SecureTable Full Transaction Workflow
Working with Tips
Voids
Being specifically designed for fine dining and delivery transactions, tip management is an integral part of SecureTable. This section focuses on the various options available in SecureTable to facilitate tip management.
Tip options are found in SecureTable's advanced settings. Here is a summary of available tip options:
Tip
Enable this option to have the SecureTable application prompt for tip entry. Disable this option to prevent tip entry. Disabling this option will also hide all the tip-related options below.
Tip Preset (Select percentages)
Configure preset tip percentages that the customer will see when prompted for tip. Up to 3 presets can be configured. If you do not wish to use all of them, presets that are set to 0% will not be displayed to the customer.
Tip Preset Text Size
Select the text size used to display preset tip percentages. Available choices are Normal, Medium and Large.
Tip Threshold
Enter the maximum allowed tip percentage. Any tip amount that exceeds this percentage will require the settings password to be entered. Setting the percentage to 0% disables the tip threshold validation.
Tip on Tax
Enable this option to calculate the tip percentage from the total check amount, including taxes. If this option is disabled, the tip amount will be calculated on the sub-total instead, which does not include taxes.
NOTE: For the Tip on Tax feature to have an effect, the POS system needs to send both the sub-total and check total as separate values to the STPIClient. If the POS system only sends the check total without the sub-total, this setting will have no effect. The percentage will be calculated on the check total sent by the POS, regardless of the status of this option.
Enable Confirmation
Enable this option to present a dedicated tip confirmation screen for the customer. If this option is disabled, the tip confirmation screen will be skipped when selecting a tip preset or the NO TIP option. If using custom $ or custom % with this option disabled, the tip amount, percentages and resulting totals will be updated in real-time as the customer types the numbers in, but no additional confirmation screen will be presented before the actual payment.
Tip presets are used to simplify and speed up the tipping process by allowing customers to select between pre-calculated tip percentages that are commonly used. Any percentage can be configured, but they need to be realistic for the market in which the terminal is used.
Up to 3 tip presets can be configured.
Presets configured at 0% are not displayed.
The space used by each preset button is automatically adjusted to fit the width of the screen, as demonstrated in screenshots below.
One tip preset
Two tip presets
Three tip presets
No tip presets
The Tip Preset Text Size drop-down allows you to change the font size used to display percentages and amounts in each tip preset. The screenshots below illustrate each available size.
Normal
Medium
Large
The Tip Threshold is a control measure to prevent accidental over-tipping. If the tip amount exceeds the set threshold, SecureTable will request the administrator password before applying the tip.
IMPORTANT! Be sure to carefully evaluate how tips work in the establishment before setting this value. With low value items, the threshold percentage can be exceeded very quickly. For example, buying a water bottle for $2.00 and leaving $1.00 as a tip is already 50% in tip value.
Tip amount is higher than 30% threshold
Manager code is requested after touching the CONFIRM button
The tip confirmation screen is an extra step which allows the customer to review the details of the payment in a clear, minimalist display, without any other distractions on the terminal screen.
Add tip
Confirmation screen
Payment
If tip confirmation is disabled, the confirmation screen is skipped and the terminal proceeds directly to the payment. If the customer notices a mistake once the payment process is started, the transaction needs to be canceled at the payment application which will bring the customer back to the tip calculation screen.
Add tip
Payment
For more details and to quickly see the difference between various configurations, click the drop-downs below:
Using custom tip amount with tip confirmation enabled
Using custom tip percentage with tip confirmation enabled
Using custom tip amount with tip confirmation disabled
Using custom tip percentage with tip confirmation disabled
Comparison: Custom Tip Amount with confirmation enabled/disabled
Comparison: Custom Tip Percentage with confirmation enabled/disabled
With the tip confirmation option enabled, the customer is presented with the detailed calculation of the tip. This screen also allows the customer to quickly back track and make corrections using the Back ( ) button.
This section will cover the general workflow that users and customers will see when using SecureTable. The workflow will vary slightly based on the SecureTable application's configuration. The workflow steps that are user-configurable are also optional and can be skipped during the transaction process. Those will be indicated as such below.
Before starting a transaction using a payment terminal with SecureTable, at least one check must be printed from the POS system. SecureTable can also work with split checks as well a tables with multiple checks. Open tables without printed checks cannot be accessed by SecureTable.
