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How to Choose the Best POS System for Your Restaurant Business?

How to Choose the Best POS System for Your Restaurant Business? When you are running a small business and looking for the best point of sale (POS) for your business that helps in growing your business, you need to secure every single sale with the right software that helps you

By Arslan Hassan

March 5th, 2023

When you are running a small business and looking for the best Point Of Sale (POS) for your business that helps in growing your business, you need to secure every single sale with the right software that helps you take care of administrative tasks more efficiently. Making it simpler, for restaurants and bars, a point of sale is considered your right hand, sidekick, and your lifeline in doing business.

For any small business, consideration for a POS System primarily includes a cost (both one-time cost and ongoing), security, usability, features, stability, etc. We are here to make the educated judgment call by making sure you know what to consider before choosing a POS system. Choosing the right POS system for your business may seem like it is harder than ever because of so many options available in the market today. 

The following are the important consideration factors when choosing a POS System: 

  • Initial setup cost (time and money)

  • Payment processing costs (e.g., % of sale + charge per transaction)

  • Equipment costs/rental fees

  • POS software fees

  • Level of mobility

  • POS software features (e.g., invoices, ability to store customer data safely, inventory management, customer loyalty programs, appointment management)

  • We have listed a few questions that will help you find the best point of sale (POS) for your restaurant.

How will the POS system improve the customer experience?

The best Point Of Sale system should not only work for you but also enhances the experience of your customers with the following features:

Customer Management

A good Point of Sale system offers Customer Management and also shares reports and insights into customers’ trends. It should also capture customer information so that you may come to know who your repeat customers are.

Customer Loyalty Programs and Coupons

You are supposed to consider a Point of Sale (POS) system that supports customer loyalty programs. As coupons and promotions are one the proven sales tactic of the restaurant business. Restaurants offer different promotional coupons when they are offering a new menu item or to increase their sales. Hence, POS should offer a feature that can handle customer loyal programs and coupons well. 

Mobile Point of Sale

It is also important to have a mobile point of sale as desktop-based POS is obsolete. Waiters are punching orders on their mobile-held devices or tablets. Therefore, your point-of-sale system should be portable.

Does your Point of Sale (POS) System manage your day-to-day operations?

Along with using a point-of-sale system to streamline the checkout process, you also need to ensure it can manage all the actions behind the scenes. For managing day-to-day operations below features should be supported by the POS system: 

Inventory Management

A best POS system should add, update, organize, manage, and monitor inventory. You can manage your business efficiently and effectively while being informed about the inventory. With Inventory Management System, you can also reduce food wastage.

Employee Management

You should also be focused on your employees and user permissions. Employee Management System through POS software will help you protect your business by granting the required permission to each employee and control over cash inaccuracy in every shift.

Vendor Management

A perfect Point of Sale (POS) system will let you manage vendors, suppliers, and purchase orders. You can manage all the crucial information through one system, and this will ultimately help you in making business decisions through comprehensive reports and insights.

Does the Best POS System support your business as it grows?

The only answer we all want to hear is yes and definitely why not. We all dream to grow our small business into a big chain restaurant. That is why your POS should support your business in the future as it is managing now. While considering any system, our main goal is to stick to it for a longer period of time as shifting from one to another is quite a hectic and costly job. To avoid such distress, you should be focusing on the below features:

Reporting

The best point of sale (POS) must give you access to the reports and analytics of your restaurant and additionally real-time Reporting.

You should consider the point of sale system which supports multiple locations from one central Back Office.

Usability and Interface

Your POS system must easy to set up and its interface is easy to use so that you can train your employees in no time. The interface of the POS system matters a lot. If the interface is messy, harsh, and unfriendly, a lot of time will be wasted while using it, and the chances of mistakes are quite high. Hence, we suggest you take a demo first and then make a decision.

How much does a POS System Cost?

While cost is not the only factor to consider when choosing a POS system, the reality is it plays a considerable role for most business owners, and for that, you need to understand the cost involved in purchasing a POS system. Is the quality and price of the Point Of Sale POS system reasonable? Are there one-time fees, recurring fees, or a combination of both?

Finding the right Point Of Sale POS system for your company is all about knowing your business, knowing the features you need, and knowing the right questions to ask.

 The one solution for all your restaurant needs is FoodBucket – The Restaurant Automation and Management System. You can have the demo by yourself or consult with the specialist via phone call or email.