As per a case study explains, progresses in epos software grow out of existing hardware. Free POS software updates are pointless if the hardware doesn`t have the processing ability to run it. In fact, more latest software usually takes more space on more old PCs, which can lead even more slower loading times and different issues.

A realistic life expectancy for most on-site POS systems is from five to seven years. While that may look to be short, consider the hardware in your own personal life like your cell phone, PC, TV. How many of those are recent than few years?

Despite growing frustrations and maintenance costs, restaurateurs tend to clutch their outdated systems any longer than their cell phones. They refer to a variety of reasons: lack of time to analyse a new system, insufficient budget, the expense to re-train staff, and so on.

In spite of these reservations, the greater part of the respondents to Hospitality Technology`s EPOS Software Trends study intend to research, test or install a new POS system this year. How would you know whether you should be one of them?

To choose if the time is right for a new POS, think about the following questions:
1) How well does your POS work now?
Take some time to think about your POS place in your restaurant.

• ?When things get going, does your system make things easier or difficult?
• ?Is it true that you are investing more time than you should on maintenance, updates and troubleshooting?
• ?Are you managing your restaurant operations like inventory, labor and sales from various apps?
• ?Is it hard to make changes to menu items, prices and other details across all your connected terminals?
• ?Do you need to be at your restaurant to access your POS?
• ?Does your system let you use and manage customer data like email, loyalty programs and other engagement channels?

Dive further into these questions by asking to your staff how they feel about the system. What do they like about your POS? What disappoints them when they use it? If the staff members have worked at different restaurants, get some data about the difference between their old system and the one you are using now.

Consider about your customers opinions during this process. In spite of the fact that your customers don`t interact directly with your POS system, consider any complains that you get normally and how they may be related with your operations. How will a anew POS eliminates those complaints and improve your customer experience?

Your responses to these questions will give you a standard of understanding for when you choose to start searching for a new POS system.
2) What do you need from a new POS?
Before you start looking for a new restaurant POS system, ask: what do I need from a new POS system?

A few answers might be painfully obvious, as "not waiting for the system will boot up" or "fewer crashes." There are no off-base responses to this question, but in case if you invest into a new POS, realizing what you need it to do will help you with direct your search.

Would you like to increase your revenue? Make tasks more efficient? Increase customer retention? Is it safe to say that you are searching for a POS that will let you invest more time away from the restaurant?

Your list of goals for a new system will also give you a starting point for discussions with POS sales executives.
3) How will present day POS systems meet your needs?
After you establish the setbacks of your present system and your goals for a new system, the following step is looking at how current POS systems match with your list of things to get.

Restaurant management provides a format that makes this process easier. Start with one of your objectives such as, investing less time on site managing with your POS system. At that point single out the obstacle to your objective, which for this situation is a more older POS system that allows access to your data from an on-premise PC. The solution for this obstacle is a cloud-based system that allows you to access and make changes to the system from any Internet-enabled device.

Another model: if you want to improve customer retention by creating a loyalty program, but your outdated POS does not manage such a program past a spreadsheet full with email addresses.

What is the solution? Latest POS systems, particularly software as a service, can integrate effectively with other cloud-based apps, including third party customer loyalty apps.

Above all, as advanced technology gets essential to business operations, restaurateurs need to consider their POS system as a crucial component to their success.