Do Restaurants Benefit From POS Systems?
The hospitality industry is one that’s rapidly changing and with the pressure to impress your customers, POS systems are featuring more than ever within a lot of hospitality venues including hotels and restaurants.
Can restaurants benefit from POS systems? There are certainly many features of these systems that can simplify work processes and provide a more seamless experience for both your employees and the customers who choose to dine with you.
In this article, we’ll explore the benefits that a POS system can bring to your business and the criteria you should be looking for when investing in this software.
Can restaurants benefit from POS systems? There are certainly many features of these systems that can simplify work processes and provide a more seamless experience for both your employees and the customers who choose to dine with you.
In this article, we’ll explore the benefits that a POS system can bring to your business and the criteria you should be looking for when investing in this software.
What is a POS system?
A point of sale system is one that helps a business manage sales transactions at its basic function. However, there are a lot of additional features that developers of these systems have put in to make it more of a centralized system to handle all aspects of a restaurant from table management to order and pay apps.
With only 13% of consumers considering themselves brand loyal to restaurants, it’s essential you’re providing the best experience for your customers. That means not only creating the right atmosphere but making a memorable service that’s memorable for all the right reasons. Your customers are more likely to return if they’ve had a positive experience.
Restaurant POS systems offer a hassle-free solution that can do a lot of the work automatically, helping alleviate some of the workload your employees have within their role.
With only 13% of consumers considering themselves brand loyal to restaurants, it’s essential you’re providing the best experience for your customers. That means not only creating the right atmosphere but making a memorable service that’s memorable for all the right reasons. Your customers are more likely to return if they’ve had a positive experience.
Restaurant POS systems offer a hassle-free solution that can do a lot of the work automatically, helping alleviate some of the workload your employees have within their role.
The benefits of using POS systems for restaurants
So what makes a POS system special? As a restaurant owner, you may already be satisfied with your current payment solution. However, technology is constantly evolving and managing the expectations of your customers may soon require you to look at more advanced software and systems.
With that said, there are some benefits below that might convince you to take the plunge into POS systems.
Helps keep track of bookings and orders
As a customer, no one wants to have a bad experience at the restaurant. When it comes to food, it can make or break a relationship! With that being said, providing a seemingly effortless and high-quality service can help give them more reason to return a second or third time.
With a POS system in place, your staff can easily keep track of the tables they’re covering, what their orders are and the total tab at present. This can be helpful when it comes to communicating these details back to your customers.
With that said, there are some benefits below that might convince you to take the plunge into POS systems.
Helps keep track of bookings and orders
As a customer, no one wants to have a bad experience at the restaurant. When it comes to food, it can make or break a relationship! With that being said, providing a seemingly effortless and high-quality service can help give them more reason to return a second or third time.
With a POS system in place, your staff can easily keep track of the tables they’re covering, what their orders are and the total tab at present. This can be helpful when it comes to communicating these details back to your customers.
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A lot of the POS systems will also come with hand-held devices that are linked up to the system and can serve as a digital notepad for your employees to take orders on.
One benefit of this is that no drinks or food additions get forgotten about, maximizing your total revenue as a business. This type of system is also going to be more efficient than using a paper diary to take bookings. The system can flag up any clashes and notify any staff when taking bookings, on what’s available that day. Monitors inventory How many times have you been to a restaurant, picked out a dish, only to be told they’ve sold out of it? Frustrating, right? When that happens, it somewhat dampens the experience that your customer has and so it’s important to avoid that where possible. |
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Of course, you can’t always help this, particularly for a food establishment. However, with the right knowledge of what’s running low, your staff responsible can be proactive in their efforts to re-stock accordingly.
Managing your inventory is one that can ensure your business is making the most profit possible. With a POS system in place, there’s more clarity over what needs ordering. As you use the system, it’ll be able to identify patterns that make it easier to preempt what will sell and where you’ll need to increase inventory.
An added bonus for some systems is the remote monitoring feature. This can be helpful for managing inventory in multiple locations, which is an advantage for bigger organizations.
Detailed reports and analytics
analyzing your business’ performance is a good opportunity to see where you’re thriving and what might need your attention. For a POS system, management of sales, stock, inventory and best-selling dishes, can all be determined through the reports generated. This whole process can be made easier in comparison to having this data all over the place.
Managing your inventory is one that can ensure your business is making the most profit possible. With a POS system in place, there’s more clarity over what needs ordering. As you use the system, it’ll be able to identify patterns that make it easier to preempt what will sell and where you’ll need to increase inventory.
An added bonus for some systems is the remote monitoring feature. This can be helpful for managing inventory in multiple locations, which is an advantage for bigger organizations.
