You are probably familiar with the phrase “you can’t teach old dog new tricks”. I’ve passed my “learning new tricks” stage… I’m not that old, but from technological perspective I’m too old, surely for new tricks. I own a bar. Actually, it is 3 bars I’ve opened in the past 3 decades. Not big money, but it keeps my family and small kids well fed, dressed and supplied.
My daughter caught me one day shouting at one of the shift managers that forgot to put the new beer promotion on the menu board. She said to me, why are you wasting your breath; you can update anything you want from anywhere you are! Are you aware we are almost at the end of the second decade of the 21st century? Why do you need anyone to do it for you? Come on, dad…
Embarrassed as I was, I went to explore the option. The Digital Signage, or to be more accurate Digital Menu Boards is a simple to use technological field that developed extremely over the past 6 – 7 years and since I explored this option a decade ago, the dramatic changes are so clear, that it seems that now I can really implement digital signage at my bars and run it on my own. Implement? This is where it gets scary…
Implementation is supposed to be easy, but being the “old fashion bar owner” I am, it still looks complicated to me. Which screens? Which digital signage player devices to buy? How to connect? Which digital signage software to use and how to use it? Lots of questions, much less energy to look for the answers myself…
I turned to a friend. He owns few stores down town. Digital signage he said? Simple menu boards? it is easy! my son implemented this for me. It took him one day for my 3 stores (including the drive time)! He created few simple menu board templates for me, I simply change the content, or the colors and sent it on. It gets updated in less than 2 minutes. Changed my life… no more shouting on the store managers.
Your son, is he one of these computer geeks studying compute science?
No, he replied… he is 15 years old boy, plays football all day and barely makes it to the math class. It is just a different generation. Everything is just an “app” for them. And if this is a “digital signage app” then he surly can use it. We are old… I gave him 50 dollars. I’m happy. He was happy too.
I’m not old! I’m lazy I said. Anyway, send him over to me; I have 50 dollars waiting here for him!
Digital signage these days – a kid’s game!
Alex.