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Education

Hard times spur innovation in

restaurant POS sector

Desperation breeds innovation

Rapid jumps in technology accompany major upheavals
and wars. Jet engines were practically unheard of as
WWII began in Europe, but they were in use before the
war's end. Medical techniques also advance through wars.

COVID-19 is its own kind of war, but one against the
economy. This upheaval affects the card processing
industry and is a great reminder to all companies, ISOs
and merchant level salespeople (MLSs) to diversify their
portfolios.

Processing companies and restaurant POS companies
found themselves in new territory when the outbreak
began. Sit-down restaurants were in danger of
disappearing completely, and those staying open using
delivery companies were struggling, as revenues were
dropping along with profit margins on what they were
By Bill Pirtle able to sell.
SpotOn Transact LLC
Companies across the spectrum implemented layoffs,
n March of 2020, governors began ordering shut- and forbes.com's April 8, 2020, report that restaurant
downs of dine-in restaurants across the country. POS company Toast had laid off half of its reported
Some closed completely; some struggled to stay 3,000 employees made many question the future of the
I open by offering carryout and delivery. Delivery restaurant POS. However, innovative POS companies took
companies surged to fill consumers' need to enjoy res- a more aggressive approach when the crisis began. They
taurant food without leaving the relative safety of their hired or brought on new 1099 contractors and promoted
homes. their online ordering systems to restaurant owners in
earnest.
According to Wikipedia, GrubHub began offering delivery
to restaurants in 2014 and by 2016 was in 50 markets. Now Help restaurants regroup, reinvent
entering "food delivery services" into a Google search field Restaurant owners, feeling the squeeze on their business
brings 4.45 billion responses. livelihoods by the combination of COVID-19 and delivery
company fees, found a solution in making their own
Consumers like that they pay only a small fee in most deliveries, which enabled them to keep their revenue,
cases for restaurant food delivery. But many do not know retain their data and hire more staff to facilitate deliveries.
the restaurants struggling to stay open are paying delivery Many restaurants had servers return as drivers.
service fees of 15 to 30 percent of the bill and are deprived
of knowing who is ordering from them. Every business needs to innovate. Those that do, get to stay
in business. Those that fail to make the necessary changes
When consumers receive botched orders, they contact the will cease to be. Opportunities still exist for agents seeking
restaurants involved. But the restaurants do not know who to help local restaurants. Contact your ISO about their
ordered the food. Since the food delivery companies are restaurant options. Compare the POS companies your ISO
taking the orders, they are receiving the customer data for uses. If seeking new opportunities, be sure to ask about
marketing. So, what stops the delivery companies from restaurant solutions and training.
steering hungry customers to restaurants willing to pay a
higher percentage?

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