The workflow will vary based on SecureTable's application settings. This section covers all possible configurations. Here are quick links to each step of the workflow:
Enter Table Number (Optional)
Enter Check Number (Optional)
Tip Calculation (with tip presets)
Payment (Card processing)
The transaction workflow always starts from the SecureTable home screen. To start, simply press the ENTER button.
Enter the Server, Clerk or employee number and press the OK button in the lower-right corner of the screen. The server number is mandatory to start a transaction. It will be used to filter the tables and checks, and only the tables or checks that are related to the server number entered will be available.
NOTE: On devices equipped with a physical keypad, the on-screen keypad will not be displayed. The physical keypad buttons will be used instead.
This screen will only be displayed if the Enable Search by Table Number option is enabled in the SecureTable application's settings.
The table number is used to further filter the checks that will be displayed. This is useful to display the full list of checks associated with a specific table.
To use it, enter the table number and press the OK button in the lower-right corner of the screen. To skip this step, simply press OK without entering a table number.
NOTE: On devices equipped with a physical keypad, the on-screen keypad will not be displayed. The physical keypad buttons will be used instead.
This screen will only be displayed if the Enable Search by Check Number option is enabled in the SecureTable application's settings.
The check number is used to search for a specific check. This is useful when you have the check in hand and you just want to bring it up immediately on the SecureTable application.
To use it, enter the check number and press the OK button in the lower-right corner of the screen. To skip this step, simply press OK without entering a check number.
NOTE: On devices equipped with a physical keypad, the on-screen keypad will not be displayed. The physical keypad buttons will be used instead.
This screen may look different or may not be displayed altogether, based on settings and previous choices made:
A list of all tables containing printed checks will be displayed if both the Table Number and Check Number screens were skipped.
A single table will be displayed if a valid table number was entered at the Table Number screen and the check number was skipped.
This screen will be skipped altogether if a check number was entered at the Check Number screen. In this case, SecureTable will skip directly to the Split Calculator screen, further below.
The table number is indicated to the left of each white box. Each box displays the total amount due for the entire table, and the green Multiple Checks text indicates that this table has more than one printed checks.
To select a table, simply touch the desired box.
When a table containing multiple printed checks is selected, the list of available checks is displayed. On a typical payment terminal screen, up to 5 checks can be displayed at once. If there are more than 5 checks, the list can be scrolled by swiping up and down the screen.
This screen will not be displayed if a table with a single check was selected, or if a check number was entered at the Check Number screen.
To select a check to be paid, simply touch the corresponding box on the screen.
The split calculator is the step where the server discusses with the customer about how the check will be paid. The following needs to be determined:
Will the check be paid by cash or by card?
Will the check be paid in full in one payment, or in multiple payments (split)?
If the payment is to be split, will it be in equal or unequal amounts?
Paid by Cash
Enable this checkbox if the customer pays with cash. If the customer pays by card, leave this box unchecked.
PAY FULL
Touch this button to pay the check in full.
EQUAL SPLIT
Touch this button to split the check amount in up to 10 equal parts.
UNEQUAL SPLIT
Touch this button to split the check in unequal parts.
Equal split is used to divide the total check amount in up to 10 equal parts. This is useful when there is a single printed check for 2 or more customers, and they want to split the expense among themselves.
After touching the EQUAL SPLIT button, select the Number of Splits. The Per Split Amount will be updated automatically.
Touch the CONFIRM button to proceed with the first payment.
NOTE: If the amount is not equally divisible by the number of splits selected, there will be a difference of $0.01 between split amounts. In the screenshot above, dividing $45.71 by 2 creates the first split at $22.86 and the second one at $22.85.
The UNEQUAL SPLIT function is used to divide the check amount in unequal parts. This is useful if the in a single printed check which multiple customers wish to pay with various amounts.
After touching the UNEQUAL SPLIT button, touch the Amount field and enter the amount that the customer wishes to pay.
Touch the CONFIRM button to proceed with the first payment.
If the Tip option is enabled in the SecureTable application settings, the tip calculation screen will be displayed.
When the Tip calculation screen appears, the payment terminal needs to be handed to the customer. The customer has the following options:
Select one of the pre-set percentages;
Enter a custom dollar amount;
Enter a custom percentage;
Leave no tip at all.
Bill Amount
This section shows the total amount to be paid.
Add a Tip
In this section, the tip presets configured in the Tip Preset Percentages in SecureTable's advanced settings are displayed. Each percentage box also indicates the corresponding dollar amount.
Touching a preset automatically adds the stated tip amount to the transaction.
$
Touch the $ button to enter a custom dollar amount as tip instead of using a preset.
