In the food and beverage industry, efficiency and customer experience are two key aspects of running a successful business. These components are especially valuable at cafes, drive-thru restaurants, and similar establishments that have a fast pace type of service offering.
There are various tools these restaurants can use to boost efficiency while also providing customers with a great experience, but few offer the same kinds of benefits as digital menu boards. Discover how this technology can improve operations at your establishment.
Streamline Operations
Many customers choose quick-service restaurants with the expectation that service will be faster. However, the same customers may need a similar amount of time to decide what they want to eat as they would at a sit-down restaurant. While you cannot choose for guests directly, you can facilitate their order with digital menu boards.
Digital signage enables you to construct a sleek menu layout with eye-catching visuals and may include more space to feature items. If customers see ingredients, calorie counts, and enticing images accompanying options, they can make a speedier, more informed decision. This ultimately makes lines move more quickly, potentially increasing revenue and keeping customers happy.
Easily Updated
Whether it’s for minor price modifications or seasonal additions, QSRs frequently change their menu offerings. With traditional menu boards, making these changes can be time-consuming, possibly requiring you to restructure it entirely to account for each difference.
Digital menu boards expedite this process, allowing personnel to alter menus electronically at any time. What’s more, you can enact these changes at multiple locations at once, saving you from traveling to other franchises and adjusting the menu manually — all without third-party involvement.
Optimize Menu Selections
If your business is like many other QSRs, it may offer different meals at different times of the day. For instance, you might want to feature breakfast options starting and ending at set times, such as 6:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m.
With a digital menu board, you can implement a system that switches between breakfast and lunch/dinner menus without needing employees to make a manual change each day. Since digital menus can be more precise, they may also prevent menu options from being visible past their time. This can keep your restaurant from sending the wrong message that certain items are still available when they aren’t.
Similarly, digital menu boards allow you to promote deals and seasonal options when they can have the most impact. For example, you may highlight limited offers or upcoming seasonal products more often during the busiest hours. Employing this promotional strategy may result in higher income over time.
Enhance Presentation
By and large, people respond better to visuals than text. Some research has found that approximately 65% of Americans consider themselves visual learners. With a digital menu board, you can add vibrant images, engaging videos, distinct designs, and animated effects to your offerings.
Visual appeal not only makes looking through the menu a unique experience but can also draw in passersby who may not have picked your establishment otherwise. In this way, going digital can be particularly helpful for drive-thru menu boards.
Increase Customer Satisfaction
Besides recognizing that the majority of people are visual learners, QSRs should also note that humans have relatively short attention spans. While some waiting is inevitable, hunger can sometimes make time feel slower, and customers can become irritable if they think they’re waiting too long for their food.
With digital menu boards, you can keep eyes occupied with constantly changing images displaying upcoming offerings, deals, and other promotions. It may seem insignificant, but these graphics can be just what your restaurant needs to foster a more enjoyable experience for customers, whether waiting in line or sitting down to eat.
Elevate Branding
As mentioned, digital menu boards are easier to update with new information — and this includes branding, as well. If your establishment has multiple sites in an area and recent changes were made, having digital menu boards enables you to maintain a uniform marketing aesthetic at all locations. This better permits you to offer a distinctive and consistent customer experience that can boost your reputation in the community.
Trust DSA Signage for Top-Quality Digital Menu Boards
Experience the many benefits digital menu boards bring with the selection at DSA Signage. We offer indoor and outdoor configurations and can customize our menu boards to include your unique branding, such as logos and taglines. We also supply related accessories like directional signs and order point canopies. If you prefer not to use digital menu boards, we offer several static options, as well. Contact us to learn more about our products or request a free quote for restaurant signage.
