What Does POS System Stand For and How Can It Help Grow Your Business?

What does POS system stand for? As a hospitality guru or a budding business owner, this technology has the power to transform how you run your business and will even help grow your successes. Keep reading to learn how!

What Does POS System Stand For?

First, let’s address the burning question: What does POS system stand for? POS stands for point of sale, and you’ve likely interacted with a POS device in the last 24 hours, if not less! 

The first POS was invented in 1879 by an American shopkeeper when he noticed his employees were stealing money. While originally called “Ritty’s Incorruptible Cashier”, the tool quickly became known as simply a cash register. The idea was the same as it is today: This device was quite literally the point of sale, where money was traded for goods. 

In the late 1900s, computers began to drive cash registers, and the introduction of credit cards accelerated the point of sale evolution. Now POS machines could not only process card payments, they began to act as a staff-facing ordering device complete with touchscreen technology and colorgraphic monitors.

But What Does POS System Stand For?

So we’ve answered the question, What does POS system stand for? But we’ve glossed over a key part of the question: system. 

The system part of present-day point of sale technology goes above and beyond a simple payment processing tool. “System” encompasses all of the hardware and software components of a point of sale. Because of how smart technology has become, modern POS systems have a variety of devices working together, syncing data in the cloud. Mobile POS has made it so that most devices, like smartphones, that connect to the internet can be used as payment terminals and card readers. 

The software for these systems has also gotten more savvy as POS providers optimize their unique systems to offer the best business experience for their customers. This means allowing their customers to do more than just process payments—the best POS systems can assist businesses in hosting online stores, running loyalty programs, and producing data-heavy reports. 

Now you know the answer to “What does POS system stand for?” Time to go over how POS systems can help grow your business!

POS Systems Ease Staff Workloads

You’ve got a hardworking team by your side. POS systems make them more efficient, so they can focus on dazzling you guests, ultimately creating happy and soon-to-be-repeat customers, which grows your customer base and therefore your business!

1. Easy-To-Use

The usability of the top POS systems doesn’t stop at touchscreen technology. Your POS should make checkout fast with a user-friendly interface that makes meal and beverage customization quick and easy. The more attention staff can pay to guests and get their orders inputted fast, the better experience guests have, and more likely they are to return the next weekend!

2. Offline Mode

Part of growing your business is damage control, i.e. tools that are there to help when there’s a problem. When a storm hits and internet connectivity is down, a POS system’s offline mode comes to the rescue. This ensures that you can continue to run business as usual by taking orders and closing tabs for departing guests, all without WiFi. Once power is restored, all that information syncs in the cloud once again!

3. Phone & Email Support

Speaking of tools that are there when you need help, the best POS systems offer 7 days/week support by phone or email. Not only does this open availability enable your staff to quickly solve any time-sensitive problems they run into, it’s also a dependable lifeline when it’s a slow Sunday morning and you’re experimenting with something new. The best POS providers encourage you to be creative and flex with your changing business needs, and will help you tinker with your particular system to get there!

4. Synced Mobile Devices

We touched on how advanced POS systems work with mobile devices, but haven’t quite dove into just how much this can help grow a business. Bulky cash registers are about as portable as you are after Thanksgiving dinner: Not. By utilizing mobile payment processors, you essentially mobilize your business and can sell anywhere in the world! Bring product, a smile, and a mobile POS device to a farmers market or an outdoor concert, and you’ve gotten exposure to a whole slew of potential new customers!

5. Card On File

Here’s a POS tool that definitely saves staff time and headaches. While some systems require the archaic practice of holding a physical card to keep a tab open, the best POS systems don’t. Staff simply swipe cards and hand them right back to customers, saving them the time it takes to fish out a card out of a crowded rolodex while a guest taps their foot.

6. Simple Inventory Management

POS software can integrate with other smart softwares, such as inventory management technology. This saves your staff time in the back of the house counting anything from t-shirts to hamburger buns, and keeps an overall business more organized. Plus, because the best POS systems sync all data to the cloud, inventory will deplete in real-time as menu items or merchandise are ordered. Accurate counts at all times, courtesy of your POS, mean you can better forecast for the future and plan for your growing demand!

7. Menu Management

Things can change at the drop of a hat in hospitality, and the best POS systems ensure their tools are just as dynamic. With an increased use of digital menus sweeping food and beverages businesses comes the ease to change and update online menus instantly. This is useful for removing items that are no longer in stock, and also for adding last minute specials or Happy Hour deals. When you’re not held back by a stagnant menu, you can encourage your chef to take creative freedom of the menu without adding to your manager’s to-do list!

