General Statement

Campus Signage is a resource for University colleges, departments, and other units. Digital signs share information and promote programs sponsored by University units or University-affiliated organizations. Individual units manage signage systems located in their facilities.

Accessibility Requirements

To comply with ADA standards for accessible design, each college/department is responsible for meetings these standards when mounting their displays. Please view the document (ADA Standards for Accessible Displays) for information related to The Americas with Disabilities Act Requirements related to wall mounting a display.

Slide Content Accessibility

We recommend using brand templates for signs, as they already include brand-approved colors and fonts.

Keep the following things in mind when building accessible slides.

Color

Do not use color alone to convey meaning. Instead, use text, shape, or emphasis along with color. For example, links using a different text color should also be underlined

Use high-contrast colors, such as black/white, to ensure your content is readable. You can check color contrast using the WebAIM Contrast Checker.

Read more about accessible color management

Read more about our brand colors

Font

Use a sans-serif font.

Font size should be at least 20pt. We recommend 30pt or larger for better readability from a farther distance. 

Limit use of emphasis styles such as bold, italics, and underline.

Use only one or two fonts on a slide.

Read more about brand-approved fonts

Slide duration

We recommend a duration of 10-20 seconds per slide. Depending on your content, more or less time may be necessary. An image slide will need less time than a text-heavy slide, for example.

Videos

Avoid flashing or blinking videos. 

Always use subtitles, captions, or transcripts with your videos.

Read more about accessible captions

Images

Always add alt text to the images you upload to the Signage site. 

Read more about writing alt text

Text

Keep text simple and avoid paragraphs when possible. 

QR codes

When using a QR code, you must provide alternative text of the URL. It is good practice to include the purpose of the link and instructions on using the QR code as well. Example: "Scan the QR code with your phone or visit events.uiowa.edu to register for this event."

Only use one QR code per slide.

QR codes should be appropriately sized for scanning from a distance.

Longer slide durations, such as 30 seconds, are recommended so users have enough time to scan the QR code.

Accessible alternatives

Consider presenting information on both your sign and a more accessible format, such as on your website.

Accessibility statement

Make sure your slide includes the Accessibility Statement if required. Usually this includes all slides detailing events, courses, programs, etc. If you are in doubt, include it. This can be included at the bottom of the slides under the main content. An example of the accessibility statement is found in the University’s Policy Manual.

Content Guidelines

Following are general guidelines for Campus Signage. Individual units may establish additional guidelines for the signs they manage—check with contacts listed below under Signs around campus:

• Use signs to promote University unit- or organization-sponsored programs, events, or activities.
• Do not use signs to promote commercial activities or advertisements from non-University organizations.
• Messages that invite public participation in programs must include the University’s accessibility statement.
• Messages should not use copyrighted images or content without permission or license.
• Messages should include the University’s official logo and word mark, and follow other UI graphic identity system guidelines.
• Content should adhere to Data Protection and Protected Health Information policies.

Management

Individual units manage digital signage located within their facilities. Units can establish additional usage and content guidelines, and set specifications for their systems.

Units also establish how they will review, approve, and schedule messages on their signs. Individual units determine what their signs will display, with two exceptions:

• Centrally distributed Hawk Alert messages that override unit-scheduled messages in emergency situations. Public Safety/ITS will determine when to deploy a Hawk Alert override.
• Institutional messages requested by the president or vice presidents that units add to scheduled message rotations. The Office of Strategic Communication will approve or disapprove these requests, producing and distributing slides configured for different signage systems.

Content retention

The Digital Signage Support Team reserves the right to periodically remove unused content from Campus Signage. This might be media and slide content that is not referenced by other content, or signs/groups/users with a certain period inactivity.