Expanding your pizzeria to multiple locations is exciting stuff. But it can also be stressful, especially when it comes to decisions about technology and your point of sale system. You may be tempted to just duplicate your current pizza POS system, but expansion planning is a good time to reevaluate whether it really has all the features you need now, as well as giving you the ability to scale to meet your needs five years from now.
When considering your options, ask yourself these questions:
Does my POS system help me monitor the quality of customer service?
These days, your POS shouldn’t be just a glorified order-taking station. It can help you make sure service doesn’t slip when you aren’t watching by monitoring metrics such as delivery times and excessive discounts, which could indicate customer service problems.
READ: 13 Questions to Ask your Pizza POS Vendor
Your POS system should also help you implement a survey or feedback program that can give you a customer’s-eye view of different locations and how happy they are with the service at each restaurant. Overall, the system should help you create a seamless customer experience.
Does it allow your loyalty rewards program to scale?
A streamlined loyalty program that works across all locations is beneficial for both you and your customers. It’s a cost effective way to build your marketing lists, push coupons and promotions to your best customers, and track sales and order history. Card-free sign up that’s linked to an app or an online user account allows customers to earn and redeem rewards easily at all of your locations.
READ: Are You Wasting Money on Loyalty Programs?
Can it handle online and mobile ordering?
If you don’t already have online and mobile ordering, seriously consider making this a priority in your expansion strategy. According to the 2016 PMQ Pizza Power Report, online orders are growing 300% faster than dine-in traffic. The report also points out 60% of customers prefer mobile ordering.
A smart strategy is to upgrade all your locations to one, integrated pizza POS system to make mobile and online ordering — as well as payment, loyalty, and other interactions with your brand — consistent for your customers.
What advantages will it give me operationally?
The reality is, with multiple locations you can’t be everywhere at once, and you have to be able to manage operations on the go. Make sure you choose a system that easily lets you access your system remotely to run reports, make configurations, edit payroll or update prices without tying up an in-store workstation or alerting store personnel.
Even with trusted managers at different locations, your POS system should allow you to monitor metrics and goals you’ve set for them to make sure they are managing each location successfully. It can also be a useful tool for establishing and monitoring an incentive program, and show you who your top performing staff members are.
Does it help minimize loss?
Be sure your POS system has strong cash control measures, and that your staff is trained to follow daily cash accounting procedures. Your POS system should also be able to push information to your email or phone, alerting you about what’s going on at location A while you’re at location B: when employees are late or voids are high, for example. Make sure you have a POS system that has the ability to give you side-by-side comparison reports of your locations.
Expanding to new locations is also a good time to consider tighter inventory controls. Use your POS system to track key ingredients and make sure usage remains within expected limits, even if you aren’t around in person to control food costs and quality.
The right pizza POS system can make your business expansion easier and give you the functionality you need to successfully manage multiple locations. Don’t compromise when it comes to your POS system: Make an investment that gives you the tools you need to operate competitively and profitably now and in the future.
