Your POS won’t save you…

A restaurant needs to remain competitive in a rapidly changing market by incorporating new technologies— and a traditional POS (Point of Sale) system alone might not cut it. Restaurants can consider experimenting with innovative strategies to stay ahead of the game. In recent years, restaurant owners have been under a lot of pressure with rising food costs and labor costs. We can’t forget to mention the pandemic’s unprecedented impact on the food service industry, which has resulted in a loss of over $120 billion in the U.S. It’s not all grim news, though: the restaurant industry will bounce back after making the appropriate transitions.

Fortunately, many restaurants have adopted solutions in response to the pandemic. The food service industry is still thriving in some ways; it just looks slightly different with ghost kitchens, which are restaurants that prepare food only for delivery. Additionally, restaurants and bars have been pivoting the focus to take-out and delivery options so that customers do not need to interact with restaurant employees.

Before moving on to what other solutions exist to remain competitive in the market, it’s useful to understand why restaurants use POS.

Why Restaurants Use POS

If you’ve been to a restaurant in the past decade, you’ve probably seen a POS system: the computerized cash register sitting at the restaurant’s counter. While it may look like a standard computer that tracks purchases and tallies totals, it actually does a lot more. POS systems enable restaurants to manage their food inventory and handle basic bookkeeping tasks. Restaurants benefit from the increased security of POS systems as they receive a high volume of cash and credit card transactions. A POS system also simplifies communications between the kitchen and employees—orders go through the computer system directly to the kitchen to print.

Most restaurants have long used POS systems to manage their business efficiently. But, did you know that most restaurants also use a POS system to help manage their employees? A POS system is essentially the hub of any restaurant. It comes with various helpful features, including a customer database and employee information. Additionally, a POS typically prompts the customer to add a tip and tracks tip allocation so that these can eventually be distributed to employees accordingly.

Shortfalls of a POS System

POS systems modernized the restaurant business by making it easier for customers to pay for their food and freeing up employees’ time for more productive pursuits. However, despite the countless benefits of using a POS, there are some downsides—namely, the cost of buying, installing, and maintaining the system. The business also loses valuable customer data in the future if they decide to ditch the POS.

While a POS system offers some reporting capabilities, it does not analyze data in such a way that would help with profitability strategies. Indeed, a POS system provides a real-time report of numbers but lacks any in-depth advantages for progressive management tactics.

Using Technology On Top of POS to Make a Restaurant Tip Automatic

With the numerous technologies available, it shouldn’t be an issue for restaurants to be diligent with their tip management practices to ensure that their employees understand how to fairly distribute tips and how to calculate tips. As the recordkeeping of tips might fall through the cracks with a POS system, restaurants need to adopt the right tip management software technology for fair tip sharing. For example, Tiphaus is an automatic tip sharing technology that can be used in addition to a POS system. The software creates customized, mobile-friendly solutions that allow restaurants to manage their tipping pool from anywhere.

While POS systems incorporate options for tipping, there is no reporting feature for breaking down the tip pooling process for employees. How will an employee know for sure that they are fairly compensated? With an automatic tip pooling software solution, employees can visualize their tips by seeing the total tip pool and their share received on the tip distribution software. Even better: they can also immediately deposit these funds into their account. They won’t have to feel ripped off or worried about their money coming in when the information is all there in front of them.

Using a POS system in a restaurant helps accomplish common business goals, from improving service and managing inventory to creating menus and training employees. But, for restaurants wanting to stay relevant with modern practices and keep up with changes that are emerging during the pandemic, they should be adopting tip sharing software to stay on top of evolving operations, like tip distribution.