Otter + Menusifu Integration Guide

Samiyah
Samiyah
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Integration Overview

What is a POS integration between Otter and Menusifu POS?

A POS integration is when you connect your online channels and delivery platforms with your Menusifu POS, via Otter.
It creates real-time and direct communication between the delivery platforms and Menusifu, removing most manual inputs and actions required to synchronize those systems.

What is the necessity of integrating your Menusifu POS with Otter?

When online food orders from Delivery platforms represent a significant part of the business of a restaurant, they start feeling multiple operational pain points, that all find answers and solutions with a POS integration.

Otter’s point-of-sale integration allows orders from your delivery partners to flow directly into your point of sale. This integration has numerous benefits including:

  • Automatically synchronize the Menu from Menusifu POS to your delivery channels, with no manual actions
  • Sending all orders to flow directly into your Menusifu KDS seamlessly
  • Sending all orders to print using Menusifu POS printer
  • Eliminating the manual entry of delivery platform orders into the POS
  • Improving the quality of the data by reducing errors from manual entry

In conclusion, an integration with Menusifu POS can save time and money, on a daily basis, and make your business more successful.

How does the Otter & Menusifu integration work?

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Step 1: Menu Sync

A POS integration with Menusifu starts by a “Menu Sync” where Otter reads the menu in Menusifu POS and then links the items in Menusifu to the items published to the delivery platforms.

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Step 2: Order Injection

A POS integration with Otter allows customers to get Online Food Ordering platform orders sent directly to their POS. This means that if you are POS integrated when you receive an online food order through Otter, the food order will automatically be sent to your Menusifu POS and be processed by the POS as any other order.

 


How to Connect

The process to get the Otter & Menusifu Integration


Steps Process
1 Contact the Otter Support team to begin with the integration process. If you are new in Otter you can also request a free demo here with our specialists.
2 The Otter Onboarding Specialist will reach out to you to get your Menusifu account information for the integration setup and your Online Food Ordering platform account information.
3

After the Otter Integration setup is done, the Menusifu Menu will be sync to your Otter account. 

4 The Otter Onboarding Specialist will contact you to double-check the menu adjustments. You also can check this article to learn how to manage your menu
5

At this point, we can turn the integration on and orders will immediately begin to flow into Menusifu from Otter.

What if I previously worked with another POS integration provider?  (e.g. Chowly, It's a Checkmate, Deliverect, OLO)

  • Please reach out to the Prior POS integration Provider to remove integrations from all delivery partners. They cannot just be disconnected, they need to be removed or the delivery partners will not let us connect. Please set a specific time to disconnect/remove the Prior POS Integrator and we can immediately launch the Otter integration.
  • Please connect with your Delivery Partners to set the “tablet order protocol”. The Prior POS Provider often has you change the order protocol so we’ll need to revert it back to the tablet. The Delivery Partners should be able to confirm/get this done quickly
  • Similarly, please connect with your Delivery Partners to allow us menu edit access on all Delivery Partners.

To confirm, there is no downtime in terms of accepting orders if you follow these steps, and you can have an Order Manager running on the Otter tablet to aggregate those throughout the process. Still, we cannot link/publish to your Delivery Partners until the above steps are followed.

 


Menu Management

How to prepare your Menu in Menusifu POS?

Before initiating a POS integration with Otter, it's essential to ensure the usability and quality of the Menu in Menusifu POS. 

Best practices include:

  • Add all categories that you would like to have on your delivery channels (UberEats, Doordash, etc.) in the POS.
  • Add all items/item variations/modifiers that do not already exist in Menusifu precisely as you want the guest to see them on delivery channels.
  • Review and clean the names, descriptions and prices to make sure they are ready to be published to the delivery platforms.

Otter will be synchronizing with the delivery platforms menus so that they will reflect how they are in Menusifu, giving you the ability to completely control your guests’ experience directly from Menusifu POS.

