Digital signage continues to gain a foothold in how businesses engage customers, and many coffee shops are transitioning from traditional chalkboards to sleek digital displays. It offers tremendous flexibility, functionality, and use cases.
As such, savvy coffee shop owners are turning to innovative digital signage strategies to enhance the customer experience and revolutionise how they engage with it.
In this article, we share digital signage strategies that coffee shop owners can adopt to boost sales, retain and create an enduring connection with customers, and increase brand recognition and awareness.
13 innovative digital signage strategies for modern coffee shops include:
1. Implement interactive menus
Traditionally, customers will scan a static coffee shop menu board and ongoing promotions behind the counter or on printed boards with their eyes.
This process has flaws, including a lack of real-time updates and cost (in the case of printed boards), and, more importantly, it makes the ordering process unengaging.
Interactive digital menu boards allow customers to tailor their orders to their preferences with just a few taps on a touchscreen digital display.
The added advantage of giving customers more flexibility is the opportunity it presents coffee shops to upsell.
Prompts, like "Upgrade to a large cup for $0.99 more" or "Add a freshly baked croissant for a special combo price of $2.55," can be shown on the digital menu board, depending on what the customer added to their cart.
Interactive displays are powered by robust digital signage solutions that store customers' previous orders and favourite items, allowing them to quickly and conveniently reorder past purchases.
2. Adopt and integrate digital loyalty programs
Digital loyalty programs make it easy for customers to enrol and participate, as they can sign up directly through your website or mobile app.
Offering digital loyalty programs is a win-win for you and your customers. According to Square, customers enrolled in digital loyalty programs that use the Square software spend 53% more and visit 40% more often.
As you collect more data about each customer, you can create targeted and personalised offers that resonate with individuals or a specific group of customers.
Some digital loyalty programs incorporate tiered membership levels based on spending or point accumulation. These levels incentivise customers to continue visiting your coffee shop, seeking higher status and rewards.
The added features of digital loyalty programs, such as transactional texts and scheduled email promotions, ensure that your coffee shop stays top of mind.
3. Promote surveys to gather customer feedback
Touch-screen displays or QR codes make it easy for customers to conveniently access surveys directly from digital screens. Incentivise customers to fill out surveys by offering rewards or discounts for completing them.
“Complete our survey and receive a free coffee on your next visit” is an example of a tangible reward that can encourage customers to provide feedback.
You can also use digital signage content to promote your feedback channels, including social media platforms, forms available in-store, and phone numbers.
Such practice makes it easy for customers to share their opinions and suggestions.
4. Publish weather updates
Weather updates in coffee shops offer several benefits beyond informing customers about the current conditions. Current weather conditions, forecasts, and upcoming weather patterns help customers make informed choices about what to do next.
For example, they can decide to linger longer over a hot drink on a rainy day or grab a refreshing iced coffee on a hot, simmering afternoon.
Weather updates also make it easy to align your promotions with the prevailing weather conditions to maximise sales and cater to the potentially changing needs of your customers.
For example, on a cold day, you may promote warm/hot beverages like hot chocolate or highlight cool, refreshing options like iced teas on a hot day.
Digital signage software like Luna Screens also makes it easy to quickly queue promotions for days when there is unexpected inclement weather.
5. Integrate social media feed
Social media feeds provide an opportunity to increase customer engagement. Customers can see their own content displayed in the coffee shop, whether it’s a photo of their latte or espresso, a selfie with friends, or a positive review of their experience, adding to their experience.
You can encourage more social media engagement from your customers by showcasing social media content.
Provide call-to-actions encouraging your customers to follow your social media pages and share their experience using an original hashtag, so it’s easy for you to promote in-house or other channels.
Displaying user-generated content also serves as social proof of your shop’s popularity and service quality.
Prospective customers seeing photos, reviews, and posts from other satisfied customers can increase their confidence in your business and be the final catalyst for their purchasing decisions.
6. Share DIY recipe demos
Another impactful digital signage strategy for coffee shops is to showcase DIY recipe demos. The truth is that many of your customers will make coffee at home multiple times.
According to Drive Research, 66% of 1,300 surveyed Americans reported making coffee at home daily.
It's prudent to be the coffee shop that indulges their barista dreams and makes their home brewing experience more fruitful. It also prevents them from visiting your competitors.
DIY recipe demos also provide an opportunity for you to showcase your expertise.
Whether it's demonstrating how to brew the perfect cappuccino or bake a signature pastry, DIY demos highlight the quality and versatility of your offerings through hands-on demonstrations.