POS Systems Build A Community Of Satisfied Guests

You simply can’t grow a business without keeping a constant pulse on the satisfaction of your customers. The best POS systems ensure guests are happy by empowering them to order how they’d prefer, reducing ordering friction, and enabling them to congregate with others that love your brand.

1. Contactless Ordering Puts Power In Guests’ Hands

Guests love having options, and if they have a craving for some of your grub, the last thing you want to do is steer them away by not offering the ordering option that best suits them at any given moment. That’s why the best POS systems offer an array of contactless payment options:

• QR code ordering: Guests simply scan a code, input their order, and check out, all from their own smartphone. Whether your hungry guest has a kid in tow or is dining with you during their lunch meeting, sometimes they just need to get in, get fed, and get out. 
• Customer-facing mobile app: Likewise, a customer-facing app allows guests to quickly checkout without having to swap credit cards or devices with a server. This is an expedited ordering experience for any guest in a rush!
• Online storefront: An ecommerce platform is a great place to sell merchandise and food for on-premise, to-go, or delivery. The best POS system makes an online store free to host and easy to set up and customize!

Now, these options see low staff-guest interactions, but that’s just the way the cookie crumbles sometimes depending on guests’ schedules! Focus on how this is still good for business growth (wowing guests with ordering options and speedy service) and next time, your servers can bust out their best puns and recommendations for the table. 

2. POS Devices Expedit Ordering

The benefits reaped from mobile POS devices just keep coming! Due to the order information syncing to the cloud, all staff devices are updated in real time, which makes the entire ordering experience much quicker for guests. Your chef and bartender receive guest orders as soon as servers input them, and they no longer have to keep track of scribbled paper tickets. This efficient process is a win, win for staff and guests alike.

3. Ensured Ordering Accuracy

Your staff are professionals, but mistakes can happen every once in a while. Some POS systems have tools in place to minimize the chance of mistakes ever occurring! Real-time inventory depletions ensure guests never order something no longer in stock, and contactless ordering ensures all orders are input correctly since guests input it themselves! This added layer of ordering accuracy makes sure staff members don’t lose time apologizing and making mistakes right, and guests have a seamless experience.

4. Events To Garner Community

This POS technology can also help you throw events! Nothing drives traffic quite like a party, and the best POS system supports your efforts with tools like event deposit tracking, email marketing tools, venue management, and more. 

5. Loyalty Program Grows Your Fanbase

Another way to drive traffic is with a loyalty program. By rewarding your biggest fans, you engage the people most likely to spread the word about your business to their friends. POS systems can help by hosting online signups, tracking participation and rewards redeemed, and contacting members. Time to get the creative juices flowing!

6. Giving Back & Empower Guest Participation

Hospitality businesses can also start chatter about their space by doing something charitable in their communities. Not only does this give you the opportunity to get guests involved, it’s also a chance to use your platform for the better and gain a positive reputation in your neighborhood. Tools like a donation feature at checkout are supported by the smartest POS systems.

POS Systems Boost Your Bottom Line

Let’s face it: Money is of course on the mind when you’re thinking about the best ways to grow your business. Luckily, POS systems help with that, too. 

1. POS Software Works With Other Softwares

We mentioned inventory management softwares, but there are a multitude of other software integrations that work with POS systems as well. A POS can get even more data-savvy and efficient with integrations such as accounting, business management, and ecommerce. This boosts your bottom line because you don’t have to pay any additional fees to access these softwares alongside your POS system, and it also keeps everything on your backend more organized and robust.

2. Reporting Tools Help Make Smart Business Decisions

Because POS processes so much information, it’s key to have the reporting tools available that can glean actionable insights from it all. Not only do great POS systems provide pre-built reports for you, their team can also help you identify data most important to you and help you build customizable reports on your sales dashboard!

Well-Supported Staff + Happy Guests = A Growing Business!

All’s to say that if you focus on satisfying both staff and guests, and lean on a savvy POS system to support those efforts, your business will grow organically and rapidly. 

For those keeping score: You now know the answers to What does POS system stand for? AND How do POS systems grow your business? Arryved POS is a guest-centric POS solution for food and beverage businesses looking to build their brand, community, and bottom line. Get a free, custom demo today and we can chat about your unique business goals and how Arryved can help.