Prepare your Store for Gift Card Season with these POS systems

The holidays are a magical time. People reflect on what they’ve accomplished and what they want to achieve in the New Year. At the same time, they’re receiving and giving to clients, family, and friends. Though people may not consider gift cards first, they end up being the most requested gift option almost every holiday season.

If you’re not able to offer gift cards to your customers then a significant amount of business will be lost. When in doubt, people buy gift cards. Strategically placed gift cards are also a way to take advantage of impulse buying. This article will share multiple POS systems with gift card support which makes it easy for you to distribute them to your customers. They also have powerful features to help you create a seamless checkout experience while making your business more efficient.

TouchBistro

TouchBistro is an iPad POS system designed specifically for the restaurant industry and it also has gift card support. You don’t’ need to purchase an add-on to take advantage of gift cards with TouchBistro (though there’s an optional loyalty program), but you do have to set it up as a new sales category. The gift cards themselves can be purchased via third party providers like your payment processor.

It has all the POS features you need to run a restaurant like a well-oiled machine. Use it to implement true tableside ordering and reduce your turnaround time. It provides upsell recommendations and also supports split checks to make things easier for both guests and wait staff. Floor plan and table management become much simpler because it helps you identify slow turnover tables, high value groups, and ensure you meet up with reservations from guests.

The POS system has direct partnerships with many of the top payment processors in the industry such as Square, Chase, and Worldpay. It also has features for staff management that can handle one location or a dozen without added complexity. Calculate staff wages, implement security controls to minimize theft, and track labor performance and sales over time. Together, these features make it one of the best POS systems for restaurants.

The hardware is built around the iPad so it’s important to keep that in mind when evaluating it. There’s a wide range of hardware that can be used with the TouchBistro POS software. You can choose from multiple network devices, printers, and accessories like cash drawers and monitors. Most of the hardware is sold through third-party vendors but TouchBistro does have recommended partners.

Upserve

Upserve is a restaurant POS that can be used for both full service and quick service restaurant chains. It has gift card support that’s available as an add-on to the core POS features. The card interface comes with robust reporting that gives you insights into how the gift cards are driving additional revenue. The cards themselves can be ordered directly from Upserve and customized to match your brand.

Beyond gift card support, Upserve delivers the POS features needed to excel in the restaurant industry. It starts with the core POS system that gives restauranteurs the ability to manage multiple menus and locations. It supports split checks and offline mode so you can collect payments even when the internet is down.

It goes further with restaurant analytics that reveal deep insights about your business like labor costs, scheduling, employee productivity, and more. Instead of only giving you reams of data to interpret, it can present information in simple terms that let you know exactly what you should do to improve your business. For example, you can find the most profitable menu items and what brings customers back time and again.

Upserve also allows your guests to order online. Once payment has been made, the order is sent directly to the back of house so your staff can get to work. The hardware is a bit different than previous entries on this list. Instead of using iPads, upserve has a range of restaurant grade hardware that promises to stand the test of time. There are tableside ordering kits, kitchen monitors, cash drawers and everything else you need. Equipment can be purchased directly from Upserve and qualifying customers can get their hardware for free.

Toast

Toast is the last POS system on the list and it also focuses on the restaurant industry. It has gift card support for both traditional cards and electronic cards and the feature is integrated directly into the core functionality of the POS. The cards can be purchased in your restaurant or online – whichever method your customers prefer.

Toast is one of the best POS systems because it has features that different types of restaurants need to serve their guests. It starts with the core POS which allows you to manage your menu, keep track of availability, and automatically sync across all locations (or keep them separate). It also supports tableside ordering, guest feedback, and mobile payments.

Toast POS comes with an online ordering system that supports a range of modifiers that help increase your average order value and syncs directly with the back of house. As soon as an order is made, it comes up on the relevant monitor and joins the que just like those placed in the restaurant. Toast takes reporting seriously and has built a solution that’ll let you get a bird’s eye view of all the important metrics in your business. Understand labor, sales, and the optimal product mix at a glance. If you want to get more details, drilling down is as simple as clicking a few buttons.

The POS software runs on top of hardware built for the restaurant industry. You can purchase the Toast Terminal Bundle directly or you can pick and choose the equipment you’ll use for your business. It has a self-serve kiosk, handheld POS, receipt printers, and more.

Conclusion

The holiday season is in full swing. People are shopping more and catching up with old friends. If you’ve not done so already, it’s the perfect time to implement a gift card strategy. Not only will it give people an opportunity to purchase from you, it can increase your average order value when people come to redeem them. This article has gone through 4 of the best POS systems on the market for managing your gift cards and making the most of the holiday season. The rest is up to you, good luck!