When it comes to running a restaurant business, there aren’t many things that are worse than downtime in your operations. It’s critically important to keep a restaurant running and avoid costly, inefficient downtime. Did you know choosing the right point of sale (POS) technology can help you do just that? Read on to explore how technology such as POS offline mode and tethered connections can help you mitigate interruption and keep your business sailing smoothly.
POS Offline Mode
POS offline mode can be a game changer when it comes to maintaining efficient, profitable restaurant operations. But first, let’s explore some reasons why your POS may go offline in the first place:
- Your payment processor may have lost connectivity
- Network issues can cause your POS to become disconnected
- Various internet connectivity issues can make your system go offline
- Unpredictable, unexpected POS server issues
So, how does POS offline mode help? The mode is a feature within some restaurant POS solutions that keeps all your vital restaurant operations running even if your internet connection fails. Most importantly, POS offline mode can help businesses continue to process payments, including credit card transactions, safely and securely even without the internet.
Choosing a solution that includes POS offline mode is extremely beneficial. Like we mentioned, this mode offers restaurants seamless operation, no matter the status of your internet connection. Due to the smooth operations that POS offline mode creates, you can rest assured that you are mitigating any possible downtime. And last but certainly not least, both of these factors contribute to a positive customer experience. No more impatient customers waiting for your system to come back online or scrambling to find a second payment method because your credit card processor is not functioning properly.
Tethered Connections
As a restaurant owner, another POS technology that can give you peace of mind when it comes to dependable operations is a tethered connection.
There are several ways that tethered connections contribute to a business’s bottom line:
- Less worrying: With tethered connections, there’s no need to worry about unreliable or shaky Bluetooth or Wi-Fi signals
- Constant connection: A hardwired connection means constant and steady network connection
- Decreased downtime: Less downtime means you remain as profitable as possible
- Happy customers: Customers will be grateful to pay when and how they want, every time, helping to maintain a positive customer experience
- Smooth sailing: Uninterrupted restaurant operation will keep your revenue flowing and reduce your employees’ frustration
Star’s SteadyLAN® for Tethered Connections
If you are looking for an unwavering tethered connection to always keep your business online, look no further than your receipt printer!
Star’s SteadyLAN technology is a patent-pending technology available on certain mC-Print Series printers. It provides wired Ethernet service to iOS, Android, and Windows devices connected to a networked printer via the Lightning or USB-C® cable.
With SteadyLAN, restaurants never have to worry about failed communication between their tablet and printer, or the tablet losing Internet connection. And the best part is that SteadyLAN provides both power and Ehernet connection through one single Lightning or USB-C® cable!
Available on mC-Print2 and mC-Print3, SteadyLAN technology is a world first and provides the stability of a cabled LAN connection for tablet POS systems. By connecting the SteadyLAN-compatible printer to the Internet via wired LAN and connecting the printer and a tablet with a Lightning-USB or USB-C® cable, the device can use the Internet without Wi-Fi communication. At the same time, the tablet can communicate with the printer via USB or LAN and can be charged from the printer.
Choosing a POS That Won’t Leave You Hanging
If you’re looking to improve the reliability and stability of your POS solution, think of it as a two-part project: choosing the right software and selecting the proper hardware.
Be sure to choose a POS software provider that offers POS offline mode to ensure that even if you lose internet connection, you can still seamlessly complete essential POS functions like processing credit card payments.
Your hardware matters, too. Even if your POS software is able to function offline, you cannot afford to have a shaky, unreliable Bluetooth or Wi-Fi connection on your tablet day-in and day-out. By selecting POS hardware that has been designed with tethered connection in mind – like a receipt printer that can route both Ethernet and power to your iPad through a Lightning cable – you know that your system is quite literally hardwired for success.
And of course, you want your software and hardware to work properly together, so it’s smart to choose a hardware provider like Star that partners with the industry’s leading and most popular POS software companies. Why not have all of the benefits of a reliable POS software and the advantages of trusted POS hardware that has been designed for steady operations? Together, the right POS software and hardware can work together to ensure optimal business operations all day, every day.
Explore Star’s Certified Software Partners.
