Having a great restaurant EPOS is the lifeblood of any successful operation. Integration can make it perform even better.
We have found that integrating our clients’ restaurant EPOS with other solutions can automate many time-consuming tasks and create new areas of efficiency and improvement.
Let’s see how integration can streamline your operation.
A world of possibility
Investing in a restaurant EPOS solution is one of the best decisions you can make.
However, by integrating with other platforms such as online ordering, loyalty and marketing, kitchen automation, digital signage, mobile ordering and payment you can fully optimise your operation.
Here’s how:
Online Ordering
Thanks to the pandemic, online ordering has become a major revenue stream for many restaurateurs.
By integrating your online ordering platform and the restaurant EPOS you can:
Eliminated order errors. By integrating the online orders with the restaurant EPOS your staff no longer need to waste time copying them across manually – a slow and error prone process. Their time can be then spent serving customers – safe in the knowledge that the online orders are working on autopilot.
What’s more, your orders will be going out the door faster and thus delighting your customers. A win win for everyone.
Sync all your menus automatically. Update your menu once and have it automatically populated across all your online channels instantly. You can effortlessly offer your online guests the same choice as your inhouse guests.
Loyalty and Marketing
Data is the new oil. You need a steady stream of accurate and up to date data to power the engine of your loyalty and marketing.
While the restaurant EPOS software will give you lots of information about sales and customers on its own it will not nurture customer relationships going forward.
By integrating loyalty and marketing solutions with your restaurant EPOS you can:
- Create localised and national email campaigns from a single database – send emails in seconds from one central point
- Delight your guests with tailored customer loyalty programmes which keep them coming back for more and, importantly increase their lifetime value
- Reduce your admin – guests can use an online portal to administer their own profile information
- Keep your brand top of your guests’ mind – you can even create branded mobile apps to ensure that you are always their first choice – check out this video to see how one of our customers is offering a great digital experience
Kitchen Automation
You can also make strides in improving the speed of service thanks to the integration with kitchen automation systems.
The efficiencies you can enjoy include:
100% order accuracy – using handheld ordering devices or mobile ordering integrated with the restaurant EPOS and kitchen automation reduces any margin for human error – reducing waste and ensuring delighted customers.
Faster communication – orders are sent directly to video screens. No need to wait for kitchen printers. Orders can be rerouted through the kitchen to avoid bottlenecks.
Optimise cook times – automatic load balancing ensures that the workload is distributed equally so that the kitchen avoids becoming slammed and meals are sent to the pass faster.
Continuous improvement – accurate reporting enables you to pinpoint areas where you can recalibrate and optimise efficiency.
Digital Signage
As well as transforming the experience back of house, integration can also transform the experience front of house.
Digital signage integration offers:
Speed – menu changes can be pushed through dynamically from the restaurant EPOS. For multi-site operations this can be done for all sites at once – a great time-saver.
Affordability – save money on design and printing costs. The solution pays for itself in no time and it is great for the environment too!
Additional marketing opportunities – the digital signage is far more visually appealing than traditional posters or menus. In addition to menu items you can create videos of specials to entice your diners.
Upselling opportunities – the integration really comes into its own when it comes to promoting combo offers. Deals can be dynamically updated on the digital signage and tills for the ultimate in exposure.
Mobile payments and ordering
A key component of today’s diners’ digital experience is that of mobile ordering and payment.
By integrating the restaurant EPOS and mobile you can achieve:
Faster table turns – guests can pre-pay on their device as part of the ordering process. Once they have finished they can simply leave. No time is wasted looking for a server to bring a PDQ to their table and print a bill. All transactions are sent directly to the EPOS and receipts are emailed to the guest.
100% safety – as the guests use their own mobile device to scan the menu QR codes and to place the orders and make payment it really is the safest no contact option.
Improved customer service – as the servers will be spending less time processing payments at table-side they can invest their time.
More secure – as the guest needs to log in to their device it totally eliminates any chance of credit card fraud – reassuring for you and the guest.
Conclusion
While a great restaurant POS will transform the ordering and transactional processes in your operation it makes sense to integrate all your technology to create a truly transformative experience.
A solution such as Aloha restaurant EPOS is key to creating this ecosystem which drives efficiency, improves the guest experience and increases your bottom line. With features such as loyalty and enterprise-level reporting built in it truly is a wonderful addition to your technology toolkit.
Watch our digital transformation video to see hew this can help you in practice. Alternatively, book a demo today and we can discuss the options. In addition to our Aloha EPOS solution we will recommend a best of breed and unbiased approach to integration.
