Your menu is important. It’s what draws customers in and what keeps them coming back. But what the most successful pizzeria owners understand is managing your menu is just as important to the overall operational success of your restaurant.
Three signs your pizzeria needs better POS software to manage your menu include:
- You Find it Difficult to Manage Your Pizzeria’s Menu
- Your Customers Are Missing Out on Special Pricing Promotions
- Your Software Requires too Many Keystrokes to Enter an Order
Manage your menu effectively, and you can create and run promotions at the drop of a hat, streamline your ordering process, and optimize your menu offerings. Manage your menu poorly, and you could end up with frustrated employees, disgruntled customers, and a loss in profits.
Successful menu management starts with your pizza POS software—more specifically, the restaurant menu management system in your point of sale system. Here’s how to tell if yours is in need of updating:
1. You Find it Difficult to Manage Your Pizzeria’s Menu
You’re probably experiencing this issue if:
- 86’d items are still showing up in the order entry system
- Menu specials are difficult to implement on your POS
- Menu items are inconsistent on different ordering platforms
Why it’s bad for pizzerias:
By not having a consistent, easily-managed menu, pizzerias can expect to find confused employees unaware of changes to the menu or out-of-stock items. You can also run into inconsistent orders, as some customers may get menu specials and others may not if all systems aren’t in sync. Even worse, you could find yourself with confused, unhappy customers and a reputation for being unreliable. All of these lead to a loss of revenue, especially when it comes to online orders since they are, on average, about 18% higher than phone orders.
How to solve this problem:
Restaurants need a consistent menu on all ordering channels—including all in-store workstations, mobile devices, and online ordering platforms. To be most successful all of these outlets’ menus should be managed in your point of sale system. Pizzerias need a way to quickly and easily edit menus in case ingredients run out or another change is needed. If an item runs out during a busy rush, you can’t afford any downtime, so it’s important that you are able to make changes instantly and have these changes reflected immediately across all ordering channels.
All of this can only be accomplished by overhauling your unreliable software in favor of a robust restaurant menu management system in your POS that has the functions pizzeria owners require.
2. Your Customers Are Missing Out on Special Pricing Opportunities
You’re probably experiencing this issue if:
- Pricing changes are complicated and time-consuming to carry out
- Changes must be made to each individual workstation and ordering channel separately
- Special pricing is inconsistent across workstations and channels
Why it’s bad for pizzerias:
When the pricing on your menu is difficult to edit, it can cause employees to be flustered if they are unsure of pricing changes or can’t enter the correct price into the system very easily. For example, a customer may have received an email for a limited-time lunch special, but when the employee goes to ring it up, the point of sale is still showing the regular pricing. This leads to confusion and frustration for both the customer and the staff member. Inconsistent pricing and specials at different locations or on different ordering channels can frustrate customers when they learn they’ve paid more than they needed to, or missed out on a deal. Customers may come to believe your pizzeria is unreliable, and more likely to try the competition for their next pizza order.
How to solve this problem:
The best POS system for pizza shops will have the ability to easily change pricing based on item, day, time, or for other limited promotions. Once a change is made, it is reflected across all systems and ordering channels automatically. This allows owners to make changes whenever they need to, while still ensuring customers get the correct pricing.
3. Your Software Requires Too Many Keystrokes to Enter an Order
You’re probably experiencing this issue if:
- Staff is spending significant time entering orders
- Staff has trouble inputting complex or customized orders
- New employees have a hard time learning all the steps it takes to complete transactions
- Order entry time doubles or triples when modifiers, substitutions, or extras are included
Why it’s bad for pizzerias:
With over 76,993 pizzerias in the US, competition is tight, and every second counts. When an order takes too many keystrokes, your pizzeria’s customer experience can deteriorate. Extra keystrokes take longer, slowing down the time it takes to complete each transaction and causing longer wait times for customers. More keystrokes also lead to more opportunities for errors and mistakes to arise.
How to solve this problem:
Pizzerias need an order entry system that is intuitive for your staff and has no wasted keystrokes. Look for a system that is designed specifically for the pizza industry, and can quickly and easily navigate even the most unconventional customer orders. The fewer keystrokes required, the faster you can fulfill orders, and the more accurate your orders will be. The best POS system for pizza shops will equip you to operate as efficiently as possible so you can meet customer demands, increase speed of service, and stay competitive.
Serving Up Satisfaction:
Menu management matters more than you may have realized. If done poorly, it can slow your restaurant down, cause confusion and errors, reduce profit margins, and ultimately end up damaging your reputation. The best POS systems for pizza shops, are purposefully designed to meet the needs of pizzerias. The proper pizza POS software makes it easy for you to make changes to your menu and prices, and the intuitive interface requires fewer keystrokes and less time per transaction.
When you have the right pizza POS system, serving up customer satisfaction is easier. You are empowered to make better menu and pricing decisions for your business, and are equipped with the technology you need. Speed up ordering, offer profitable promotions, and provide the kinds of customer experiences that drive loyalty.
For more information on restaurant menu management software and how HungerRush’s pizza POS software can help improve your operations,
with HungerRush today.
