Brewery taprooms are the front line experiences for customers and a major source of income for most breweries. Having access to a smartly designed point-of-sale (POS) system that manages all your customer service needs along with providing access to insights and data are no longer mere luxuries, they are business necessities.
Innovation featured expert topic supported by Lotus Beverage Alliance
Lotus Beverage Alliance unites expert manufacturers and suppliers to empower your craft beverage business. We are allied to be the complete resource for equipment, ingredients and parts supply – all backed by exceptional service. Meet our alliance: Alpha Brew Ops, GW Kent, Stout Tanks and Kettles, Brewmation, Twin Monkeys, and Automated Extractions.
A POS system helps your business do everything from track and control inventory, sales, and business expenses, as well as provide insights into sales trends and data to help guide your business and meet the needs and demands of your customers.
In a recent survey by Ekos, the business management system and software company, the company found that 38-percent of brewery respondents used Square for their POS, with 19-percent for Arryved, and 16-percent for Toast.
In choosing between these providers, Ekos’s report suggests that “the biggest benefits of your POS system come from the inventory management features. The way the system handles inventory — and how that data flows into other systems — is what might save you the most time on a day-to-day basis.” Ekos suggests an inventory management system should be able to tell you how much beer is left to sell in your taproom, help plan future production, and suggest when to move products into rotation in your taproom. Ekos recommends that your POS, inventory, and accounting systems all sync together in seamless integration. “Automating this flow of data from your POS and ecommerce transactions will help you maintain error-free inventory counts and COGS numbers, which are vital to making production, sales, and financial decisions for your business.”
Let’s take a look at three popular options to help you identify a point-of-sale system that is designed to meet your company’s needs and help you grow in the future.
Arryved
One of the most popular point-of-sale systems, Arryved is mobile and customizable system that uses technology to help manage transactions and customer experiences. Owners and managers can track beer sales in real-time through the POS depletion inventory system, which also alerts you when items are running low so you can easily switch menu items. Arryved offers a web-based dashboard that integrates all components and data.
Arryved also offers an integrated loyalty program that helps turn first-time customers into return visitors. It includes customer communication tools as well as options for customer rewards programs. It can also help track staff hours, performance, and payroll.
During the pandemic, Arryved further developed its mobile app to help customers enjoy a frictionless payment experience from their own device. The app allows businesses to adopt simple QR code menus, ordering, and payments, in a self-service model.
Arryved’s POS system works for brewery tap rooms and for off-premise or package stores, helping track inventory. Arryved has no monthly fees or contracts and boasts a 99-percent customer retention rate.
Square
Another popular POS system is Square, which has helped craft breweries run their taprooms for years. A familiar name to anyone who has shopped at a local market or coffee shop, Square also services breweries, taprooms, and restaurants. The system allows you to change item details in real time, receive alerts when items are running low, and works best for taprooms that offer limited food items. The POS system tracks transactions and tips owed to servers, and manages ecommerce orders. The system can be run through a mobile POS kit, a handheld device, or a stand-alone terminal. The service also offers add-ons to cover payroll, employee hours and tips, customer loyalty programs, and data and insights.
Toast
Another often favored option is Toast. One of its most popular benefits is the ability to preauthorize credit cards so that you don’t have to hold on to them. The system also makes it easy to manage, merge, and split tabs. Toast also prompts users to employ a loyalty program to help increase customer spending and return visits. It also has options to create contactless ordering through QR code menus and online ordering and payment. The POS system can be handheld or through a standalone terminal. Toast also offers an automatic marketing campaign tool to help drive repeat visits and sales.