A digital sign is a display screen for your digital content, and this technology can be a great addition to your coffee shop or café. There are a variety ofdigital signage use cases for your business, and they can significantly improve the customer experience. Read more below to learn how your coffee shop can benefit from digital signage.

What do I need to get started with a digital sign in my coffee shop?

If you are just getting started with digital signs, you may feel overwhelmed by new industry terminology and all the needed components for your first digital sign. However, once you get acquainted with the basics, digital signs are easy to deploy in your café. From our perspective, digital signs are much easier to set up than those complicated espresso machines! Additionally, with the right software, digital signs are also incredibly easy to manage.

To get started with café digital signs, you will first need a digital signage player. What is a digital signage player? A digital signage player is a small piece of hardware that processes your content and renders it to your display screen. A digital signage player renders digital signage content to your digital sign, much like a DVD player renders a DVD movie to your home TV.

There are a variety of digital signage players on the market. When selecting a digital signage player for your café, make sure that the device can display in 1080p Full HD and has an HDMI output port. These features will enable your digital signage player to be compatible with most display screens. Make sure that your digital signage player doesn’t have more processing power than you need for your given use case. Unnecessary processing power leads to a higher initial purchase cost, higher ongoing electricity costs, and, ultimately, more electronic waste in landfills.

Next, you will need digital signage software to manage your digital signage player. What is digital signage software? This software allows you to upload, change, and schedule content on your digital signage player. Additionally, digital signage software enables you to perform these management tasks remotely, so you don’t have to visit each digital sign in order to make changes. You will no longer need to climb on a ladder to try to access the back of each screen anymore. Instead, with digital signage software, you only need to make a few clicks on your laptop.

How can I use digital signs in my coffee shop?

A digital sign can display images, videos, and even live websites in 1080p Full HD resolution. As digital signs are compatible with various media types, coffee shop owners can put their digital sign to use in a variety of creative ways.

For example, if your café or coffee shop boasts a selection of single-origin coffees, you can display video content of your suppliers’ farms. Often, beautiful landscapes surround coffee farms, and the landscapes look great in 1080p Full HD resolution. This content also makes your customers feel more connected with the product they are purchasing.

There is a lot of work that happens beyond the coffee farm and before placing a customer’s favorite cup on the countertop. Just as you can use video content to tell a story about the origin of your coffee, you can also use video content to provide a behind-the-scenes look at your café’s operations. For example, you can show video content on your café’s specialty roasting practices. Customers love this content, and it helps portray your café as an authentic and unique place of business.

In addition to brand-building content, coffee shops can also use their digital signs for product promotions. For example, you can feature seasonal beverages or food and drink combos on your digital sign. You can make those features using image content or more attention-grabbing motion graphics. You can display this promotional content in a loop with a digital menu board alongside your everyday product offerings. You can also display promotion content by itself on a separate digital sign. Whatever the case, a café digital sign is an excellent tool for getting your customers to notice your products.

Another creative use case for your café’s digital sign is to use it as a virtual fireplace. Of course, this use case is only applicable to particular pecific business locations and seasons. However, when done right, a digital sign virtual fireplace can be the perfect addition to your café. It can make your location feel cozy and inviting on a cold winter’s day!

I want a digital sign for my coffee shop. What next?

To get a digital sign in your coffee shop, sign up for your online Screenly account. Next, you can purchase a Screenly digital signage player, the Screenly Player, on Amazon. The Screenly Player comes with a power cord and HDMI cable so that you can launch your digital sign as soon as possible.

We hope this article helped teach you what is possible with coffee shop digital signs! If you have any questions about setting up a digital sign in your coffee shop, please feel free to reach out to Screenly Support.