2014 was full of great opportunities and challenges for the restaurant business. From new technology and marketing to food industry trends, restaurant owners are serving up guests so much more than a great meal. We have taken a walk down memory lane and compiled 2014's tastiest tidbits.
Find the Right Features for your Restaurant Point-of-Sale System
What features should a restaurant owner look for in a point-of-sale system? This year we narrowed down the focus to find the big picture answer. Since a restaurant point-of-sale system is a big investment, not just financially, but also in the time and energy you and your staff will spend configuring it, learning it, and feeding it data, you definitely want to get the right one.
- Fit for your Business: Look for a system that can fit your specific business and has the flexibility to adapt to your business workflow.
- Connections Count: Consider all of the important technologies; like credit card processing and gift cards, and how everything interconnects.
- Business Insight: Look for features that help you improve your business.The data your POS system collects should be working for your bottom line.
Read more about point-of-sale features for your restaurant
Solve your POS Headaches
Your Restaurant POS system does not have to be a headache. Don't let these POS problems prevent you from having an awesome 2015!
- Bulky, old-fashioned restaurant POS equipment can get in the way of a great customer interaction.
- Time = transactions, so if your POS system is lagging behind, you could be losing business.
- Trying to manage two separate online ordering systems means that orders are more likely to get lost or overlooked, and managing those orders in the POS system becomes a more complicated and time-consuming process.
Find more ways to solve your point-of-sale headaches here.
Restaurant Loyalty Programs Keep Customers Engaged
Keeping customers coming back and being able to gather the right insights from your customer base is a vital marketing practice for restaurant owners. Restaurant loyalty prgorams allow you to "get to know" your customer to be more than just a rewards machine. By getting to know what is important to your customers - and what they like about your restaurant - you can make a more personal connection, one that will help your customer feel great about returning again and again.
Luckily, existing restaurant technology makes offering a loyalty marketing solution easier and more beneficial than ever before!
Learn more about getting started with loyalty marketing here.
Mobile Ordering is not Just a Fad
65% of all Google searches for restaurants come from mobile phones. If 
your customers are used to ordering online, you can bet they are placing those orders from their phones. Mobile ordering apps are increasingly popular for restaurants. By allowing customers to download the app to their phone, you make ordering from your restaurant even more convenient, and you've got a constant marketing presence right there in your customers' pocket.
Add Tablet POS to your Restaurant's Menu
The introduction of the tablet - and its evolution into a worthy contender for your next point-of-sale system - gives restaurant owners an affordable and powerful new option. The mobility of tablets opens great possibilities for use at the table, or as line busters, even for self-service ordering. Just remember - the tablet itself is only the hardware piece of the puzzle. Be sure to evaluate the software thoroughly, and consider the cloud vs. local decision as part of your total decision making process.
Customers are All About Online Ordering
Deciding to invest in an online ordering system is a big decision, and an increasing amount of restaurant owners are discovering the benefits of using online ordering software. This year we learned that customers are all about convenience, and offering online ordering allows your best customers just that - a way to skip the line and have their order right at their fingertips.
There is no doubt that 2015 will be full of new and exciting developments for restaurant owners, but this year has taught us that customers are looking for a great experience now more than ever.
