How Do I Track Events In My P.O.S.?

Event sales should ALWAYS be run through your Point-of-Sale system on the day the event is held and the revenue earned.

Preparing your Point-of-Sale system for event tracking:

• Create menu items/buttons for Event Sales
• If you serve specific items for events (prix fixe packages, catering portions, etc) create specific menu items under a separate screen group called 'Events'
• It is always a good idea to create 'open' buttons as well, in case you package items that are not part of your regular event menu
• Open buttons should include Event Food, Event Liquor, Event Wine, Event Beer, Event NAB, and Event Admin (at minimum) and allow for servers to add a price in at the time of sale
• All event items/buttons should be allocated to their respective categories (Food, Liquor, Wine, Beer, Etc.)
• Ensure that you have buttons/items for room rental, administrative fees, or any other line items that would otherwise show up on an event invoice
• Create Revenue Center(s) for off-site events
• Just like the bar, patio, or dining room, off-site events should be tracked as their own revenue center
• Be sure that your POS system is set up to calculate service charges
• Most POS systems will allow you to add/track automatic service charges without creating menu items for them. Consult your manufacturer for guidance. 
• Create proper 'Tenders' for processing Event Sales
• Since the total event sale must be run through the POS on the day of the event, despite payment being collected prior to (or after) an event being held, it is vital that you create a new tender in your POS called 'Event Payments' that will allow you to close checks on the day of the event without using the CASH tender

Processing deposits or payments made BEFORE or AFTER events:

Your merchant (credit card) processor is required to set you up with at least one 'swipe' method that runs outside of your POS system. That is either a phone-jack swiper or an online portal for entering card numbers.

• Upon collecting payment in the form of a credit card, run the deposit (or balance) on the card using your non-POS swipe method
• Notify the event server of the total deposit, so that guest are not accidentally overcharged

Tracking sales on the day of the event:

• Open a check for the event/party just like any other table
• Build the check with all menu items, auto-gratuities, and fees that are owed for the entire event
• Close the check using the "Event Payment" tender for any portion of the balance covered by a deposit or invoiced payment to be made after the event