Top 5 Reasons to Have the Best Restaurant Management System
No matter what style or size of restaurant you are operating, if you want to grow your restaurant, it is crucial that you have the right technology. Every restaurant (and coffee shop, food truck, bakery, and food court) needs to have restaurant management software that helps to keep operations streamlined and efficient.
If you currently operate using manual restaurant management processes, you will find that there are significant benefits to switching to an automated or software-based solution – mainly that it will improve your bottom line.
If you still aren't sure or simply want to learn more, read on for the five essential reasons why you need to have the best restaurant management system.
1. It will help you organize your operations.
The primary purpose of restaurant management software is to help you organize and streamline your operations. Therefore, the best restaurant management systems are able to oversee inventory, simplify menu changes, help with scheduling, and streamline operations in many other ways. You will never again have to wonder how things are going; instead, you will have at your disposal all the tools required to manage your restaurant and grow it effectively.
Inventory management is one of the most significant benefit areas as your restaurant management system will be equipped to monitor inventory levels and ensure you never run out of stock. You can set stock level notifications so that your restaurant never misses an ingredient again. Plus, you will be able to check your inventory on-the-go to ensure you aren't buying too much of one thing and not enough of another.
2. It will aid you in creating a better customer experience.
In addition to organizing your side of the business, having a top-quality restaurant management system will also aid you in creating the best experience possible for customers. It achieves this by enabling faster service and more flexibility for inputting customers' orders. It also helps with quicker table turnover, improved communication among staff, and a reduction in the chance of errors occurring.
Some systems can handle value features, such as loyalty programs and gifting options. By offering these types of services, you are putting your restaurant in a position to significantly increase customer loyalty.
Furthermore, the big data that is collected through the system provides you with an opportunity to get to know your customers better. You can utilize the reporting features to generate customer profiles that can familiarize your servers with the orders of your repeat customers.
3. It will direct you to make the right choices.
The smart analytics and reports enable you to track your earnings, sales, profits, and costs in real-time. You can also opt to create specialized reports that give you a more in-depth insight into employees' productivity and sales during specific periods. By being able to view data from a specific hour, week, month, and year, you can make the right choices for tomorrow.
By having a reliable reporting and inventory management system, you will be able to see clearly what are your most popular menu items and which options are hurting your bottom line. You can use these reports in analyzing the orders of all customers. Moreover, these can provide you with the detailed insights you need to create a menu that keeps everyone happy.
4. It will improve staff productivity.
The employee timesheet component of your restaurant management software will help you to manage the restaurant with balanced employee shifts. Moreover, you can produce daily attendance and timing reports to ensure you are designating the appropriate number of staff to each shift.
Almost instantly, you will be able to see ways to improve staff productivity and decrease customer complaints. In your restaurant, mistakes should not be an option. Therefore, you want your restaurant management software to keep all workers on the same page.
Similarly, table management is one of the most crucial aspects of maintaining a restaurant. The best restaurant management software will give you the tools you need to manage your floor layout and distribute customers to the right tables in order to create the right atmosphere. Your waiters will have the information they need to inform patrons of waiting times.
5. It will support you in becoming more eco-friendly.
By opting for a restaurant management system that also includes a digital menu, you are taking a significant step to becoming more eco-friendly. Not only does it eliminate the need to print new menus repeatedly, but having a digital list allows you to continuously update your offerings based on what you have available in the kitchen.
Utilizing the knowledge you have from your inventory management software, you can then highlight specific menu items on the digital menu to indirectly influence customer orders.
Diners also love digital menus because it only takes a few taps for them to modify their dishes to ensure they are precisely what they want. With this technology, customers can easily add extra sauce or switch their sides from their menu. You can opt to have specific pages for different dietary types (gluten-free, nut-free, vegan, etc.), allowing your customers to find the information they need quickly.
Final Thoughts
From employee timesheets to having a food inventory management system, a kitchen display system to smart analytics, there are a lot of features that your restaurant management system needs to have.
Of course, getting the best system to address your needs requires investment. But with a highly efficient restaurant management system in place, you will find that the benefits mentioned here certainly outweigh your initial cash outlay.
Companies providing services such as IT consultancy, POS implementation, or system integration, are ideal POS resellers. Alternatively, if your core business is as a POS specialist, hardware reseller, IT integrator, or restaurant consultant, then this is also a suitable option
Does your restaurant currently use restaurant management software, or are you on the hunt for an updated version? What are the main features you think these systems should have? How would you improve the ones that are already on the market?
Let us know your thoughts and any relevant insights in the comments below!
AUTHOR BIO
Ahmad Alzaini is the co-founder and CEO of Foodics, a fast-growing foodtech startup. A businessman by nature, Alzaini is an app aficionado, developing businesses in Saudi Arabia within several industries. Today, Foodics has extended to new markets across the MENA region, processing over 1 billion transactions, and offering the latest technology in POS and restaurant management.