The DIY recipe demo is especially great for coffee shops selling coffee-making products like beans and milk. The demos can prompt customers to make additional purchases beyond brewed coffee.
7. Promote local events
Except you’re Starbucks or Dunkin’, you need strategies to strengthen your community ties. Promoting local events demonstrates your commitment to supporting and engaging your local community and its inhabitants.
You can also partner with local event organisers and businesses to organise and sponsor events. This is a mutually beneficial relationship that provides cross-promotion opportunities.
For example, you can offer special discounts or perks to event attendees. In contrast, event organisers can promote your coffee shop as a convenient meeting or hangout spot before or after the event.
Additionally, volunteer to host certain events, like book readings, art exhibitions, or live music performances, to drive foot traffic to your coffee shop and expose your brand to a new audience.
8. Implement queue management
Long wait times can lead to serious customer frustrations, so it's crucial to implement queue management strategies that minimise wait times.
We mentioned earlier that interactive digital signs are a quick and convenient way for customers to place orders. This is one way to reduce the queue at the sales point.
However, without interactive displays, digital signage can still help you reduce overcrowding and rowdy queues. A queue management system can reduce perceived wait times and make the ordering process more orderly.
Customers can see where they are in the queue and when their coffee or order is ready.
Moreover, content like local news and informational videos about coffee making can reduce perceived wait times, thus enhancing customer experience.
Luna Screens is digital signage software that provides intuitive content management and the ability to manage and control what customers see remotely.
9. Integrate with digital signage mobile ordering
Mobile ordering lets customers place orders from their smartphones or tablets, eliminating the need to queue in the store. This convenience is beneficial during busy periods.
You can create an online ordering system and display a QR code that leads to it. This may be an easier option for customers reluctant to download an additional app to the 100s they already have on their devices.
Moreover, the QR online ordering system is a much easier and cost-effective option for small coffee shop owners to implement.
Besides convenience, mobile ordering systems provide opportunities to cross-sell or upsell to your customers.
For example, when a customer adds a coffee to their cart, the system may prompt them to add a pastry at a discounted price, increasing the average order value and making additional sales.
Furthermore, these systems typically offer robust customisation options for customers to tailor their orders to their tastes and preferences.
10. Display menu items with nutritional information
Display nutritional information for items on your menu, including calorie counts, ingredient lists, and allergen warnings, to help customers make informed choices about their orders. Again, QR codes can play an integral part in this strategy.
A QR code can lead to your digital menu, with features for customers to click to learn more about each item.
Openly sharing details about menu items' nutritional content and ingredients can help you build customer trust.
Luna Screens is an easy-to-use digital signage software with essential features like multiple templates, robust content scheduling, compatibility with many hardware options, and more. It will enable you to display nutritional information easily.
11. Publish sustainability initiatives
Showing digital signage content that highlights where you source your coffee beans from and how the producers adhere to environmentally friendly farming practices will help your coffee shop stand out from the crowd.
You can also encourage your customers to try reusable cups and containers to help reduce your environmental footprint.
Engaging with the local community on sustainability issues and showcasing them can further position you as a preferred option among conscious coffee consumers.
12. Provide employee spotlight
Shining a spotlight on your employees and showcasing the personalities behind the counter can humanise your brand and coffee shop.
Employee spotlights are also excellent ways for you to publicly recognise and celebrate your workers' contributions. This can serve as extra motivation and a morale boost for staff members.
This is also a perfect way to highlight the unique skills, talents, and specialisations of individual staff members, showing customers the qualities of those who serve them.
13. Encourage digital tipping
Still speaking of appreciating your workers, digital tipping allows customers to show appreciation for exceptional service while providing your coffee shop staff with additional income.
Moreover, digital tippers give higher tips. According to this article, “65% of people tip at least 10% more when they tip digitally than they do with cash.”
Takeaway: Utilise innovative digital signage strategies for modern coffee shops to boost sales
Adopting digital signage can transform the customer experience in your coffee shop, boosting sales and customer satisfaction.
From personalised menus to loyalty programs, engage customers and drive sales. Gather feedback effortlessly and showcase community support with local event promotions. Streamline operations with queue management and mobile ordering.
Build trust with nutritional info and sustainability initiatives. Humanise your brand with employee spotlights and boost morale with digital tipping. Embrace digital innovation for a thriving coffee shop experience.
Are you ready to implement digital signage in your coffee shop? Luna Screens is an ideal digital signage solution for efficient management and implementation. Get started with Luna Screens today!