Restaurants

Dirty Dough franchisee taps Hughes for digital signage

Tina Pipkin, franchise owner at Dirty Dough Cedar Rapids, shares insights on implementing Hughes digital signage in her operation. Includes insights from Mike Tippets, VP Corporate Marketing, PR, and Communication, Hughes.

Image: Dirty Dough

October 2, 2024 by Daniel Brown — Editor, Networld Media Group

Everyone knows how hard the restaurant business can be, especially for franchisees and operators. From operating costs and a changing marketplace to labor supply shortages, running a restaurant of any type is not for the faint of heart! With so many everyday challenges, operators can feel stretched thin, especially when it comes to technology like digital signage.

When Tina Pipkin, franchise owner at Dirty Dough Cedar Rapids, embarked on the digital signage journey, she opted for both customer-facing and employee-facing digital signage, with technology from Hughes. Far from adding stress, Pipkin and her team found that digital signage can be a powerful tool, not only for customer engagement but also for teambuilding and operational efficiency.

We reached out to Pipkin and to the Hughes team to learn more about the project via email interview.

The Dirty Dough perspective

Q&A with Tina Pipkin, franchise owner, Dirty Dough Cedar Rapids

Tina Pipkin, franchise owner, Dirty Dough Cedar Rapids. Image: Dirty Dough

Q: Can you tell us a bit about why your brand decided to try digital signage?

Pipkin: As a Dirty Dough franchisee, I run a boutique cookie store with great products and customer service, not a marketing and technology business. The digital signage selected by the brand improves the product and messaging consistency across our stores. It allows us, as franchise owners, to streamline our stores' operations and make our consumer messaging more informative and engaging. Before introducing our current digital signage platform, other stores used USB sticks to update content, including rotating menus featuring our cookies, specials and promotions on cookies during the holiday season, and instructions for employees to follow to decorate the cookies. This process was not sustainable or scalable, and digital signage offered a solution.

Q: Is your digital signage customer-facing, employee-facing, or both?

Pipkin: Our digital signage is both customer-facing and employee-facing. We utilize digital signage to inform customers of our promotions and rotating cookie menu, as well as to help our employees decorate the week's featured cookies.

Q: How did you go about choosing partners and products, including hardware, software, installation, and display units?

Pipkin: The brand made the decision and selected a turnkey solution based on Hughes MediaSignage. As a franchisee, I can choose a Smart TV signage package or a package that provides a signage player, and I purchase my own displays. The brand researched and validated the solution and continues to work with Hughes to ensure it meets our needs.

Q: How do you approach content creation, and do you use interactive elements like QR codes?

Pipkin: To maintain consistency across all franchise locations, the franchisor provides the content and creative, distributing it to the in-store screens through the Hughes MediaSignage content management system. Our customers can see the finished product, suggestions, and upsell opportunities on the screen. This allows us to display all products and our customers to make informed decisions, including seeing special offerings they may not be aware of or know to look for.

Q: What kind of results have you seen, from customer/employee feedback to metrics like sales?

Pipkin: Since implementing digital signage, our franchisor has started customizing content for specific stores, so we, the individual franchisees, can have custom menus specific to our location –– something that would have been too complex and time-intensive to coordinate previously.

We have the flexibility to update local content in real-time, such as placing digital "out of stock" labels on menu items when necessary. Additionally, employees no longer need to print and follow laminated photos to design new cookies. The digital signage screens always provide current cookie designs.

Overall, our employees rave about the streamlined processes digital signage facilitates, and customers appreciate the personalized design elements, and the ease of their experience at our stores.

Q: What was the biggest lesson you would share from this experience?

Pipkin: Digital signage both enhances our branding efforts and creates a more interactive experience for customers. For example, displaying customer comments and reviews on our store signage adds a social element, prompting others to leave their thoughts and join the conversation.

These reviews also help us identify what may or may not be working or which cookies sell better, and it creates opportunities to improve our business and enhance employee and customer trust. Similarly, digital signage allows us to update our content regularly and personalize it to align with seasons, holidays, and local events, further demonstrating Dirty Dough's connection to the community.

