bulletin board quickly and easily if you have the right tools and resources. Here’s what you need to do.
You can choose from two main digital signage hardware options for powering your digital bulletin board, both comprising cloud storage. Cloud-based signage provides the advantage of being easy to update from anywhere.
In choosing a display screen, consider the following:
Display screens are available in many types, including:
In choosing your display screen, also remember to weigh between consumer and commercial displays. Commercial displays last long, have high processing power, and most of them come with a warranty.
The media player is the central control system of your electronic bulletin board. It helps you run the system with minimal flaws. You need one media player for each display screen unless you use a video splitter to create a video wall.
Digital signage media players fall into three categories, namely:
Their primary difference is in the size, price, memory, storage, and processing power. Media boxes are more popular because they have more processing power, are more durable, and have larger storage capacity. Plug-and-play sticks are an inexpensive option, while all-in-one digital signage solutions are inbuilt in the display.
Knowing the goal you want to achieve with a digital announcement board will help you choose the best media type.
You can use online tools to create and share important messages on a digital bulletin board. Here are some options to consider:
Remember to schedule your messages depending on what you want to display at a specific time. Having a tailored schedule will increase the efficiency of communication and save you time. Consider using a playlist to allow you to control the timing and length of the display. A playlist helps you cycle your messages in a loop to keep the content fresh and engaging.
Some digital message boards are created with educational or recreational aims. However, they now have a significant role to play in business functions, activities, and occupations. Self-employed business professionals will find the boards to be valuable in solving specific problems.
Bulletin boards seem to exist for almost every topic under the sun. As such, small businesses engaged in complex fields will benefit the most from using electronic bulletin boards. Computer hardware, programming, construction issues, and wiring problems are infinite issues that can be served by knowledgeable bulletin boards.
It is, therefore, essential to discover the right BB by sampling a few threads. This will help gauge the seriousness of the participants on how they handle issues.
Small business owners can discover bulletin boards that focus on their products. On such platforms, they can establish what the market feels about the performance of the business. This can come as a pleasant or unpleasant surprise.
According to Patrick Collinson in an article in Retail Financial Strategies, businesses can follow public comments. With some special marketing software, a business can get alerts when anyone mentions it anywhere on the internet. The company can request the removal of any false or misleading information on the boards.
The way people and businesses communicate is changing. Recently, the world has seen the entrance of electronic bulletin boards that reach a wider audience. They allow people to exchange thoughts and messages, as well as share files through a central computer.
Bulletin boards are common in the educational and recreational sectors, but the corporate world is also catching up. The advantages of using them include cost- and communication-efficiency, versatility, and sustainability. Businesses that have not yet identified appropriate bulletin boards should start engaging.
