How to make an airport pickup sign on your phone

A phone beats a paper sign at arrivals

A paper sign needs a printer, a marker and something stiff to hold it flat — card like that can curl in a bag before you even reach the terminal. A phone is already in your pocket, and a glowing name cuts through a crowded, overlit arrivals hall better than ink on cardboard. Change the text in seconds if the flight is late and a colleague has to take over, or if you are suddenly picking up two people instead of one.

Make the airport sign on your phone, step by step

1. On the Create tab, tap Templates (or find it in the Quick Start row) and choose Airport Pickup. It creates a new banner with a plane symbol and the word PICKUP, scrolling left at 70 pt per second on classic LED dots.
2. Tap Text and replace the text in Message with the name, for example ANNA or SMITH FAMILY.
3. Still in Text, raise Size and choose Bold or Black under Weight.
4. Open Color and pick a bright Color Mode. Solid with one of the Quick Colors, Gold or Retro LED all read well on Pure Black.
5. Open Motion and set the Speed. For a name that fits on the screen, set Loop to None so it stays still.
6. Tap Full Screen, turn the phone sideways and hold it at chest height facing the exit doors.

When the traveller has spotted you, double-tap the screen or tap the X in the corner to close the sign. Brightness and auto-lock go back to your usual settings.

Scroll it or keep it still?

A short name that fits across the screen is easiest to read when it stands still, because travellers see the whole word at once. A longer message such as WELCOME HOME ANNA needs to scroll. Here is how long it takes on a 6.1-inch iPhone in landscape (852 pt wide), with the text at Size 120, about 1,280 pt wide:

Thirty seconds for one pass feels long when someone is walking past scanning faces, not signs. General rule: if the message is longer than a name, speed it up past the template default; if it is just a name, skip the scroll entirely and keep it still.

Airport pickup sign ideas that work

• Surname only for business pickups, first name for friends and family. People scan for their own name first.
• One emoji at most. A heart or a plane adds warmth, but every extra symbol makes the name smaller or longer.
• Use Rainbow or the Pulse motion effect for a fun family welcome; keep a plain color for a professional pickup.
• Save a second banner for when you are running late, such as the name plus MEETING POINT CAFE, and pin it in the Library so it is one tap away.
• There is also a Meeting Point template if you are the one guiding a group.

Before you head to the airport

• Make the sign at home, while you have time, and test it in full screen.
• Charge the phone. Full brightness with auto-lock off uses battery faster than normal; a small power bank helps if the flight is delayed.
• The sign works without internet, so poor signal in the terminal does not matter.
• In the free version, a full-screen ad can appear after you close the sign, never while it is showing.

Questions and answers

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