Q: Is there any advice you have for fellow retailers seeking to do a similar project?

Pipkin: Digital signage is transformative for franchises, but it is important to understand the target audience and identify key objectives for the signage. Working together, the franchisee and franchisor can build a content plan that addresses corporate branding and local identities. The flexibility of a solution like Hughes MediaSignage enables this collaboration.

The Hughes perspective

Q&A with Mike Tippets, VP Corporate Marketing, PR, and Communication, Hughes Network Systems

Mike Tippets, VP Corporate Marketing, PR, and Communication, Hughes Network Systems. Image: Hughes

Q: Please tell us a bit about how you got involved in this project and how you approached fulfilling the client's needs.

Tippets: Dirty Dough came to Hughes for digital signage to establish a consistent brand image, display eye-catching promotions, and ensure employees have a visual guide to cookie-making. We deliver digital signage that engages employees and customers, with a robust content management system that makes managing content and signage across franchises simple.

Dirty Dough had been using USB sticks and laminated photos to display promotions, cookie specials, and training demos. Creating local franchisee content to complement the brand messaging was nearly impossible, and distribution to individual stores was a nightmare!

Our digital signage provides video, digital menu boards, digital promo boards, and other targeted communication solutions designed to address these pain points and make businesses more efficient. It allows the brand and franchisees to focus on running their business and not worry about the displays, messaging, or technology.

Q: What was the hardest/most rewarding part of this project?

Tippets: When initially connecting with Dirty Dough, they emphasized the importance of variety in their content. Our digital signage solution not only helps diversify the content that each store displays, but it can also be cascaded, allowing for the franchise to decide which content to use from store to store. All Dirty Dough locations no longer need to have the same menus –– individual stores have the flexibility to update content, such as promoting cookie specials for area high school students. The ease and flexibility we provide to Dirty Dough, reflected in the customers and employees alike, is the highlight of this partnership.

With this implementation, Dirty Dough is focused on ensuring the digital signage solution could be easily incorporated throughout its multiple franchises, while also alleviating some of the more tedious tasks employees were doing in their day-to-day activities and creating clear, concise branding.

Q: Did you take any lessons/insights from this experience?

We know that listening to a customer's needs is crucial to ensuring that the solution provided aligns perfectly with their preferences. Understanding their unique circumstances, challenges, and goals increases customer satisfaction, builds trust, and creates a stronger brand reputation.

Additionally, learning about Dirty Dough's key pain points also provides us with invaluable insights that can drive a deeper understanding of their needs. This understanding allows us to tailor our solutions more precisely and supply us with case studies to help other customers with similar challenges. Anytime we work with a customer, we gain valuable feedback that puts us a "step ahead," creating a more proactive approach to upcoming projects.

Q: What advice would you share with retail brands seeking to use digital signage in their business?

Tippets: First, make sure your content is updated regularly to keep it fresh and relevant. Outdated signage is inefficient and hurts your credibility. Second, remember that the content designed for your employees should differ from the content designed for your customers. Your content should always be customized to your audience.

Q: What is your top takeaway from this story?

Tippets: Identifying Dirty Dough's biggest challenges to provide digital signage that aligned with their needs was crucial to our success. By thoroughly understanding the unique obstacles faced by Dirty Dough, we were able to tailor our approach to address them directly. This not only assured more efficient and effective digital signage, but also built a foundation of trust and satisfaction with Dirty Dough.

About Daniel Brown

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Daniel Brown is the editor of Digital Signage Today, a contributing editor for Automation & Self-Service, and an accomplished writer and multimedia content producer with extensive experience covering technology and business. His work has appeared in a range of business and technology publications, including interviews with eminent business leaders, inventors and technologists. He has written extensively on AI and the integration of technology and business strategy with empathy and the human touch. Brown is the author of two novels and a podcaster. His previous experience includes IT work at an Ivy League research institution, education and business consulting, and retail sales and management.