Success story: Boost your revenue with digital signage

If you’re considering whether to add digital signage to your bar or restaurant, you’re probably wondering if it can really boost your revenue, right?

We had a chat with Tommy Hayes, the manager of At The Office, a sports bar and grill in Illinois, and he shared some insights that might help you make up your mind.

At the Office is a family-friendly sports bar and grill. They pride themselves on being based on community, and often hold events to support local groups such as clubs and  softball teams. The sports bar is populated by many screens that air various live games. A second set of 3 screens runs At the Office’s bar promotions.

At The Office uses Drip Boards–which PosterMyWall has an integration with–to manage and run their screen content. 

Why choose digital content?

At The Office has always had monitors for screening games. Recently, they installed a separate set of screens for promotional purposes. We asked Tommy why.

Get more information to the customer

Using screens enables the restaurant to get more information in front of each customer.

Tommy’s customers were already looking at the screens, why not use them for a promotional purpose too?

Update continuously and save paper

Another reason for making the switch to digital is to be able to easily communicate lots of messages to your customers–such as messages for seasonal promotions, special events, and promotional menu items.

Plus, when you’re running a bar or restaurant, many things change constantly: prices, menu items, new offers and promotions. 

Using digital content as opposed to posters to communicate these changes, means there’s no need to reprint every time. No more paper wastage, and no more outdated, dirty flyers on the wall. Just the content you want, updated in minutes, as often as you like.

Examples of digital content at At The Office

At The Office uses its screens to promote new offers and events at the bar. Here are some examples.

1. St. Patrick’s Day

At The Office ran its St. Patrick’s Day promotions with digital signage.

The big special was corned beef dinners. Instead of printing and distributing special menus, or putting up posters that would only be used for one day, At The office chose to go digital.

Customers saw the messages on the screens, and asked the servers and bartenders questions if they needed any further information. Tommy says they sold out of the dinners.

By taking advantage of Drip Boards’ scheduling options, Tommy programmed the message to automatically stop running at the end of the evening.

2. Weekend live events

Every Friday and Saturday, At The Office features live music. Here too, they leverage digital signage to let their customers know which popular local band is going to play when.

Typically, Tommy creates an overall schedule of upcoming events that displays all upcoming acts and  dates on a single slide. He also creates individual promotions for each act.

3. Other events and promotions

There are countless other events and promotions Tommy uses digital signage for, like to promote Cornhole league in the summer, its curling league in the winter, special menus, and other monthly specials.

Since the menu changes frequently, Tommy considers it a huge time and money-saving benefit to use screens over paper.

Using digital signage to promote the bar’s curling league

At The Office has outdoor patio space that they wanted to take advantage of year round. Four years ago, they decided to convert the space into a curling rink in the winter months. 

This tradition is beloved by patrons, and sets At the Office apart from other bars and restaurants in the area.

Tommy uses his screens to build awareness of the curling league. Short promotional messages catch people’s attention and spark interest in the league. When patrons see the message, they ask about the events, which opens a window of opportunity for Tommy’s servers and bartenders to talk up the league, as well as promote the bar’s other upcoming activities.

Unlock the full potential of digital signage with our best tips and tools.

How has digital signage helped the bar?

Digital signage has been a smart choice for At The Office.

1. Increase profits

Tara, one of Tommy’s bartenders, created a special drinks menu for digital display. Ever since, the bar’s ‘Fish Bowl’ drink special sales have sky-rocketed. So much so that they regularly have to order more of the bowls that these drinks are served in.

2. Pique customer curiosity

Tommy doesn’t give everything away with his boards. He creates messages that are purposefully intriguing, angled at getting customers to ask their servers questions, and to start a conversation.

This has worked, and the bar has many curious customers asking about its products and promotions.

3. Book more private parties

The bar advertises its private party room on its screens as well. Using a unique color palette for these messages ensures that they stand out and are noticed by customers..

The result is that At The Office has booked significantly more private parties and events–and generated more revenue–since digitally promoting its party room.

4. Repurpose digital content for other promotions

Tommy creates his digital message designs using PosterMyWall, and uses Drip Boards to run them on his monitors.

However, he manages to kill two birds with one stone by also sending the same designs to the restaurant’s owner who manages social media. This way the social media team can post on social platforms without having to create new designs.

Advice for other restaurants and bars thinking of implementing digital signage

While it’s important to maintain face-to-face interactive contact with customers, it’s equally essential to explore new ways of getting–and keeping–people’s attention.

Tommy’s thought process was that his existing screens already had his customers’ attention. What better way to share information and promote events than to display those on screens as well?

“I knew the screens would make a difference, but the increase in revenue has exceeded my expectations,” said Tommy.

Experiment with PosterMyWall’s Drip Boards integration

At The Office uses Drip Boards to schedule and display its digital messaging. Drip Boards’ full integration with  PosterMyWall means you can access your designs or create new ones without leaving Drip Boards.

If you would like to test out digital signage for your restaurant, Drip Boards is an easy-to-use and very affordable solution. Drip Boards operates on any Android screen or any screen with Chromecast. Drip Boards offers a 30-day free trial, so what better time to try out digital signage for your restaurant than now?