%
Touch the % button to enter a custom percentage of tip instead of using a preset.
NO TIP
Touch this button to skip the tip entry process altogether and leave no tip.
The screen below only appears if the customer touches the $ button to enter a custom tip amount.
The customer uses the provided keypad to enter a tip amount, which will make the green CONFIRM button available.
The customer can use the backspace key to correct typing mistakes.
When ready, the customer presses the green CONFIRM button.
NOTE: On devices equipped with a physical keypad, the on-screen keypad will not be displayed. The physical keypad buttons will be used instead.
The screen below only appears if the customer touches the % button to enter a custom tip percentage.
The customer uses the provided keypad to enter a tip percentage, which will make the green CONFIRM button available.
Also note the Tip Amount value is updated in real-time as the customer types the percentage. This is provided so that the customer will immediately know exactly how much will be added to the check as tips, based on the percentage entered.
The customer can use the backspace key to correct typing mistakes.
When ready, the customer presses the green CONFIRM button.
NOTE: On devices equipped with a physical keypad, the on-screen keypad will not be displayed. The physical keypad buttons will be used instead.
If the Enable Confirmation option is enabled in the SecureTable application settings, the tip confirmation screen will appear. This is the last confirmation before the actual payment.
Total amount
This is the total amount to be paid, which is calculated from the check amount plus tip amount.
Bill Amount
This is the amount that was passed from the POS system. It is also known as the Check amount or Invoice amount, depending on the terminology used by the POS system.
Tips (__%)
This field displays the tip amount added. The percentage between parenthesis is calculated from the Bill amount vs. tip amount, and is always rounded to the nearest percentage point.
CONFIRM & PAY
Touch this button to proceed with the actual payment.
CANCEL
Touch this button to cancel the transaction and return to the home screen to start over. A confirmation screen will be displayed before actually cancelling the operation.
At this point, SecureTable will call the payment application installed on the payment terminal. The prompts that the customer will see will depend on the payment application used and the card type used. For more information on this specific part of the workflow, please consult your payment application's documentation.
After the payment has been authorized by the payment application, the payment data will be sent to the POS system. Note that only non-sensitive data is exchanged between SecureTable and the POS system.
The message Payment applied successfully! will be briefly displayed on the screen.
Then, one of two things can happen:
Splits
If this was a payment resulting from a split, SecureTable will return to the Split Calculator to process the next payment.
Full payment / Last payment
If this was a full payment or the last payment of a series of splits, SecureTable will return to the home screen.
The payment workflow with SecureTable is now complete, and the application is ready to process the next payment.
SecureTable supports voids initiated by the POS system. To be able to use this feature, the POS system must support it as well.
The Void Sale operation consists in cancelling a sale transaction that was carried out in the current transaction batch. With this operation, the funds are returned to the customer.
IMPORTANT! Only transactions from the Current Batch can be voided. Transactions that belong to a closed batch cannot be voided. To refund a transaction belonging to a closed batch, see Refunds.
Initiate the void from the POS system. The POS system should tell you which Terminal ID was used in the original transaction, as well as the original check or invoice number. The information should be available either on-screen or on a printed coupon.
Locate the payment terminal with the appropriate Terminal ID (TID). On the SecureTable application, the terminal ID (TID) is displayed in green at the bottom of the home screen and consists of 8 digits.
Logon to SecureTable with your employee number. There is no need to enter a table or check number, so simply touch OK without entering anything if
If there are voids to be treated, you will see a section for Voids at the top of the list of tables and checks. Touch the Voids box, which will display the list of pending voids
NOTE: If you don't see the Voids section, it means that no voids were initiated from the POS system, or your POS system does not support this feature with SecureTable
Locate the box that represents the transaction you wish to void and touch it. If multiple pending voids are listed, use the invoice (check) number or reference number to locate the one you wish to process. Touch the VOID to .
The payment application will display the transaction details. Verify that this is indeed the transaction you wish to void, then:
a. touch the green "I CONFIRM THE REQUEST" button to proceed, or;
b. Touch the red "CANCEL THE REQUEST" button to return to SecureTable. (This will return to the SecureTable Home Screen.)
At this point, whether the customer will need to manipulate the payment terminal depends on the type of card used for the original payment.
a. For credit cards, no further manipulation is required and the void will be processed automatically.
b. For debit cards, hand the payment terminal to the customer. The customer will insert the original payment card and follow the prompts to process the void.
Once the process is completed, the terminal will return to the SecureTable home screen.
prompted for those.
.