The guest chooses whether to tip
A comfortable payment moment gives the guest a real choice. Some people round up, some name a percentage and some simply pay the bill. With a card payment, the server should be able to see the amount the guest actually confirms. Bonzumo provides a total-amount entry, a percentage option and a route to pay without a tip. During setup, explain these choices so colleagues do not treat a voluntary extra amount as a fixed part of the menu price.
Ask about a tip at a sensible point in the conversation. Changing the amount unexpectedly while a guest is already presenting a card can feel awkward. State the bill first, then clarify whether and how the guest wants to add a tip. Confirm the visible total before starting payment. A restaurant serving many groups should practise this order as part of ordinary service rather than as an unusual exception. It respects guests and gives new colleagues a dependable way to ask.
Keep the sale and the voluntary extra distinct
A table has ordered food and drinks worth 48 euros. The guest wants to pay 55 euros by card. The difference is clear only if the server records the request correctly and the amount presented for confirmation matches it. The bill, tip and total payment should remain distinguishable in the conversation. Bonzumo handles tips in the payment context. Check the way they appear on receipts and in reports for your actual configuration using a realistic example.
This distinction matters even more if one guest pays the bill in cash and someone else offers the tip by card. Not every desired combination is supported by every terminal or payment provider. Decide before launch which variations your team can offer and when they should ask a manager. A clear answer is more comfortable for the guest than an improvised attempt to send several unexplained amounts through a device. The payment route should follow the agreed service decision.
Split bills need individual tip decisions
People at the same table may make different choices. One gives a fixed amount, another chooses a percentage and a third gives no tip. Bonzumo supports item-based and equal bill splits as well as tip entries in the payment flow. Before each partial payment, establish whether the tip is already included in the displayed amount. A preference from one guest must not silently pass to the next. After every confirmed part, the team checks the remaining bill amount.
Guests may also agree on a shared tip rule. In that case the server should still be able to explain how it relates to each payment. With equal shares and rounding, look at the actual balance shown rather than an estimate calculated in your head. A short practice case with three different wishes shows whether the process remains clear to the service team, guests and whoever checks the shift later. The software records a decision; it should not invent one on the guests' behalf.
Separate a confirmed card payment from an open request
A tip belongs to a completed card transaction only when the corresponding payment has actually been confirmed. A terminal may display a request before its final response is known. Treating an uncertain transaction as settled can make both bill and tip information unreliable. Do not start the same amount again before checking its status. That protects the guest from a possible duplicate charge and prevents a team settlement from relying on guesswork.
Agree who can investigate a missing terminal response. Record the table, time, bill amount and intended total. Only after checking should someone decide whether a new attempt or another payment method is necessary. Include such a case in a demo even though it is less polished than a perfect sample sale. It shows whether the team understands the relationship between the amounts and can explain calmly to a guest why the response must be verified first.
Recording tips and sharing them are different jobs
Entering a tip at checkout does not answer who receives it at the end of the shift. Some venues assign tips to the server, while others use agreed team rules. Handovers, temporary staff, kitchen shares and several service areas may all matter. Managers should decide and explain those rules to the team. Bonzumo can show payment and team contexts, but the rule that applies to your venue must not be guessed from a single payment screen.
Keep three questions separate: how much did the guest voluntarily give, in which confirmed transaction was it recorded, and what happens to it inside the business? Once they are answered independently, team questions become easier. Clarify who may record an exception or correction. The legal and tax consequences of a distribution method belong with qualified advice for your business rather than a blanket promise made by software.
Do not mix cash and card at daily closing
A cash tip may be physically held in a different drawer or wallet from the value of a card tip. Both may come from the same service, but they are handed over and checked differently. At closing, a manager should understand which sales were confirmed, which voluntary extras were recorded and where the cash really is. Bonzumo provides payment and closing views. The exact reconciliation with a provider and the venue's team rule should be considered together during setup.
A small shift exercise helps. Record a cash payment with a tip, a card payment with one and a card payment without one. Compare the visible figures with the expected cash and team flow. Ask not only whether the total matches but whether each participant can explain where it came from. Differences between cash in hand and later card payouts should not be hidden inside one unclear tip figure. A shared vocabulary makes the handover calmer.
Demonstrate the rules your venue actually uses
Bring three practical situations to a Bonzumo demo instead of asking only whether a tipping feature exists. Have one guest name a rounded total, a group pay separately and another colleague take over checking at the end of the shift. Ask what the server sees before payment, what remains visible after confirmation and how an unresolved response appears. Add your current team-sharing rule. The configuration discussion can then follow a real operation.
If you have previously handled only cash tips, introducing card tips begins with a working agreement. Who asks the guest, who checks the confirmed amount, who investigates a difference and who includes the figures in closing? Write those steps down in simple language. Software can make an agreed decision traceable. It cannot decide on its own what is fair and understandable for your guests and colleagues. A clear process gives the team confidence during service.