This article originally published in Self-Service World magazine, Oct 2007.
Bright lights. Big signs. The movie theater curtain opens on Broadway, New York City. We see Gene Kelly holding his fedora and craning his neck to ogle the sights and sounds of the big time. But this is Jonny Hamilton, design manager, and his story is the same — a small-town kid hits the big time.
“I just moved to New York 10 months ago to start this job,” Hamilton said. The young man from Portland, Ore., headed east to the Big Apple not to star on Broadway, but to shine behind the screens.
Hamilton works for Adspace Networks Inc., the largest in-mall digital video advertising network in the country. He is literally (or is it virtually?) creating the digital revolution. Hamilton fashions full-motion audio and video content for digital screens. He takes inspiration and encouragement from 10-story-tall digital images in Times Square.
“This city has the most heroic-sized digital signage you’ve ever seen,” he said.
These are the huge and moving signs of the times, and they are plugging in everywhere, as fast as he can create their images. Like the new talkie films highlighted in “Singing in the Rain,” Hamilton is looking to star in the signage equivalent that may signal the end of static advertising.
Start spreading the news, Hamilton said: This stuff is here to stay. Advertising graphics for plasma screens in shopping malls across the country are leading the charge. And, Hamilton said, if digital signs can make it there, well, they can make it anywhere.
Hitting the big time in digital signage, even in New York, is a whole new game. Hamilton’s 15 minutes of fame has been reduced to much less. Designing images for digital screens that people may see only as they pass by requires the stalwart focus of a performance artist.
“People will walk by these screens and only get to look at them for a few seconds,” Hamilton explained. Hence, the most important part of his design work is what he terms the “call to action.”
“That’s what gets clients to come into the store,” Hamilton said.
Sales, offers, new products — all must capture a passerby’s attention instantly, though Hamilton said he relies on the screen to do that. “Our screens are huge, big, towering, bright, shiny objects. Everybody’s going to notice them.”
Working in the ubiquitous media of his time — screens — Hamilton is bringing the fun to everyone, everywhere. To teenagers, soccer moms, women and mall rats of all stripes, Hamilton’s signs seem to beckon in an updated version of Lady Liberty’s motto. They say: “Give me your wired, your privileged, your huddled masses yearning to buy one get one free.”
Hamilton sees only more signs, as a sign of things to come. “I love them. I’d be happy if they plastered every wall in the city with digital signs.”
But that’s up to you, New York, New York.
