Just as quality of food and service is important to a restaurant’s success, so is the restaurant’s representation of those foods and services. Ambiance and attitude may be elemental in the design of a restaurant, but at the end of the day, patrons are there to eat. A restaurant menu is the most obvious tool in exposing the customer to the culinary experience they want. Just as important as lighting and table settings, however, are the few pictures of menu items placed on restaurant tables and in the menu itself. These select photos give the diner an expectation that sets the tone for the entire meal.

Playing To Your Strengths

Have a great halibut? Make killer mac and cheese? Show it off! There is nothing greater for a restaurant than a new loyal customer. To get a new loyal customer, you have to give a great first impression. The best way to do that is to play to your restaurant’s strengths. Put pictures of your restaurant’s most well-known and well-loved menu items on display on menu covers and signs on tables. When a new or indecisive customer can’t decide between many appealing menu items, looking at a picture often helps the customer choose.

Be Consistent!

There is nothing more disconcerting than getting a meal that looks different from its picture. I have a spectacularly picky friend who once sent her chocolate chip pancakes back to an IHOP because they didn’t look like the pancakes on the sign (for the record, it’s the authors opinion that it’s pretty absurd to send chocolate chip pancakes back because “in the picture they have sprinkles”. And no, my friend isn’t an eight-year-old. This happened while we were in college). A lesson can be learned from my high maintenance friend: it can be upsetting to get a meal that looks different from the picture. However, the conflict surrounding her missing sprinkles is very easily avoided. As we all know, getting a meal that is EXACTLY what you wanted is wonderfully satisfying. A customer that sees what they want in a picture is the easiest customer to please. They won’t get their meal and be disappointed, because they knew what they were in for when they ordered it. The customer is pleased, and the restaurant doesn’t have to worry about meals being sent back because it’s not what the customer expected.

Creating Customers for Life

Customers may or may not choose their meal based on your menu pictures or restaurant signs. They will take the pictures of your food into consideration, whether it’s conscious or not. Be smart! Take pictures that make your food look delicious. There are companies who specialize in photographing only food. It’s their job to make your food look supernaturally good! Take advantage of their expertise. Your patrons may not order the food in the picture, but they will appreciate seeing that what you offer is high quality. Even having a small number of photos placed on tables and in menus can do wonders for a restaurant. Displayed prominently and tastefully, mouth-watering photos of your restaurant’s offerings can enhance the dining experience, and when you create a positive dining experience, as long as your customers’ orders looks like they do in the photos, they will enjoy coming back for more.

Well, the short answer is that they’re all made with the polymer of methyl acrylate AKA acrylic. I’m sure you’ve benefited from that sweet little polymer. I, for one, have acrylic frames throughout my house. I wear contact lenses. I even owned an aquarium (yep, they’re acrylic too!).

Acrylic has widespread applications that benefit any consumer. With it’s flexibility, durability, light weight, and low cost, acrylic glass and materials are perfect for high volume manufacturing. But did you know that acrylic can be fun? Well, okay, maybe fun is a stretch, but acrylic materials are used in more ways than the average person is aware. It’s everywhere - in everything from fabrics to medical implants, electric guitars to museum installations. It’s versatility and adaptability make acrylic the ultimate synthetic substitute.

We probably don’t think much about it. Polymers tend to be low on most peoples’ lists of daily concerns. The more I think about it, though, the more I realize that in many situations, my comfort depends on acrylic goods. To that end, let’s give methyl acrylate a second look. Here are three titillating real-life applications of The Polymer of Methyl Acrylate:

It keeps my nails looking good longer than anything natural would

As every prom-bound high school girl can tell you, if you want to look good, don’t neglect those nails. A good set of acrylics can last up to a month, and depending on the quality, can be relatively inexpensive. You don’t have to worry about nails coming off, either - it takes a long soak in acetone to loosen those bad boys up. Recently, acrylic nails have evolved into a fashion accessory. Nails with acrylic sculpture on them are available (for a price). Offering everything from flowers to astrological signs, these nails add personal flair that is durable and cost effective (not to mention snazzy).

It protects me from the on-ice action at hockey games.

You know you’ve got good seats at a hockey game if you are terrified. The closer you are to the action, the more you are aware of the fact that all that’s between you and a number of large, aggressive men is the sideboard. Rest assured, though, that no out of control body check will break the “glass” and put you at the bottom of a Canadian dog-pile. Because it’s not glass! It’s acrylic plexi-glass. The shatter-resistant nature of the material keeps the game on the ice, and out of your lap.

