Restaurant industry leaders spend years, decades, and lifetimes in the business gaining enviable experience. Some have owned different styles of restaurants and have even opened multiple locations spanning across the state or across the country. They achieved it all before restaurant POS data analysis was even available. Today, however, a lot has changed in the restaurant business.
Restaurants are known to run on profit margins under 40%, and achieving that is also difficult to control. The two biggest expenses that restaurants incur are labor and food costs. Large chains such as McDonald’s and Burger King are very good at controlling expenses from food costs. They have the finances and technology to achieve a high degree of efficiency. But, how does a local or independent restaurant get POS data analysis affordably and in a way that doesn’t require hiring a specialized analyst?
Why is Restaurant POS Data Analysis So Important?
The current economic crisis that the world is facing in the wake of COVID-19 has shut down restaurant dining in most states for a period of weeks or even months. Carry out and delivery orders aren’t enough to sustain a business over the long-term. Restaurants are certainly burning through treasury reserves to stay afloat, even after making staff reductions. Even after reopening, extra sanitation measures in the post-COVID world will likely remain permanent, another added expense.
Owners are having to rethink how they manage their inventory. What worked well for them years on end may no longer be enough. Reassessing processes requires data. With the right reporting tools like the kind generated by POS data, you can more easily make changes to improve your cash flow.
POS data analysis can tell you a lot about the inventory that flows into your restaurant on a truck and out on a plate or in a wine glass. Powerful POS systems allow you to obtain enterprise resource management (ERM) but without creating a huge expense. The key is obtaining the data in real-time reports. These new reports empower you to change how you order from your vendors, how you staff, and how you manage not just in-house dining but carryout and delivery orders as well.
Controlling Food Costs with Your POS
In 2020, restaurant industry markets contracted worldwide and the impact of COVID-19 is ongoing. Every bit of food waste affects gross profits when many restaurants have agreements with their lenders or landlords to catch up on payments when they can operate at full capacity again. Managers must now account for every item added to a plate that’s not already figured into the original price. Portion control plays a huge factor in keeping down the cost of food. All meats should be weighed and proportioned before they are prepared.
Great POS software allows you to know precisely what ingredients go in each plate and how much it should cost you every time. You should know your profit margin on everything you sell. Seek out new ways to pair higher profit menu items with lower profit ones to increase overall gross profit per check. Clients may have to be charged for items that you were able to throw in for free before. Survival during this time and becoming more profitable in the future will largely be determined by absorbing fewer costs from food.
Another way to help control food costs is to ensure that your POS is compatible with other apps and partners that can help you streamline your services and provide the most accurate order management possible to help reduce costly mistakes. As more restaurants rely heavily on carryout and delivery during this time, your POS should be able to integrate with partners like ItsaCheckmate to provide online ordering and delivery tracking for restaurants.
Can your POS Help with Labor Costs?
Your POS can help you to identify labor-management trends in your restaurant, both good and bad, as they relate to employee behavior. Are equipment breakages and food waste kept to a minimum? What are the types of losses you’re experiencing and when are they most likely to occur? Begin running reports on:
- Numbers of voided tickets
- Clock in and out times
- Cash drawer opening and closings
Restaurant POS data analysis can also help you track who was on duty and drill down to the hours in which any problems occurred. It may be a training issue or new procedures need to be taught, and knowing exactly when and where the issue developed will help you more quickly address it and get your employees the tools they need to succeed. Having a better way to determine whether staff is properly documenting mishaps, the capability to review activities in your restaurant, and the capacity to run reports remotely will all become essential to getting your restaurant on track and running smoothly.
POS Data Analysis with talech
When you work with a reputable POS provider, it’s not a difficult process to be able to make more informed decisions about what menu items are good for your sales volume, product mix, and those which are less profitable than others. talech provides expert technical support 24/7 to guide you on how to access and use these dynamic analytical features in your POS system to improve your gross profit margins. In the restaurant industry, knowledge truly is power, and with the right data in your hands you can make the best decisions possible for the health of your business.
We at talech want to assist customers that have been financially impacted by COVID-19, in light of restricted movements in cities and towns across the country. We have launched a number of initiatives to help customers during this time. Click here to find out more or reach out to our Support Team at support@talech.com.
