— Contributed by JJ Brown

I just re-opened my toy and collectible shop in our small town — it was my way of celebrating being fully vaccinated. During the past year, I have sold my products online, and surprisingly, it was successful. But I did miss interacting with customers in person. I am what you can call a “people person,” and I love sharing stories and opinions.

As expected, sales were not as good as before. Many stores around the area are still closed, so I assume many still think that my shop is still not open. So I had to do something to encourage people to visit again.

Installing an outdoor scrolling LED sign was the perfect way to attract customers to my humble little shop. With it, pedestrians and motorists would know that we are back in business. Thank goodness for Affordable LED — they sell relatively cheap programmable LED signs, and shipping was quick as well. 

In just a few days, I noticed that more and more people were coming into the store. It does not matter that they do not purchase anything — I am happy that they are aware that we are open for business again.

Here’s what I realized from having a LED sign on my storefront:

My scrolling LED sign helped people locate the shop easily.

The sign was visible from a hundred or so meters away but was not that readable. And if I were a pedestrian, I would be curious to check out what that sign was saying. So, in other words, the LED sign not only helped people locate the shop it also aroused their curiosity.

It’s great for brand messaging.

I got my message across easily. The message I programmed was, “WE ARE BACK! THE FUNKO POP TOYS CAN’T WAIT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!” I used the flashing animation for this and picked RGY colors. 

The LED sign can influence the customer’s buying decision.

Because of that message, sales of my Funko Pop toys increased. It was the first thing people looked for when they came into the shop. 

The sign helped me engage more with the customers.

I programmed witty messages and used puns, and customers seem to love them. They talk to me about it, and this allows me to offer other products in the shop. Of course, I avoid being pushy or else, they won’t come back, LOL.

Small businesses will definitely benefit from programmable LED signs, and my shop is proof. If you need to recover from the effects of the pandemic, I highly recommend getting one from AffordableLED.com!