Online ordering is changing the way people order food. By 75% of America’s internet users order delivery at least once a week and while there are a number of ways to take advantage of this ever-growing customer base, we’d like to add just one advice for restaurant and that is to use integrate POS system with Online Ordering.
While restaurant owners are taking advantage of the new age system to maintain a steady and smooth flow of their services, POS providers are thinking a step ahead and integrating with different service platforms to provide their customers with a fully integrated solution. In return, they get high customer retention value which is the key to the sustainability of any business in today’s time and age.
Standalone POS Systems
Since the inception of computers and software applications, POS has been the backbone of every restaurant business. It not just enables a business to keep up with the high demand but also manages menu, inventories, customer data, the record of offline transactions, receipts and much more. But times have changed and so the demand of restaurant businesses, particularly the ones who run their business on delivery only models. Online ordering has become a norm for the restaurant industry and a standalone POS system won’t be able to compete. Online ordering is the future and integrating POS systems with online ordering creates a powerful synergy that provides businesses with opportunities to expand and reach wider markets without having to struggle to meet the exponential rise in the demand.
On the other hand, restaurant owners always prefer to tie up with software providers that can provide them with all the solutions under one roof, with one easy and quick integration. It not only saves them the hassle of dealing with too many agencies at a time but also saves time and energy that they can utilize in focusing on what matters them the most - in this case, ensuring that their customers are satisfied and engaged with their service at every point in time.
Advantages of POS Integration with Online Ordering
Better Offering
Standalone POS systems are built to meet the requirement of in-store transactions. But in order to stay abreast with the new technology, it is crucial to integrate with systems and platforms that can enhance the overall offerings by providing the convenience of online ordering to the end user. On the other hand, the ability and freedom to customize that offering ensures high customer retention rate. In a nutshell, it is important to build a bold platform that focuses on delivering an enhanced user-interface with additional features.
Compete with Mobile Ordering Space
Did you know the use of mobile ordering is estimated to contribute about 11 percent of all quick-service restaurant sales and is predicted to grow into a $38 billion industry by 2020? Food ordering and delivery apps are reshaping the way consumers purchase and consume food and a standalone POS system simply won't cut it. They don’t create custom iPhone and Android apps for restaurants that are optimized for conversion. Customers can't track their orders in real time and neither get notified about their meals through email and push notifications. We call that a missed opportunity. But a seamless integration with Online Ordering for restaurants can help POS providers take advantage of this prodigal shift in the food ordering trend. It’s a great way to generate new revenue without making a lot of changes to the current platform.
Excellent Customer Relationship Management
One of the best ways to get retain customers and encourage loyalty is through discounts and promotions. POS systems do not provide any kind of provision in this department. Loyalty programs, discounts, and promotional codes can be applied directly at checkout if the POS is directly integrated with the online ordering platform, encouraging customers to order more. For a restaurant, the seamless integration between their POS systems and online ordering platforms results in an excellent customer relationship management system, as well as an increase in sales.
Reliable Merchant Experience
When running a restaurant, the last thing a business owner wants to do is worry about missing orders that come through online. Standalone restaurant POS systems don’t provide 24/7 customer support for online ordering. Who would make real-time updates to the menu? Who would issue refunds for failed or incomplete orders? Who would communicate specified order ready time with customers? POS integrated with ordering platform acts as an extension of your team and can take care of all the hassles of the online world. This ensures added level of reliability, full control, and total efficiency.
How can we help Declan Arty run a profitable restaurant business?
Declan Arty is facing a lot of issues with his restaurant operations. He has a great restaurant concept, good flow of customers, but utilizing restaurant aggregators like Zomato, Grub Hub, UberEats, etc. to establish his online presence. This is having a significant effect on profit margins. His employees spend too much time taking orders on phone, and often with errors. He needs another solution, one that integrates directly with his current Point-of-Sale. See how Restolabs can help him solve his problem regardless if he has one or ten locations.
In the long run, online ordering will save a significant amount of time by placing orders directly into the existing point-of-sale, thereby allowing restaurant operations to focus on other important aspects of running a busy restaurant. Restolabs is one of the smartest online ordering systems that can provide seamless integration with your existing POS system to benefit restaurants in many ways, such as increase sales, reduce cost, keep control over the brand. The power packed features provide a custom solution to solve restaurant operational challenges.
If you’re interested in reconciling your POS system with Restolab’s online ordering software for restaurants, send in your queries here.