How to make sure your restaurant can always take payments
Install a Backup Network so your restaurant can continue operations during internet outages.
Internet outages can be a significant financial blow to any business, but the impact is often the most severe for restaurants. The inability to process payments can lead to lost sales and dissatisfied customers.
It’s common for restaurants to integrate many systems with their network, including POS, time clock, phone, ticket printing, online orders, delivery platforms, TV, music, etc.
Ensuring uninterrupted service is crucial for maintaining customer satisfaction in your restaurant. Patrons expect to be able to browse on guest Wi-Fi, watch the game, call for a reservation, and, most importantly, pay with their credit card.
Operations for when the WiFi goes down and there is no backup connection:
Wifi outages can lead to revenue loss and customer dissatisfaction, negatively impacting your business's reputation. Here are a few tips to keep operations running smoothly when your internet goes out:
Let everyone (customers, staff, internet service provider) know about the situation.
Ensure someone is expediting orders between the front and back of the house.
Ask customers to pay with cash, if possible (yeah, right!)
Store credit card info in an offline system
Operating your POS system offline can be risky
Most payment processors, like Toast, can store credit card information until internet service is restored. This can be very useful if you know that the internet will be back quickly. Depending on your local laws, you will probably have to let customers know you will store their credit card info to be charged later.
It's important to note that improperly storing credit card information can lead to significant financial penalties, ranging from $5,000 to $100,000. You can mitigate this risk by storing the information directly in your POS system, which will automatically encrypt sensitive data. Avoid storing information on paper or any document that has not been adequately encrypted.
When the internet is down, your payment processor cannot contact the customer’s bank to ensure sufficient funds are available.
When service is restored, you now face a new problem: any credit card declined due to insufficient funds will essentially be lost.
How to prepare for the next time the internet goes down
It’s not whether the internet goes out, but when. The best thing a restaurant can do is minimize the damage. Here are a few tips and protocols to follow the next time you lose internet:
Have backup menus- QR code and digital display menus are increasingly popular, but you should always have paper menus available in case of an outage or for the technologically challenged
Properly train your staff for the next outage
Build a cellular backup network to ensure you are always online
Build A Cellular Failover Network
Installing a failover network may involve rewiring your entire restaurant to ensure adequate coverage.
Toast recommends contacting a local IT professional to install access points for the wireless network.
We can set up a reliable cellular failover network so that your restaurant can always stay up and running.