Digital menu boards are key to any retail or service business — be it a bar, restaurant, retail shop or cafeteria. You can easily create and edit digital menu boards for your TVs with a slideshow app like Microsoft PowerPoint.
People in the food and retail industries all run into the same problem: Customers get confused by your offerings and don’t buy what you want them to. The issue is not what you’re serving. It's that people don't know what you're serving.
That's why you need a digital menu board that's easy to design and edit. Digital menu boards and signage systems boost revenue and improve the customer experience. It's the best way to quickly communicate your products, services and prices to customers at the point of purchase. Unfortunately, most digital menu boards are clunky, expensive and difficult to use.
That’s why we created this comprehensive guide to creating and editing digital menu boards: If you can make a slideshow, you can make a menu board. It’s that simple. This guide shows you how to configure a familiar tool like Microsoft PowerPoint for digital menu boards and easily turn slides into menu signage that makes people pay attention and take action. You will be able to create and edit menu items, pricing and designs.
You've tried everything to present your screen...
... Rebooting the computer, the presentation device, the presentation software, the network, disconnecting and reconnecting everything, and still your devices won’t share their screens. This is what we call a recipe for a hernia.
Luckily, we made a wireless presentation solution that won’t make you mutter “SMH” every 10 minutes: Ditto. Its simplicity will save you from hating your job.
How to Create Digital Menu Boards with PowerPoint
Step 1 — Prepare your document
Make sure your slides are the correct size to best fit the displays in your organization. Don’t place square menus on widescreen TVs.
How to change your slide size:
- In PowerPoint, navigate to Design > Slide Size > Page Setup.
- From here, choose the best size option for your displays. This will vary depending on what devices your organization uses. However, a safe bet is the “On-Screen Show (16:9)” option. Most modern TVs display a 16:9 aspect ratio. You can also set custom dimensions if none of the existing defaults are what you need.
Step 2 — Design your digital menu boards
Creating and designing content for digital menu boards doesn’t have to be difficult. Start with built-in PowerPoint templates if you need design inspiration. Keep things simple, legible and relevant, like this digital menu board:
Click image to get this digital menu board template and more.
Want to learn more about menu boards and digital signage? Check out these helpful articles:
- Learn the Do’s and Don’ts of Digital Signage
- How to Use Digital Signage in a Crisis
- How to Create Digital Signage with PowerPoint
- How to Create Digital Menu Boards with Google Slides
- How to Create Digital Menu Boards with Apple Keynote
Step 3 — Export your files
Now it’s time to turn your PowerPoint slides into digital menu boards:
- Make sure your slideshow is complete and saved. Then, navigate to File > Export.
- Choose the location where you’d like to export your files.
- In the dropdown menu, select your preferred file format of your new digital signage assets and click Export.
Digital menu board exporting tips:
Ensure the file format you choose is compatible with your digital signage solution. Most digital signage content management systems (CMS) will accept common image and video files. For example, Ditto digital signage is compatible with a variety of media file types, such as PNG, JPEG, GIF and MP4.
Make sure to set up your slides to the correct aspect ratio and export them to the correct dimensions. Your slides should fill up the entire screen of your TVs and monitors.
Common display dimensions:
These dimensions can vary depending on what displays you're using.
You can export your slides as a set of static images or have PowerPoint combine them into a single video file that plays all slides for a set amount of time.
PowerPoint settings allow you to change the dimensions for MP4, MOV, JPEG, TIFF, PNG, Animated GIF and BMP files.
Step 4 — Integrate with your CMS
Now that you have exported your slides, it’s time to get them up on your screens. Some digital signage solutions only play files from a physical source like a USB drive. However, the best type of digital signage includes a CMS that is touch-free and accessible from anywhere.
Organize your content and set scheduling and duration parameters. To do this you’ll need to upload the files to your preferred signage solution or deploy physical hard drives loaded with your content to each display. The digital signage solution you use can make this process really simple or really time-consuming — opt for a centrally managed signage solution that has a built-in CMS, like Ditto.
Now your displays will begin playing the digital menu boards you created in PowerPoint. Questions? Leave a comment below.
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