Digital Menu Boards Improve Customer Service and Enhance Performance at Taco Bell

Kout Food Group (KFG), a Kuwaiti Closed Shareholding Company, represents leading fast food franchise brands, including Taco Bell, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Applebee’s, Kababji and Burj Al Hamaam, Scoop A Cone and Ayyame, in Kuwait and other countries across the Middle East.

With the steady growth in operations and evolving preferences of customers, KFG realized that static menu boards would not be as efficient and effective as desired in delivering regularly changing menu information to customers. With its wide variety of food items and the need to constantly update promotional messages, Taco Bell required menu boards that could be quickly and easily updated as often as needed, and a system solution that would be cost-effective in terms of operation and hardware/software deployment.

Instant Updates of Menus and Promotions

KFG worked with Advanced Interactive Media Solutions (AIMS), a Certified Scala Partner, to develop and deploy digital menu boards at the latest location of Taco Bell in the Shaab area of Kuwait. Installations in more branches in Kuwait are currently under way as well. The objective was to be able to instantly update menus and related promotions using highdefinition images and text.

“Interactive digital signage solutions provide a truly engaging and meaningful platform for business enterprises to communicate with their target audiences, delivering even greater value proposition for their products and further boosting their revenue potential,” said Ahmed El Ridi, CEO of Advanced Interactive Media Solutions, United Arab Emirates. “We are now witnessing a growing number of companies realizing strong ROI with digital signage solutions, creating new and exciting possibilities for business growth and innovation. AIMS is therefore pleased to provide specialized services that help business organizations in the GCC take full advantage of the power of interactive digital signage solutions.”

AIMS installed a solution using the reliable and flexible Scala 5 software platform running on four 42-inch NEC industrial LCD screens. The screens were placed alongside each other and two MediaVue players, allowing creation of different sets of content. The displays were set up horizontally, similar to the way traditional menu boards are usually placed.

Using the Scala platform, KFG is able to take advantage of displaying two independent streams of content from one PC, resulting in efficient software utilization and reduction of hardware costs by 50 percent without any effect on the final performance of the system.

AIMS provided KFG’s IT personnel with necessary Scala training to manage the software from start-up to shutdown. With the Scala Players installed, KFG is now able to manage and control the display content using Scala Content Manager, enabling quick and easy updates as often as needed to schedule offerings based on time of day, special event, occasion and season.

Customer Benefits of Centrally Managed System

The new digital menu boards have significantly enhanced the customerfriendly environment at the Taco Bell branch while eliminating costs associated with the printing and shipping of traditional menu boards. Moreover, with the ability to remotely update and monitor content from an off-site location, KFG benefits through better coordination and control over the entire system.