Tips to a perfect Menu Structure


Items
  • Use viewer-friendly menu item names to avoid misunderstanding, for instance, use “Chicken Burger” instead of “C.Burger” or “C.B” 
  • Avoid creating duplicate items across multiple categories
  • It is highly recommended to have a viewer-friendly description of each item
Categories
  • Use viewer-friendly menu category names, for example: Salads, Special Salads, Toppings, Beverages, etc
Modifier Groups
  • It is recommended to avoid using identical name modifier groups to prevent confusion or ambiguity
  • Match the minimum and maximum allowed modifiers with the defined modifier groups on the OFOs' structure for accuracy
Modifiers
  • Avoid using modifier groups inside other modifier groups, also known as nested modifiers
  • Avoid using identical name modifiers to prevent confusion or ambiguity
Photos
  • Make sure to have high-quality photos to feature on the menu. Check this guide to learn more  

 

Setting up Menu Auto-Sync with Menusifu POS?

Menu Auto-Sync with Menusifu POS is the best way to ensure a reliable POS integration with minimal maintenance on the long run. It is a best practice used by most Otter customers to manage their Menus in Menusifu POS, and automate the update of all the other menus in their Delivery Platforms.

Here are the steps to enable Menu Auto-Sync with Menusifu POS:

How to set up Menu Auto-Sync with Menusifu POS


Steps Process Additional information
1 Open your Otter Business Manager, if you don’t have this access, please contact Otter's Customer Support  
2 Go to the Otter Menus app, and select your menu BM MENU APP.png
3

Click on the Settings icon in the top-right corner

Menu Settings BM.png
4

Click on the Menu Sync tab to enable the "Automatic updates from POS Menu" toggle.

POS MENU SYNC BM.png
5

The automatic menu publish setting will be available only once you configure the Automatic updates from the POS Menu.

Configure the settings by selecting the information you wish Otter to update automatically from the POS.

Automatic updates POS BM.png

When Menu Auto-Sync is enabled, it will run every 6 hours, and will ensure the Menus are kept Synced. Check more details in this article.

NOTE: If you do not automate the menu publishing, Otter will only reflect the updates from the POS on the Otter menu. That means any new or deleted items won't be sent to the delivery platforms automatically. This might impact order processing through the POS!

 

Use the Otter SSMM to manage your Menu

Self Serve Menu Management (SSMM) is an Otter feature that allows you to create, edit, update, manage and publish menus from Otter’s Business Manager tool.

You can find here all the helpful guides about the tool and its features.

NOTE: Any changes made to the menu manually must be replicated in both Otter and Menusifu POS as the integration works with menu synchronization

 


Order Management

For these next steps, please, contact your Onboarding Specialist to enable the Order Injection.

What is required for the Order injection to work perfectly?

The order will be injected to your Menusifu POS only if the menu is Synced, meaning that all Menu items you have listed on Otter must be the same Menu items you have listed on your Menusifu POS.

Please, follow these guides to ensure your menus are Synced with Menusifu POS:

  1. Enable Menu Auto-Sync
  2. Trigger a manual Menu Sync in Update from POS

 


Integration FAQ

  1. Why is my menu updating without any action from me?
  2. Why is my item in Menusifu POS not imported to Otter?
  3. How will my Item Variations look on the delivery platforms?
  4. What if I have different prices online and in-store?
  5. How to check if my Otter Menu is correctly Synced and linked to my Menusifu POS Menu?
  6. How can I reach out to Menusifu support if I have an issue?
  7. How to fix printing issues?
  8. What happens if an order is not injected?
  9. If orders are auto-accepted in Otter, does the order need to be acknowledged in the POS?
  10. What if an order is canceled by the customer?
  11. How do scheduled orders work?
  12. Will it show which delivery partner the order is from?
  13. If Otter loses connection to my point of sale, will my delivery accounts be taken offline?
  14. How are tips accounted for?
  15. How is sales tax accounted for?

 

Why is my menu updating without any action from me?

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The menu updates automatically due to our new feature, Automated Point-Of-Sale (POS) Menu Synchronization, also known as 'Menu Auto-sync', which should be activated on your account. This feature is designed to ensure that your menu remains updated without requiring manual intervention. It synchronizes your menu every 6 hours, ensuring that any changes made are promptly reflected in Otter and from Otter to your delivery apps. Please, check this article for future information.

Why is my item in Menusifu POS not imported to Otter?

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Please, answer these troubleshooting questions:

  • Is my Menusifu POS connection working? If it is not, please make sure to have a stable internet connection and try again
  • Is my Otter Menu Auto-Sync turned on? If it is not, please follow this step to enable the menu auto-sync.

How will my Item Variations look on the delivery platforms?

