To be as efficient as possible, your cash register software must meet all the needs of your restaurant, regardless of the concept. The ideal solution is therefore a flexible, modular solution that offers the widest possible functional coverage and that can be connected to all market developments (loyalty players, marketplace, etc.).
Thus, choosing an efficient cash register software is a long and complex mandatory step in the jungle of offers.
Before jumping on the first provider that comes along, it is advisable to ask yourself the right questions, to define your needs, your budget, to compare the functionalities of the market leaders and to find out about the developments made by the manufacturers so as not to end up with outdated software in the future.
The good news is that by the end of this guide, you will have all the information you need to choose the best cash register software for your restaurant!
Here we go! 👇
Why is the choice of a restaurant's cash register software crucial?
Before going into detail in this guide, it is essential to remember that the cash register is the nerve center of your restaurant. Choosing the right software is therefore essential to run your business smoothly and efficiently.
Here are 3 reasons why you should definitely choose the best possible software for your restaurant.
Save time on a daily basis
As a restaurant owner, time is your worst enemy and every second counts. A slow software, not optimized for your business, and your whole service is behind.
With a complete solution perfectly adapted to the specificities of your establishment, save time at every stage of the day:
- order,
- collection,
- printing of tickets,
- reception and preparation of orders from marketplaces,
- inventory management,
- reporting of the day,
- etc.
Sometimes it only takes one feature to increase your table turnovers and therefore the number of customers per service.
Improve the performance of your restaurant
As a manager, you are concerned with optimizing your organization day after day.
Average basket, number of covers, table management, order channels, waiter performance or stock management are all data that must be fed into your cash register to give you a 360° view. And to allow you to take the appropriate decisions to improve the management of your establishment.
Build customer loyalty
It's not just your plates that need to be impeccable!
During rush hour or not, provide exceptional service to your customers through a seamless experience. None of your customers want to wait 30 seconds to get their bill, find an error, have only one payment method or not be notified when a discount is available.
👉 Going further: 5 tips to build customer loyalty
Choose the software that suits you
Opt for a NF525 certified software
You can't deviate from this rule: your cash register must absolutely be NF525 certified! This is a legal requirement for all restaurant owners. In principle, all the best cash register software is certified, but if in doubt, it is always better to make sure.
Good to know: with certified software, you have the security and peace of mind of always being up to date with legislative changes and being able to trace all cashier actions to reduce the risk of fraud.
Evaluate your needs
What is your structure?
Some software is more adapted to certain structures than others.
So, whether you are a professional in the fast-food, traditional, collective or concession sector, know how to identify the players who know your needs perfectly.
The constraints of a foodtruck are not the same as those of a food court, a company restaurant or a fast food restaurant.
To find out what choices ambitious restaurateurs are making: check out the Innovorder success stories.
How many cash registers to install in your restaurant or in your points of sale?
Carefully study the configuration of your restaurant, the traffic during peak hours or your customer path to adapt the number of checkouts to be installed in your establishment.
If you have several points of sale or are planning to open several as part of your development, a centralized system to manage your entire fleet can be a serious asset on a daily basis. Some players, such as Innovorder, have developed their solutions specifically for managing cash register fleets, thus facilitating the deployment of identical configurations.
Define your budget: how much does a cash register software cost?
It is important to know that modern cash register software is always accompanied by a cash register. The reason is simple: keeping your old cash register and installing a new system can quickly lead to bugs or even serious malfunctions. To be avoided...
In fact, most offers take this form, with or without commitment:
- Purchase of equipment + monthly license
- Equipment rental + monthly license
The purchase can be done in cash, but in this case the amount to be disbursed is not negligible. This is why rental is often preferred by restaurateurs.
Naturally, the price of a restaurant cash register software varies from simple to double depending on the cash register model, the features and the offers. For an entry-level software, you need to count on a monthly subscription of about ten euros, but much more for an ultra complete multi-site equipment.
On the hardware side, the best cases are made by historical players such as Sunmi, Elo Touch, HP Pro or Samsung Pro, whose performance and ergonomics are designed for intensive use.
While consumer tablets are more affordable, they may not be up to the task of handling a large workload and high frequency of use.
For example, a cash register software installed on an iPad or a tablet, often adapted for small structures, costs less than a dual-screen cash register for a school restaurant. In short, there's nothing unusual about this, it's a question of usage and needs.
Some offers include a multitude of options and a la carte equipment, included or not in the price:
- touch screen,
- receipt printer,
- cash drawer,
- electronic payment terminal,
- several point-of-sale terminals,
- etc.
Want to find a free cash register software?
Either fees apply elsewhere (transaction fees, commissions, etc.), or the solution may be very basic, incomplete, and therefore not well suited to your needs.
Another important point is that installation, configuration and training costs can add to the bill.
Our advice: the price of your cash register software should reflect the performance and use of your equipment. To make the right choice, don't hesitate to ask an expert to accompany you.