It protects me at the off-ice riots after the hockey games, for that matter (in the form of police riot gear, not my fake nails. Well, the nails as protection aren’t a bad idea actually).

That’s right - the police are using the same material for anti-riot gear that the hockey stadium uses to enclose the game. Everything from the shields to the protective visors on riot squad members are made from acrylic materials. The strength and low weight of acrylic materials allow the peacekeepers flexibility, while simultaneously keeping them from being weighed down. The result is a highly capable anti-riot squad, and a safe you.

Okay, it’s honesty time: At the hockey games that I go to, my seats are usually way in the back. If there is anything CLOSE to a riot I run away and hide in my car. But guess what? That fictitious hockey game and ensuing riot benefited from my favorite polymer. Just like I benefit from it when I am home alone dancing to “Don’t Stop Believin’” and I knock a picture off the mantle and IT DOESN’T BREAK. Thank goodness for Acrylic frames.

Imagine you have just finished your shopping and are standing in line at the checkout counter. Without being able to stop yourself, your attention is drawn to an eye-catching display offering a new product at a great price. You thought you had found all the items you intended to buy, but the fascinating product being advertised next to the register has piqued your interest. How could you pass up an opportunity like this? You must buy this product. It is simply too enticing not to and is available within arm’s reach! There is no need to lose your place in line and search for the product in the far reaches of the store. The product and related promotional materials are right there in front of you, displayed in an attractive manner that makes it so irresistibly appealing there is no turning back. The next thing you know you are contentedly paying for your goods, fully satisfied with the decision to make a last minute purchase.

Now it’s time to change perspectives and look at this situation from the point of view of the seller. You have just succeeded in securing a profitable sale by utilizing a point of purchase display for your product. How exactly does this phenomenon happen? How can a simple point of purchase display convert into increased sales for your business?

Attract Attention

There is no better way to entice people to buy your product or use your service than with an impressive, attention-grabbing display. A primary goal of any successful business is to outshine one’s competitors. What better way to achieve this than by using an elegantly designed display that brings your promotional literature to life! Often times, checkout counters can appear cluttered and disorderly – but you can use this to your advantage. A well-designed display will standout among the jumbled mess and make your product appear even more enticing. More importantly, however, if you succeed at capturing your customers’ interest, your chances of acquiring a sale are even higher.

Enhance Product Recognition

You may have the best product out there, but if nobody knows about it, the likelihood of your product being purchased is low. Placing an attractive point of purchase display next to the merchandise it is promoting is an optimal solution. If you are trying to get a new and innovative product out there, a point of purchase display will help you build and market your brand. It will also make your brand more memorable than your competition’s because yours is the last thing customers see before making their final purchase and leaving the store. Displaying point of purchase materials will help customers remember you and the products you sell.

Boost Product Sales

Want to be let in on a little known reality about buying behavior? Over 70% of decisions regarding what to buy are made at the point of purchase. With this in mind, if you hope to increase product sales, it is imperative you capitalize on the tendency for people to engage in last minute impulse buying. The most effective method of doing so is by using point of purchase displays that target the consumer when they are making the decision to buy.

This innovative means of promoting your product, combined with strategic placement of the display at the checkout area or other location where customers make purchases, will increase your number of sales opportunities, and ultimately, increase the profitability of your business.

Five years ago, I decided to take a big risk and follow my life-long dream of opening a restaurant. I wanted it to specialize in the home cooked, southern comfort food my momma always made for me as a child. After a large investment of time, energy, and money, Mamma’s Kitchen finally opened six months later. I could not believe it, but it was an immediate and unexpected success! We were barely able to keep up with the influx of new customers and the hordes of first-timers who were fast becoming regulars. Although I was overjoyed with the success of the restaurant and the wonderful feedback I was receiving from patrons, a few months after opening the place I wanted to try something new.

