POS systems, otherwise known as point-of-sale systems enjoy widespread adoption rates in the UK food services and restaurant industry.
It is effectively a computerized system that makes it possible for business management to keep track of inventory levels, cash flow, and revenue streams. It is also designed for optimizing bookkeeping, and staying abreast of debits and credits.
For the restaurant industry, point-of-sale systems are particularly useful. Given that there are high levels of debit card, credit card and cash charges flowing through the system at any given time, it’s important to have a highly effective system managing this activity. Every single penny that passes through a restaurant’s books can easily be tracked through a POS system. However, not all POS systems are created equal.
Features of the top POS systems
Industry-leading POS systems such as Revel POS are designed for large-scale operations, across multiple locations. They can manage up to 500,000 stock keeping units (SKUs), and are also ideally suited to medium-sized enterprises. Given that they have upscaling potential, they offer the most effective modular software for full customization of your retail operations. Of course, user-friendliness is paramount. Both the front-end operations and the backend (user training modules) need to be geared towards maximum efficiency and ease of operations.
Once staff (wait staff, bartenders, management etc.) access the system, they simply require a PIN number to get started. Full touchscreen compatibility makes it easy to breeze through the POS system, with quantities, pricing, sales transactions and inventory management. From the backend, POS systems must be able to perform rudimentary and advanced functions.
Cross-platform functionality is possible but OS requirements for the top POS systems necessitate Apple products such as iPad Mini 3 and 4, iPad Air 2, and the iPad Air. Real-time inventory management, fully functional point-of-sale systems, PO management, and integration with accounting software are essential elements of the best POS systems currently on the market. Of course, it’s imperative that customer management is built into the system with things like names, addresses, email information, etc.
Customer preferences include things like table reservations, notifications and the like. Other aspects of effective POS systems include employee-side elements such as secure personal identification numbers (PIN), or swipe cards. These elements of POS systems are important considerations. Of course, there are many integrations that can be worked into the system, as well as additional add-ons like customer facing displays, digital menu boards, kiosk point-of-sale systems, and kitchen display systems.
What Are the Major Benefits of POS Systems?
Communications are simplified with POS systems. Wait staff and kitchen staff don’t need to bicker among themselves – all communications can be completed quickly. Inventory management is a major advantage of POS systems. Particularly things like food utilization on popular menu items, etc. The point-of-sale system is also effective at payroll preparation, which saves money in the human resources and accounting departments. It’s possible to also perform audit functions with profit and loss statements, income statements, balance sheets and tax -related considerations.
Of course, all these strengths need to be evaluated against the technological upgrades that will need to be adopted. Everything now takes place through a computerized system, meaning that if there is no backup in place, data can be lost. That’s why the best POS systems offer cloud-based backup, or external hard drive data storage. For business is planning to include POS systems into their operations, it’s important to evaluate the cost considerations vis-à-vis technological upgrades that may be required, and backend/front-end training of staff and management.