Types of Restaurant Management Software

There is a wide variety of types of restaurant management software solutions, from the basic point of sale (POS) platforms to custom enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems specifically designed to serve the needs of small- and medium-sized businesses and large-scale establishments.

Each of the software solutions developed for the service industry is tailored towards a wide variety of functions, although some of them may cover multiple functions within a single platform. Other solutions are optimized for seamless integration with other existing solutions that a restaurant or service provider may already be using in their day-to-day operations.

Point of sale (POS) software

POS systems are a staple in any business establishment, not just in the service industry. Retailers, restaurants, and various other services utilize POS software solutions for payment processing.

A POS software solution is what e-commerce and brick-and-mortar stores use most often when conducting sales. These types of systems are the modern version of the classic cash register. It combines basic POS hardware with specially designed software.

POS software solutions fall under three main classifications—mobile POS, terminal POS, and cloud-hosted POS. Also, there are two common deployment methods: on-premise—a more traditional software deployment model—and cloud-based—otherwise known as software-as-a-service (SaaS).

Booking and appointment scheduling software

Appointment scheduling software solutions are versatile systems used by businesses, service providers, and professionals for booking and appointment scheduling purposes. Hotels, restaurants, and other establishments in the hospitality industry use the software to book reservations and schedule appointments.

A common feature of most software solutions in this category is the online booking feature, which enables customers to book appointments via the internet. The feature helps businesses to automate scheduling tasks and minimize scheduling errors like double booking.

Other features that usually also come with booking and appointment scheduling solutions include appointment notifications and reminders, calendar integration, payment processing, customer management, and mobile compatibility, which allows customers to make reservations and enables booking agents to confirm and manage schedules using their mobile device.

Employee scheduling software

Employee scheduling software streamlines the complex process of creating and managing employee schedules. As such, employee scheduling software helps to save time and money on scheduling, reduce paperwork and manual errors, increase productivity, and handle last-minute absenteeism.

These products work by automating schedule management, collecting and sharing scheduling data, allowing employees to set availability and communicate with each other through pings and the message wall. Advanced solutions can also include features such as leave management, vacation tracking, the ability to handle overtime and incentive pay, the ability to identify and alert schedule conflicts, the ability to assign shifts to remote workers, and the ability to find the right employee for the right task on the basis of skills, experience, availability, and labor cost.

Enterprise resource planning (ERP) software

Some ERP solutions are designed to provide a unique approach to restaurant management, with accounts, bars and restaurants, sales teams, inventory management, marketing and CRM, online reservations, booking sites, material/ingredient purchasing, and other processes that are all accessible and integrated into an all-in-one platform.

Enterprise resource planning solutions also allow managers and business owners to manage reservations and other core functions of multiple establishments from a single location.

How to Choose Restaurant Management Software

Restaurant management software solutions are designed to have the right features and capabilities for streamlining the management of the day-to-day operations of restaurants. But, there are certain features that should be taken into account when choosing the right restaurant management software.

Sales and tax data tracking

Restaurants deal with multiple cash and credit card transactions on a daily basis. A restaurant management software that allows tracking of sales and taxes is a good starting point when choosing which software solution to go for.

The capability to keep track of sales and taxes in a quick and accurate manner will substantially lessen the administrative burdens on location managers and marketing teams. Also, with software solutions that come with real-time reporting capabilities, users will be able to get sales data quickly, anytime, and anywhere.

Quick and easy menu setup

The menu setup/creation in the restaurant management software solution should be simple enough that it effectively cuts down setup or creation time. It should also be user-friendly enough that even less tech-savvy users will be able to set up their menu with little to no training.

There are a plethora of restaurant management software solutions available in the market. As such, choosing the right platform can often be confusing. But, even with all the confusion, the ease of use and how simple the platform is to set up should be a factor that an individual shopping for a restaurant management system needs to consider.

Integration with existing software solutions

When it comes to software solutions, programs, or applications, a solution should have to have the ability to communicate with other existing applications seamlessly. This is what integration is all about. When choosing a restaurant management system, make sure it can seamlessly integrate with other existing third-party solutions, especially the ones that you are already using.

Benefits of Restaurant Management Software

Using the right restaurant management software will help make life easier for entrepreneurs, location managers, and supervisors. There are many software solutions on the market with various features and functionalities that help to generate and retain customers, enhance staff efficiency, and improve revenue.

Restaurant management software systems also help to make the day-to-day operations easier and much more consistent. Most platforms provide detailed analysis for data crunching, which provides users with valuable insights regarding inventory, staff performance, customer engagement and satisfaction, stock orders, and more.

Overall, software solutions like these help to minimize operational costs as they are tailored to provide multiple functions in one comprehensive platform.

Common Features of Restaurant Management Software