Foodie? Digital menus make a meal of your dishes

As kitchen table entrepreneurs are at an all-time high, from pie-makers to chocolatiers making us a nation of foodies and food suppliers, the latest tech can have a huge impact.

Whether you’re a ma & pa start-up, running a side gig or a restauranter, paper menus in COVID are a thing of the past and what’s more digital menu boards can help you showcase your wares in style.

Here VIVA looks at the benefits of digital menu boards, which can offer the right digital signage solution for restaurant.

Below are some of the benefits of using digital display for your food empire however small or large!

*A picture paints a thousand words and digital menu showcase your food which can help entice more customers

*It is easy to change digital signs and menu boards to match your volume or season, such as Christmas —all you need to do is edit, copy and repeat or create the number of menus you want

*Digital communication is flexible and changes can be made in real time. With a computer, you can configure your online menus to change whenever you need, such as on special occasions or at certain times of the day.

*With only one change on your computer, you get to update all the digital menus in all your restaurants.

*They keep your business open 24/7 as you can tell your story during off-hours.

*They entertain and inform customers. Besides digital menu boards and information on food, customers can access other entertaining and informative content such as weather reports, live news, and sports scores.

Here’s VIVA’s five tips to get you started

1. Design

Look at design from a logo to background and you can use software template to help you will select hardware, mounts and even content.

2. Choose the right display for your menu

So, this is how you want to show off your digital menu and if you have a physical venue whether you will use commercial grade displays with increased service life and permissible operating mode or domestic TVs will be enough for your project? What media player are you going to use: internal application (SoC solution) or external hardware? And how you will link the digital menu if you’re a virtual offer.

3. Select your software for remote management

The best thing about digital menu board is that it can be updated remotely with couple of clicks on your PC, no matter how far it is from your restaurant or if you’re travelling. There are a lot of software solutions within the market and one or another can suit to different projects better due to the specifics of a particular installation and the tasks of the project itself. As a rule, currently most of the owners choose cloud-based software, because it is cheap to deploy, easy to manage, and typically paid as a monthly subscription, allowing you to end up using a solution at any time and without any financial loss.

4. Do you need professional help?

Are you able to successfully mount your displays by yourself? Great, if the answer is yes! But is this your job? Decide if it’s better to spend your time on things you’re good at, leaving the worries of hardware installation and software deployment to professionals? DIY can become not so cheap solution as you expected, if something will go wrong, let’s say, with expensive displays you’ve just purchased.

5. Create eye-catching content for your board menu

If you are designing your digital menu from scratch by yourself, you need to start by creating the templates. Some tools that can help you do this include Adobe Illustrator, Inkscape, Canva, PowerPoint, and Google Slides. Below are some things you can do to help you make it more beautiful and attractive

*Try using grid systems for your digital signage menu boards, as they will help you clearly separate each item.

*Choose a color scheme that blends well with your restaurant’s décor or other literature

*Embrace the use of video and movement, it helps capture the attention of your customers more

*Choose a font that will fit in with your restaurant’s overall look and feel but ensure customers can read

*Ensure the call to action on your digital display is clear and straightforward. The whole idea is to make more sales, and you need to entice your customers to act

*Use real images. Even if stock images contain the same products you are selling, do not be tempted to use them. Your customers need to connect with what you are selling, or they will feel cheated. If you think your photos are not as good learning a few photography tips, such as taking photos from the best angles. You can as well hire a professional photographer for that purpose.