An impressive 97% of restaurants in the United States use POS technology.
However, how many of those are getting as much out of their POS software as they could? If you can use Toast POS integrations options in the right way, you can leverage this platform to boost your revenue and margins.
If you’re currently using Toast POS, or are interested in doing so, keep reading to learn how to use Toast POS integrations and leverage the Toast Partner Program step-by-step. Using the Toast 3rd party integrations feature you'd be able to optimize your scheduling, inventory, taxes, and more.
Enabling Toast POS Integrations: The “cliff notes” version for Partner Connect
- Install Toast POS systems in your restaurant
- Pay the monthly partner integration subscription fee ($25)
- Activate your partner connect portal
- Choose your locations
- Pick the partners that you want to work with
Looking for more detailed instructions for Toast 3rd party integrations? Keep reading. We’ve included everything you need to know in the sections below.
Here’s what you’ll need to get started with Toast integrations
Becoming a Toast Integration Partner is easy if you already use Toast’s POS software. In addition, you’ll also need the following things to get started with Toast third-party integration:
- POS hardware
- Screens (tablets, monitors, and televisions to communicate with employees and customers)
- A subscription to the company’s partner integration program
You can technically get started with Toast’s integration program without screens; however – these enable you to pair your Toast POS system with technology, like UPshow's on-premise performance marketing cloud for screens, to use POS data to engage your customers and employees.
That can be more valuable than you think.
For example, you could use your POS system with UPshow's on-premise performance marketing cloud to:
- Keep your deskless workers on-task
- Send out real-time alerts when critical inventory is running low
- Share inventory-based advertisements with your customers to waste fewer ingredients
- Keep your guests entertained with live-streaming video
Step 1: Set up Toast POS in your restaurant
First thing’s first. You’re going to need Toast’s POS software if you want to take advantage of the company’s partner integration program.
If you don’t have Toast POS in your restaurant yet, don’t worry. Getting started is as easy as:
- Visiting this link to get a free demo
- Picking out the right software plan for your restaurant size and type
- Choosing the hardware that you’ll use to access Toast’s POS software
- Putting it all together in your restaurant
Toast offers comprehensive customer support. When you sign up, you’ll have a single point of contact for payments and POS, meaning you can easily access the help you need to answer any questions or resolve any difficulties.
Step 2: Sign up for the monthly Toast subscription for partner integration
Once you’ve got your Toast POS system working, you’re ready to start working on the Partner Integration process. The first step is signing up for Toast’s Partner Connect subscription.
Toast subscription costs $25 per month per location, which might seem a bit pricey at first glance. However, you’ll get unlimited access to every Toast integration partner with this single fee, so the value quickly stacks up.
Step 3: Activate the Toast partner connect portal
You can finally activate Toast’s partner connect portal now that you have a subscription.
To do this, start by logging into the back-end of your Toast account.
Then, use the navigation bar on the left-hand side of your screen to hit integrations, and then browse and purchase.
If you haven’t already signed up for a subscription, you’ll receive a prompt to do so in the activation process.
If you have a subscription, you should see a screen that lets you begin selecting your preferences for partner integration.
Step 4: Choose your locations for the Toast partner program
The next step is choosing which of your locations will become a part of the Toast Integration program.
This is straightforward. Just tap on the restaurants you want to include and hit “apply.”
Step 5: Pick the Toast partners you want to work with
Finally, you’re ready to partner up with companies that can help your restaurant thrive through your Toast POS system. There are currently a total of 56 integration options in the Toast ecosystem.
Here are some of the highlights if you’re not sure which Toast integration options will be best for your company:
Toast integrations with Staples Connect
Does your restaurant use custom-printed menus, PPE gear, sanitizer, or paper? If so, you want to take advantage of Toast’s special relationship with Staples Connect.
Through Toast’s Partner Integration Program, you can get up to 25% on essentials like these when you purchase them through Staples Connect.
That’s free money you’re getting back for items through the Toast Partner Connect program that you would have bought anyway.
Toast integrations with Sling
Sling is another integration partner that’s worth checking out. It’s a company that offers employee scheduling software designed to help restaurants maximize productivity by optimizing the cost of labor.
If you’ve ever felt like you’re not getting as much out of your staff as you could be, Sling and Toast integration could help you solve that problem.
Toast integrations with Popmenu
Popmenu is a company that offers interactive menu technology, mobile-friendly restaurant websites, and online ordering.
This integration partner could suit your restaurant if you’re looking for an easy way to engage with your customers who prefer to order online and with their mobile devices.
Toast integrations with Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub
This list of useful integrations wouldn’t be complete without mentioning these popular delivery apps.
Getting your restaurant on DoorDash, Grubhub, and Uber Eats is critical to maximizing its reach. More than 100 million people in the United States use food apps like these.
Toast’s Integration Program makes it easier to manage your relationships with these delivery apps. With Toast Uber Eats, DoorDash, and Grubhub integrations you can take full advantage of food delivery companies without adding extra stress to your life.
Toast integrations with Restaurant Accounting Services, Inc
Every restaurant needs a good accounting service. For you, that could be RASI (Restaurant Accounting Services, Inc.).
It’s an outsourced accounting agency that specializes in hospitality companies like restaurants.
The cool thing is that you can use feed data to RASI through your Toast POS system. This can make it a lot easier for you to get your taxes, payroll, and other critical financial tasks done correctly without taking a lot of time out of your busy schedule to make it happen.
Watch out for these pain points while getting started with Toast Partner Program
Learning how to use the how to use toast POS system and becoming a Toast Integration Partner can help your restaurants thrive, but there are a few things you don’t want to overlook before getting started:
You don’t need Toast partnerships for popular delivery apps
Delivery apps like Uber Eats, Grubhub, and DoorDash help restaurants reach more customers. Toast’s Partner Integration program makes it easy for restaurants like yours to engage with these platforms.
But you should know that you don’t have to pay a monthly Toast subscription fee to access Toast third-party integrations for these platforms.
So if that’s all you’re looking for, then you can avoid Toast POS integration costs to save your money by following these setup instruction guides instead:
Consider testing Toast POS integration with one Toast partner before ramping up
Toast’s partner ecosystem can be overwhelming the first time you use it. If you try juggling too many new partners right out of the gate, you’re unlikely to optimize your restaurant’s relationship with them.
With that in mind, you may want to start slowly and only add more integrations once you’re confident that you’ve mastered the first few. That way, you can be sure that you’re getting as much out of every partner integration that you use as possible.
Make sure you have your ‘Manage Integrations’ permission active
You need to have this setting activated to access Toast’s integration portal. So if the guide you’ve just read isn’t working for you for some reason, this could be your problem.
Here’s a screenshot, so you know what it looks like::
You may have to pay extra for some Toast partnerships
Some of Toast’s integration partners offer services beyond the cost of your Toast Connect subscription. If you want to use these tools, you may have to pay another Toast subscription fee for them.
UPshow can help you get more out of your Toast POS integration system
You can get even more out of your Toast POS integration system by combining it with UPshow's on-premise performance marketing cloud for screens.
UPshow can help you:
- Communicate with your deskless workers and your customers more effectively
- Boost productivity
- Improve retention
- Optimize how you use ingredients and handle inventory
- Show targeted ads precisely when they’ll be most effective
- Grow sales