I thought it would be fun to change up the menu every week by offering weekly specials. Here is where I ran into an unexpected challenge. When I first began offering weekly specials, I simply wrote the specials on a chalkboard that hung on the wall. The problem was nobody bothered to look up at the board and most customers were unable to see it from where they were seated. It was a complete failure! Next, I tried including paper inserts inside the regular menu we pass out to each customer upon seating. I assumed this was the method used by most restaurants so I thought it was worth a try. Little did I know how ineffective it would be! Since the specials were printed on paper, they were often torn, spilled upon, ripped, crumpled up, or simply thrown away by accident. This means we were passing out a new insert for almost every patron that came in the door! Not only was I wasting paper, I was wasting money. The weekly printing costs became exorbitant and I couldn’t keep it up. There had to be a better way to handle it.

After spending weeks of exploring different marketing options, I decided to look online to see if anything jumped out at me, and right away I found great tabletop sign holders. They were inexpensive, easy to use, and overall, seemed like the perfect solution. Now that I have started using them to display my menu specials, I am noticing the benefits they bring to my restaurant every day. First, using sign holders to feature my menu specials make it much easier to replace the special each week – all I have to do is change the paper inserts. The cost is minimal and I am able to try out am new designs and layouts all the time. I’ve noticed the sign holders look great with bright colors and lots of pictures – and people are actually reading them and trying new options on our menu! I have had the same gentleman come in for lunch every Wednesday for six-months and order a vegetable potpie every time. Now he orders a new special whenever he comes in, and he is here three or more times a week.

Regular customers look forward to sitting down and reading what is new for them to try, and I have had several people comment on how the new sign-holders do a nice job of displaying our specials. One regular patron said, “Great idea! I would have never tried your roast beef sandwich if it wasn’t for that mouth-watering picture.”

What is more, these sign holders have six sides to them, allowing me to fit everything I need to without a problem – so I can include several different “specials.” It really works out for my customers and me – they enjoy more options, and I enjoy more sales. Occasionally I notice a customer will pull out the paper, and write a message about how great the food is. I love it! It makes me happy to see these little notes and it makes other customers confident in what to order. Overall, I am so grateful for having discovered this way to promote the delicious weekly specials at Mamma’s Kitchen.

Without these sign-holders, I don’t think I would be experiencing the recent boost in business!

As cliché as it sounds, first impressions make lasting impressions. In any new encounter, you are evaluated, and it often takes under three seconds for an initial judgment to be made. Moreover, the impact of this first impression is often irreversible, and, in business environments, the appraisal process can have even greater impact. That is why it is essential for businesses wishing to attract new clients or customers to do everything in their power to ensure a good first impression.

Brochure Holders Help Create Effective Promotional Displays

The task of making a good first impression may seem daunting at first, but it is quite doable, and it starts at the simplest of levels: effectively displaying your promotional materials. When potential customers walk into your business or office, the three-second evaluation process will have already begun. A business that has its brochures and fliers strewn about the office, lying on desks, or hidden away in drawers, has failed to capitalize on an easy way to impress new customers. Their promotional materials are rendered useless because they are not available for viewing. Moreover, a disorganized office does not reflect well on your business – and may defeat the purpose of a promotional display in the first place!

On the other hand, a business that has its information and brochures elegantly displayed in counter-top and/or wall-mounted brochure holders has anticipated the need for organized and available promotional materials. This business is ready to impress new customers right off the bat! High quality brochure holders are an eye-catching type of display for any office or business. Even from fifty feet away, they enables you to attract clients’ attention, creating the opportunity for them to seek out more information about your business and the products and/or services you offer.

Making a Lasting Impression

In order to ensure a lasting impression on clients and customers, it is important that your promotional materials are easily accessible to new clients. The worst thing that could happen is that a potential client comes into your office, you successfully impress them, but they mistakenly leave without taking any of your company’s promotional materials, simply because the display was not in their direct line of vision. Despite the positive evaluation of your services, you may have lost a potential client because you failed to display your promotional materials effectively! In order to guarantee new customers do not leave without your brochures, implement strategic brochure holder placement. This means making sure materials are available in prime locations: near the exits, on desktops, and in the reception area.

Businesses should not underestimate the impact a first impression has on a potentially new client or customer. By taking steps to ensure you are presenting your business in the best possible light, this is a goal easily attained. Using your promotional materials in a way that supports a client’s experience in your office or place of business, and enhances his or her evaluation of your company is the first step in making a good first impression. The best way to do this is through elegantly designed, organized, and well-placed brochure holders that attract clients’ attention and make promotional materials easily accessible – and something they won’t want to leave without!