In the congested fast food market, restaurants are looking for new, exciting and cost effective ways to showcase their products; Digital Signage menu boards seem to hold the answer.

Traditionally backlit menu boards are used by most independent takeaway and fast food chains; over the last few years this has started to change. Offering many advantages over traditional printed menu boards, Digital Signage menu board are becoming the preferred choice for Quick Service Restaurants (QSRs).

Firstly the benefit of motion can be taken advantage of, enticing customers and ensuring that their attention is not only captured but retained. According to WAND Digital, Digital Signage menu boards attract 10 times more customer attention than traditional static menu boards. Even when no videos are used, having multiple images in a slide show makes for a much more efficient use of space when compared to backlit menu boards. They can also be used as a promotional tool; between menu board slides other slides such as advertisements for current promotions or nutritional information can be displayed.

As well as being easier to update, they also allow you to target your content by scheduling the appropriate slides for a particular time of day. For example you can set the screen to display breakfast menus in the morning and lunch menus after 11:00 without any extra hassle. As well as being brighter than back lit menu boards, Digital Signage menu boards are also more vibrant and have more impactful colours due to the high contrast ratio of their LCD panels.

Digital Signage menu boards are being implemented by a wide range food outlets, from Burger King to Auntie Anne’s. Last year Burger King deployed them across London and Birmingham locations, resulting in a 63% rise in sales in just 12 months. Auntie Anne’s is a growing pretzel store franchise that are currently outfitting all they’re UK stores with 40” Digital Advertising Displays to upgrade from their current backlit menu board systems. So far they have found the Digital Signage menu boards to be extremely beneficial both in terms of function and return. Not only have they seen improved sales and overall aesthetics of the locations, they have also been impressed with some of the features the digital displays provide. It is easy to see why the top QSRs are investing millions into Digital Signage menu boards.

With the advantages offered by Digital Signage menu boards to food outlets and the ever decreasing costs of LCD displays it is no surprise that more fast food chains, and independent retailers, are converting from backlit to Digital Signage menu boards.

Thomas Fraser-Bacon

Thomas Fraser-Bacon is the Marketing Director for Allsee Technologies. His background is in Digital Signage and Product Design.