subject: Digital Menu Boards – The Benefits A Restaurant's Customers [print this page] Digital Menu Boards The Benefits A Restaurant's Customers
The first benefit to the customer is that they can be quickly and easily informed of the day's specials. It could inform them that they save $3 by getting a combo. Perhaps it's that Tuesdays are "$10 Roast Beef Dinner" day. Or a "Weekend Brunch Special - get a free coffee with any breakfast purchased".
No longer does the customer have to search for this information. The restaurant can simply schedule their digital signage to display certain content on certain days. And if you have a screen that is viewable from the outside, it can be a great way to bring in foot traffic off the street.
Digital menu boards can also be programmed to show time specific menu items to reduce the clutter the customer must search through to find what they want, i.e. only the lunch menu is shown at lunch time, the dinner menu at dinner time, and after 10pm, only delicious coffees and desserts are shown on the digital menu boards.
Perhaps you have a product that has specific benefits for the customer, such as a new fat-free, ultra healthy smoothie. You can show slim, happy and healthy people consuming the beverage, along with key facts about why that drink is so good for you.
Another tip is to inform customers of preparation techniques. Diners want to know that their food is fresh and is being prepared in a clean and safe environment. One recent trend has been the open kitchen, allowing diners to watch their meals being prepared, plated or both. While this isn't always logistically possible, informative videos can accomplish largely the same goal, by giving customers a peek into the kitchen to reassure them that their food is being handled with the utmost care in a professional and clean facility.
Another fact is that customers who are entertained while waiting are less likely to be bothered by the wait. This is sometimes called "wait warping," and it is an established retail fact - and the reason sensational magazines are placed within eyeshot of checkout lanes. If you have hungry customers in line, the best thing you can do is make everything look appetizing. In some cases, you could have a new product that no one knows what it looks like and therefore won't try it. Digital signage gives customers something to look at; tableside interactive signage gives them something to do. In either case, the perceived wait time is shortened, and the customer remains happy to be where he / she are.
