Why point of sale is truly the focal point of hospitality operations

Wherever money changes hands in your venue, that’s your point of sale. That’s the traditional meaning of the term, at least, and how it appears from the outside.

But your point of sale – the system that you use to manage this transaction – is much, much more than this simple idea.

Your point of sale is the focal point of your hospitality operation; it’s the heart, brain, and central nervous system of your venue.

The value of your point of sale system

Think about it: everything your business does is managed through your point of sale.

Today’s POS systems are intelligent, sophisticated, fully-featured business management tools that let you keep a handle on every part of your business, whether it’s customer orders, stock management, accounting, or kitchen management.

Your point of sale system is what keeps your venue ticking along—without it, you’d be back in the old days, writing down orders on slips of paper and ringing them up on an old cash register.

Your point of sale powers everything you do, so you want it to work efficiently. And the faster it works, the better.

Why your point of sale matters

Point of sale systems have, for the most part, replaced those slow, clunky cash registers and tills. Instead of keying in the price of an item for each sale, you simply press the item button on your menu and the total is adjusted immediately.

Credit card payments are synced to your system, meaning no more time-consuming reconciliation at the end of service.

The ability to process payments quickly and accurately makes all the difference to both you and your customers. One streamlined point of sale system means less double handling—all your sales information is processed once only.

That means less room for human error and fewer chances of dropped sales. It also ensures all payments are captured and all your customers orders are processed accurately.

A reliable point of sale system will not only keep your queues moving, but will also keep your business on track.

A smarter way to run your venue

Using your point of sale, you’re able to track your sales data and use the numbers to see what sells best and what doesn’t. You can use this information to manage your menu accordingly.

Every expense is tracked, including employee hours and productivity, so you’ll know exactly how much you’re spending and see where you need to tighten up.

You can even use your point of sale data to track deals and promotions, to see what works and what doesn’t, giving you real-time feedback on your marketing tactics. You can’t do that with a cash register!

You get a better way to manage your inventory, too. An integrated point of sale system allows you to manage your inventory electronically, meaning all your incoming and outgoing stock is logged in one central, searchable location.

No more relying on pen and paper, no more piles of paperwork you dread to look at. All your inventory information is recorded and managed from your point of sale.

A focal point for your business

Your point of sale, integrated with reporting software, gives you powerful reporting tools to keep track of your venue.

These systems let you analyse your data in minute detail to get an in-depth understanding of every element of your business. You’ll be able to:

• see where food is being wasted
• pinpoint your slowest hours and create same-day deals for customers to fill these gaps
• track staff hours and see who are your best-performing employees.

Your point of sale lets you streamline your business decisions through one easy-to-use hub.