👉 Contact an Innovorder consultant to receive a personalized quote
List the features that are essential to your establishment
Here are some features that any cash register software must offer at least to be competitive:
- floor plans and seating charts
- multi-credit union or multi-institution management
- management of orders in the kitchen, online and on delivery
- reservation management
- real-time tracking of items and stock
- editing of expense reports and report splitting
- support for payment methods (cash, bank card, contactless, meal tickets, badge, e-wallet, loyalty card)
- management of the cash fund
- monitoring of customer relations and loyalty programs
- employee and manager access management
- management of accounting, receipts and invoices
- display of key indicators (statistics by server, restaurant, product, menu, offer, etc.)
- integration of external peripherals (coin acceptor, payment terminals, beeper, handheld, badge reader, customer display, etc.)
- offline mode
Of course, this list is far from exhaustive and depends on the specificities of your restaurant.
Think about the grip
If the software are more and more complete, they are fortunately not all super complex.
Choose an ergonomic, intuitive and easy-to-use interface. In busy periods, an incomprehensible software can quickly turn the service into a real nightmare.
Our definition of the best cash register software: software that can meet all your needs while being as easy to use as possible.
👉 The best being to try it directly: ask for a demo!
Choose a trusted provider
Notoriety of the platform
Today, there are a multitude of solutions, both French and foreign.
Between the young start-up in the midst of raising funds and the historic group that is no longer really in the game, some players are doing well by placing their customers at the heart of their approach and by focusing on innovation.
Do you see who we're talking about?
👋 Hi Innovorder!
Innovation
In a sector as dynamic as food, it is essential to deal with a player who is always one step ahead, at the risk of being overtaken by new trends in the restaurant industry.
New features, automatic updates, maintenance and partner integrations should be among the criteria for choosing your restaurant's cash register.
Ecosystem
If some providers have specialized in cash register software for restaurants, other players have chosen to offer a complete range of solutions.
For example, Innovorder has developed the most complete ecosystem on the market to support the restaurant industry in its digitalization. Our cash register is synchronized with all our products:
- Printer
- Self Ordering Kiosk
- Online Ordering
- Connected fridge (for catering)
- Scan tray (for collective catering)
- Kitchen production screen
- Electronic coin acceptor
- Beeper
- Back office
Installation, configuration and training
Also, find out about your first steps with your new partner.
Start on the wrong foot because of a haphazard installation, a bad parameter setting or a botched training and it is your restaurant which is likely to leave it during weeks, even months!
Our advice: choose a supplier close to the field.
Support and guidance
No restaurant owner wants to find himself without his cash register in the middle of a rush, without anyone on the line! Unfortunately, it is when everything goes wrong that we realize the importance of available and reactive support.
Some questions to ask yourself when choosing:
- What are the opening hours of the support?
- Is it responsive or do you have to wait 5 minutes to get in touch with someone?
- Are the consultants located in France or outsourced abroad?
Focus: Innovorder's restaurant cash register software
THE catering specialist since 2014
To understand what our cash register software has in store for you, a little reminder is in order.
Innovorder has been the benchmark for digital catering since 2014 and is the only French player with dual expertise in fast-food and commercial catering and in institutional catering.
Our cash register software meets a unique range of needs on the market. It is intended for independent restaurant owners as well as for multi-site restaurants, franchises and fast-food chains as well as for company restaurants or self-managed structures.
More than a cash register, the conductor at the heart of a complete ecosystem
Like most of the players on the market, our cash register software has dozens of features and is NF525 certified. Nothing incredible on this side, our real strength lies elsewhere...
Unlike our competitors, we have developed the most complete ecosystem of digital solutions for restaurants around our checkout!
To put it simply, the Innovorder cash register connects to all Innovorder peripherals: printer, POS terminal, KDS, back office, etc. In this way, our customers have only one provider for all their solutions, which are all synchronized.
In short: juggling between several providers is over.
With Innovorder, it's: 1 single contract, 1 single contact, 1 single solution.
Yeu Ly, manager of Nampla, talks about it here : discover his success story.
And to go even further, we are multiplying our partner integrations to allow our customers to benefit from the latest innovations in the sector and to always be at the cutting edge in the management of their restaurant.
Not 1 but 2 screens: the dual-screen checkout
Or how to communicate more with your customers through the personalization of a second screen.
To help you get the right message across (promotional image, point-of-sale information, etc.), we have developed a cash register with two screens. One screen for you and one screen for your customers.
This way, you keep a total transparency with your customers:
- Identical reproduction of the order basket
- Display of total to pay, remaining to pay and discounts
- Displaying the balance of the badge in the framework of the collective catering
And since the screen is touch-sensitive, your customers can use it to see all the items and decide whether to print their receipt (in accordance with the circular of the anti-waste law, which will come into force at the beginning of January 2023).
A human accompaniment at the service of the restaurant owners
The challenges of restoration are complex.
"As a field entrepreneur, I don't master the whole digital part and I had many expectations. So I chose Innovorder because I was looking for a solution with local support that responds quickly and solves problems." Faizal Jogiat, founder of Chicken Village
That's why most of our consultants come from the fast food industry. This field expertise allows our teams to not only understand your needs but also to implement the most appropriate digital strategy for your restaurant.
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Opting for a cash register that is not adapted to your activity is a sure-fire way to make trouble!
Let an expert help you equip your establishment with the cash register software best suited to your needs.