Detailed reports and analytics
analyzing your business’ performance is a good opportunity to see where you’re thriving and what might need your attention. For a POS system, management of sales, stock, inventory and best-selling dishes, can all be determined through the reports generated. This whole process can be made easier in comparison to having this data all over the place.
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With a POS system, it offers an endless storage for your information, helping you track data from weeks, months and even years prior. A particularly helpful feature for certain events and seasonal holidays that you may need information on for inventory ordering, etc.
Improves the experience for your customer The experience you provide to your customers is one that needs to be the creme de la creme of hospitality. Anything less and you’re doing your business a disservice, nevermind your customers. Your staff can only do so much when it comes to appeasing the customer but when it comes to waiting times and problems with their order or bill, no amount of people-pleasing will prevent a good experience turning sour. |
A table management system and one that’s effective in synchronizing all your bar and waiting staff is necessary to avoid orders going to the wrong table, etc. A POS system can improve table management and keeps its users aware of how long tables have been waiting as well as those who have yet to be seen to.
The customer’s experience is crucial and 7 out of 10 U.S. consumers have said they’ve spent more money to do business with a company that delivers a great service. By using POS, you can improve efficiency of your operations not just outside of operating hours, but when serving your customers too.
Creates better customer relationships
Along with customer experience, the quality of service you bring can also help develop a better customer relationship. You may have many different customers coming through your doors every day. Some may be brand new to the business and others may be regulars.
A POS system can help provide you with that data of returning customers and the awareness of new customers in order to offer them a tailored experience. For example, if they’re new customers, you may want to offer a loyalty card or a return offer with a discount off their next meal.
A returning customer may get regular discounts or certain exclusives that new customers wouldn’t get. It’s all about adding value to your customer’s experience but also validating those regular customers with your recognition and appreciation.
Tighten your securityData breaches are a worry for any business and with the latest POS solutions, they offer a great opportunity to tighten your security from such threats.
Instead of the information you hold as a company being widely available for all staff and suppliers you may use, the system is specific to the individual. For example, your accountants will only be able to access financial data, whilst your kitchen staff will only see active orders on the system. With the worldwide information security market forecasted to reach $170.4 billion in 2022, you’re right on the mark to worry about data breaches and potential cyber attacks to your business. Taking steps to prevent it is better than not doing anything at all. |
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What to look for in a POS system
Before the beginning of 2022, a 50% cloud POS adoption rate is expected when it comes to all restaurant categories. So whilst you may have your reservations about installing this software, you may find yourself being one of the last to do so.
What do you look for when it comes to a POS system? There are few factors to take into consideration before you commit to the first one you see.
Your budget
Budget is a crucial one because each of the company’s providing the systems will have various packages and price points. It’s worth assessing the budget you have available, what you’re looking for in the software and then do some comparisons to find the best one for your budget available.
Integration capabilities
There may be certain tools and software you already use for your business and may not wish to change. It’s good to look for a system that has some form of integration capabilities so that you can seamlessly connect or transfer any existing data or process that’s already in place.
Rewards programs
You may offer a rewards program or loyalty scheme as part of your restaurant business. Or perhaps you’re looking at implementing one. Some POS systems can help transfer the one you already have, or it can create a loyalty program to cater to what you require when giving back to your customers.
A great POS system can benefit your business in a variety of ways. As a restaurant, operations are conducted more effortlessly whilst the customer’s experience can be enhanced with the technology that these systems can provide. It’s a worthwhile investment as we had an ever-changing industry.
What do you look for when it comes to a POS system? There are few factors to take into consideration before you commit to the first one you see.
Your budget
Budget is a crucial one because each of the company’s providing the systems will have various packages and price points. It’s worth assessing the budget you have available, what you’re looking for in the software and then do some comparisons to find the best one for your budget available.
Integration capabilities
There may be certain tools and software you already use for your business and may not wish to change. It’s good to look for a system that has some form of integration capabilities so that you can seamlessly connect or transfer any existing data or process that’s already in place.
Rewards programs
You may offer a rewards program or loyalty scheme as part of your restaurant business. Or perhaps you’re looking at implementing one. Some POS systems can help transfer the one you already have, or it can create a loyalty program to cater to what you require when giving back to your customers.
A great POS system can benefit your business in a variety of ways. As a restaurant, operations are conducted more effortlessly whilst the customer’s experience can be enhanced with the technology that these systems can provide. It’s a worthwhile investment as we had an ever-changing industry.
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Author Bio: Natalie Redman (LinkedIn)
Freelance writer for many clients across multiple industries. Natalie has two years of copywriting experience. Natalie has a wide range of experience copywriting for web pages for businesses across many industries. She’s also an owner of two blog websites and a YouTube content creator. |
