6 Ways Digital Menus Drive Sales

When considering strategies to drive sales at your restaurant, you have to think of way more than just what’s on the menu.

The term “digital menu technology” encapsulates so much more than just electronic menu boards. It’s a complex system that when used right, can be one of the most powerful sales drivers in a restaurant. It blends industry expertise, specialized creativity and advanced technology to tantalize your guests and boost profits. Simply put, digital’s dynamic imagery looks better and gets results. Plus, by going digital, you can impact in-store customer behavior like never before.

Here are six characteristics of digital menu technology that drive sales and take your restaurant to the next level.

For starters, your digital strategy should include video, motion graphics, and a color palette that elevates your brand. Consider how you can use your digital menu boards to drive sales through advertising and limited-time offer campaigns promoting a value offer.

It’s all about the upsell and upsize. Get your audience excited about moving to more profitable, high-dollar items. Using the golden triangle, put a tantalizing image of your feature front and center — your value offer on the right and other items on the left.

Show bacon sizzling on the grill. An icy drink with beads of condensation running down the glass. Much more so than static images, digital images let you entice your guests with dynamic, moving pictures that arouse emotion.

In the past, all you could do was organize your menu in a static presentation and hope for the best. Now, with digital menu technology, you find out what works and use your in-store menus as one of your most effective selling tools. Images can be updated to reflect each daypart. Unlimited coffee with an appetizing combo promotes a prolonged stay and increases sales.

WAND Digital’s total restaurant management technology combines creativity, resources, and real-time capabilities, so you can boost sales in new ways. Quickly refresh content and seize upsell opportunities on the fly by directing customers’ attention where you want it.

We’re hunters by nature. Our peripheral vision is attracted to movement. We can’t find car keys lying on the counter, but we can spot motion instantly. Digital menu boards play to this.

“Upsell bugs”— those bright, animated menu graphics that attract attention—are simply irresistible, and highly effective at prompting larger checks.

In Puerto Rico, Wendy’s developed a “4 for $4” value offer. When guests came in for that deal, the in-store promotions upsold them to premium combos. The campaign was so successful, the U.S. quickly followed suit.

Customers are drawn to certain places because of the food, ambiance, and service. Smart digital menu technology reinforces all three factors.

Digital does more than showcase menu selections. Through quality creative, digital menu boards tell a story and present your brand with a mouth-watering, tempting visual appeal.

Digital technology educates and entertains guests. Guests perceive wait times to be shorter, taking orders is quicker, and it even improves order accuracy.

Stunning digital menu technology enhances the dining experience in surprising ways. After a restaurant did nothing but install digital menus, customers complimented its renovation and improved food quality. Nothing about the food changed, but the welcoming environment drove sales anyways.

Cost fluctuations. Labor expenses. Sourcing local, serving fresh. Shifting regulations. Nutrition updates. Time of day. Demographics. All these dynamics spark custom menu needs.

With digital technology, you can stay in step with your operators. You get easy access to instant switch-outs so you can execute changes instantaneously and save money.

Digital capabilities let you create exceptional communications that support your sales strategy, trigger increased revenue, and promote customer loyalty.

Whether guests use the drive-through, select from an inside menu board, or order online, they get a consistent message.

Consumers have come to expect a digital experience. Infuse each encounter with creative, smart technology. With the digital medium, you can easily repurpose content created for TV, web, and print.

Digital capabilities show guests something fresh and new each time they visit. You’re shaping repeat customers who’ll come back for decades.

Mobile technology lets customers find your stores, see promotions, “like” your offerings, scope the menu, and purchase additional items. Cash in on this popular platform. Feature offers and what’s going on in your stores with social media.

Millennials value a balanced lifestyle, are heavily influenced by peers, and like to share their experiences. Make sure you’re using social media to add to the conversation.

Big data is huge for a restaurant business. It helps optimize everything from pricing strategies, marketing campaigns and product mixes, to operations and resource allocations.

Investing in digital menu technology gives your marketing group deeper insights and flexibility. They’ll spend less time on general campaigns, and more time on effective efforts across your entire network.

Easily track which campaigns ran where, and tie that to POS financial data to quickly measure effectiveness and capitalize on critical success factors.

Test everything: price limits, new products, different marketing in different locations or operational levels, and more. Based on results, roll out successful strategies to fit specific situations. Then, refine and repeat.

Which is more important for growing sales: digital menu technology, or dynamic creative that motivates human behavior? Actually, it’s the combination of both.

Not only should digital menu technology be sophisticated enough to give you the flexibility and control to make quick changes, it should also come with the expertise, resources and knowledge to help you take full advantage of this platform. Better communicate with your in-store clientele. Influence them. Experience the true purpose of digital signage — an increase in your revenue.