Digital Signage for Restaurants Made Simple

Restaurants change constantly. Prices change, new specials are introduced, seasonal items come and go, and sometimes an entire menu needs a fresh look. Traditional printed signs and menu boards can make those changes more difficult than they need to be.

Digital signage for restaurants gives restaurant owners a flexible way to display menus, promotions, specials, announcements, and other content using TVs and digital screens.

Instead of repeatedly printing new signs, you can create your menu or promotional image using the design tool of your choice, upload the finished content to your digital signage platform, and display it on your restaurant screens.

From a neighborhood deli with one TV to a restaurant with several menu screens, restaurant digital signage can be surprisingly simple.

What Is Digital Signage for Restaurants?

Digital signage for restaurants is the use of TVs or digital displays to show visual content to customers.

The screen can display a restaurant menu, food photography, a daily special, a promotion, a QR code, or even a video.

Restaurants commonly use digital displays for:

• Menus and pricing
• Breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus
• Daily and weekly specials
• Food and drink photos
• New products
• Limited-time offers
• Catering promotions
• QR codes
• Customer announcements
• Pickup information

A restaurant can use one screen or build a larger digital signage system for restaurants with several displays throughout the business.

Digital Menu Boards for Restaurants

One of the most popular uses for restaurant signage is creating digital menu boards for restaurants.

Instead of displaying a large printed menu behind the counter, TVs can be used as restaurant digital menu boards.

For example, a deli could use one screen for breakfast, another for sandwiches, another for salads, and another for drinks. A pizza shop could separate pizzas, specialty pies, sides, drinks, and specials across multiple screens.

Using several restaurant TV menu boards also gives businesses more room to make menu items readable instead of squeezing everything onto a single board.

When something changes, the restaurant can update its original menu design and upload the new image to the appropriate screen.

There is no need to physically replace the menu board.

Use Restaurant Screens for More Than Menus

A TV doesn't have to be limited to displaying a restaurant digital menu.

Restaurant owners can use screens for different purposes throughout the business.

A bakery might display photos of cakes and catering options. A coffee shop could promote a seasonal drink. A deli could advertise lunch specials. A restaurant could display a QR code that customers scan for additional information.

These restaurant promotional screens can help businesses use existing screen space to communicate with customers throughout the day.

Images and videos can also be scheduled for different times.

A restaurant could display breakfast content in the morning and different content later in the day. Content can also be given an end date so a temporary promotion doesn't continue displaying after it has finished.

Digital Signage Makes Menu Changes Easier

Printed menus have one major limitation: once they're printed, changing them usually means printing something again.

Restaurants don't have that problem with digital signage for restaurant menus.

Suppose the price of a sandwich changes. Instead of ordering a new printed board, the restaurant can update its menu image using its preferred design software, export the finished image, and upload the new version to its digital signage screen.

The same process works for specials, new products, seasonal menus, and other changes.

Digital signage doesn't have to change how you design your menus. It simply gives you a more flexible way to display the finished content.

Manage Multiple Restaurant Screens

Some restaurants only need one screen. Others may have five, ten, or more.

Using digital signage software for restaurants makes it possible to organize content across those different displays.

A restaurant might have:

• Screen 1Breakfast
• Screen 2Sandwiches
• Screen 3Hot Food
• Screen 4Salads
• Screen 5Drinks

Each screen can display different uploaded content.

Restaurant owners can also assign certain screens to team members to help manage them. For example, a manager could be responsible for particular screens instead of having access to manage everything.

This can become especially helpful for larger restaurants or businesses using multi-location restaurant digital signage.

Digital Signage for Different Types of Restaurants

There is no single type of restaurant that benefits from digital screens.

Digital signage for delis can help organize large menus with breakfast, sandwiches, salads, cold cuts, drinks, and prepared foods.

Digital signage for cafes and digital signage for coffee shops can be used for coffee menus, pastries, seasonal drinks, and specials.

Digital signage for pizza shops can display pies, toppings, combos, lunch specials, and sides.

Digital signage for fast food restaurants and digital signage for takeout restaurants can make menus easier to see while giving businesses a simple way to replace outdated content.

The same idea works for digital signage for diners, digital signage for bakeries, and digital signage for food courts.

The number and size of screens simply depend on what the individual restaurant needs.

Do Restaurants Need Commercial TVs?

Not every restaurant necessarily needs a commercial digital signage display.

Depending on the setup, a compatible consumer TV may work for displaying restaurant menus and other content.

Before choosing a TV, consider where the screen will be installed, how many hours it will operate, viewing distance, brightness, screen size, and the environment around it.

Readability should be one of the biggest considerations.

Customers shouldn't have to struggle to read a menu. Large text, clear pricing, good contrast, and organized layouts can make digital menu displays for restaurants much easier to understand.

How Much Does Restaurant Digital Signage Cost?

The cost of digital signage solutions for restaurants depends on the setup.

Possible costs include TVs, mounting equipment, installation, compatible streaming or TV devices, menu design, and restaurant digital signage software.

Software costs can become particularly important when a restaurant has several screens.

If software is priced individually for every TV, adding more screens can significantly increase the monthly bill.

Billiie takes a different approach.

Billiie Digital Signage is $1 per month per screen — every screen, including your first.

A restaurant can start small and add more screens when needed without paying the same full software price for every additional display.

What Should You Look for in Restaurant Digital Signage Software?

The best setup is one that restaurant owners and their teams can actually use.

When comparing restaurant menu board software or digital menu board software for restaurants, consider the everyday tasks you'll need to perform.

Useful features include the ability to:

• Upload images
• Upload videos
• Send content to specific screens
• Schedule content by time
• Set an end date for content
• Manage screens remotely
• Assign screens to team members
• Manage multiple screens from one account

You don't necessarily need a complicated system packed with tools you'll never use.

For many small businesses, the goal is simply to get finished content onto the correct TV and manage those screens without being physically in front of them.

Affordable Digital Signage for Restaurants

Digital signage was once something people associated mostly with large restaurant chains and major franchises. Today, smaller businesses have more options.

Affordable digital signage for restaurants can give independent businesses access to the same basic idea: replace static signs with screens that can display updated content.

A small restaurant can start with a single screen. A deli can build a row of digital food menu boards. A café can use a TV for its menu and another for promotions.

There is no requirement to transform the entire restaurant at once.

Start with what your business actually needs and expand from there.

Get Started With Restaurant Digital Signage

Billiie makes restaurant digital signage simple.

Create your menu images using the design software or designer of your choice, then upload your finished images or videos to Billiie and choose which screens should display them.

From your account, you can organize multiple screens, schedule content, set end dates, manage screens remotely, and assign screens to other people when needed.

Billiie Digital Signage is $1/month per screen, including your first.

Whether you're looking for digital signage for restaurants, restaurant menu display screens, or a simple way to manage multiple TV menu boards for restaurants, you can start with one screen and grow from there.