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Key-words:

Mod groups vs variations, automated renaming, menu optimization

The item Variations will be imported as separate items into the delivery platforms. Therefore, the names of item variants will be combined with the item name. 

For example, the “Large” variation of the  “Vanilla” item will become “Vanilla” and “Large - Vanilla”. 

If you don’t want this naming for your item variations, please create separate items for each item variation or add them as a modifier group.Please be careful of using both modifier groups and variations.

What if I have different prices online and in-store?

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Key-words:

Price management, prices overrides, auto-sync prices


Currently, if you have different pricing for in-store vs delivery platforms, there are 2 options:

Option 1: Creating new items with uplifted price for delivery/integration use only
This option here will provide better long-term integration success, as it provides specific parameters for troubleshooting post-live when needed.

Option 2: Utilizing Otter’s POS Self-serve Menu Management Tool to update them

This is the recommended route if you do not want to duplicate your items within Menusifu POS. If you would like to utilize this tool, please notify your onboarding specialist.

How to check if my Otter Menu is correctly Synced and linked to my Menusifu POS Menu?

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Follow the next steps if you are already up and running with your Menusifu POS integration, if you’re new to POS integration, you can also contact Otter Support to set you up.

Steps Process Additional information
1 Select your Menu in the App list, then enter in your menu BM MENU APP.png
2

Click on Manage POS Links

Manage POS Links.png
3

In “Manage POS Links”, review the “Links summary” section at the top.

If all 3 boxes indicate that there are 0 unlinked items, 0 unlinked modifier groups, and 0 unlinked modifiers, it means the Otter menu is correctly Synced with Menusifu POS.

Manage POS Links.png
4

If any of the boxes indicates a number of unlinked items or modifier groups or modifiers, it means the Otter menu is not correctly synced with Menusifu POS.

Unlinked items can result in order injection failures and missed orders.

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How can I reach out to Menusifu support if I have an issue?

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You can reach out to the Menusifu Support Center if you have other questions regarding the POS system. 

How to fix printing issues?

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For printers configured by Otter the appropriate troubleshooting steps will vary depending on whether your printer is Cloud-enabled, Bluetooth-enabled, or Hardwired. Find your type of printer below, and follow the directions listed.

For additional help or information, you can contact Otter Support

If you are printing directly from your Menusifu POS system, please follow these steps:

  1. Ensure you have a stable internet connection to your Menusifu tablet. 
  2. Make sure that there isn't a large order backlog, as this can cause delays.

Contact Menusifu Support for further assistance.

What happens if an order is not injected?

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If there is ever an issue with an order and the order cannot be injected into Menusifu, then that issue will surface in the Otter tablet and appear as a POS Error. 

This should not be expected often, but if it occurs then the order can be manually entered into Menusifu.

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If orders are auto-accepted in Otter, does the order need to be acknowledged in the POS?

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If orders are on auto-accept then the order will be imported into the POS at the time of acceptance and the order will automatically print at the appropriate time without any action from the store. To appear in the reporting, the ticket needs to be assigned a payment type and closed out.

What if an order is canceled by the customer?

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Order cancellations are not reflected through the integration. If an order is canceled, the cancellation will surface in the Otter tablet, after which the order should be manually canceled in Menusifu.

To enable accurate reporting, canceled orders should be actioned upon within the point of sale.

How do scheduled orders work?

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Scheduled orders will be injected into Menusifu from Otter depending on the preparation time. Usually, they are injected 30 minutes before the order is scheduled to be picked up, but it can vary depending on the preparation time set in Menusifu per location. These orders will surface in the Otter tablet 60 minutes before the ready time. 

Please, contact Menusifu Support for further information.

Will it show which delivery partner the order is from?

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Yes, the delivery partner name and delivery partner order ID will be included in the order details once injected into Menusifu.

If Otter loses connection to my point of sale, will my delivery accounts be taken offline?

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No, your orders will continue to be executed within the delivery partners and within Otter. However, if the integration is offline for any reason, you should manually enter the orders into Menusifu.

How are tips accounted for?

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Tips collected in the delivery partner platforms will be routed directly to the third party courier and will not surface in your Menusifu POS.

How is sales tax accounted for?

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Sales tax is computed within Menusifu based on the tax rules that have previously been set up in Menusifu.

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