The top two goals of any retail establishment are to (1) increase sales and (2) decrease costs.
A good point-of-sale system will help you accomplish both.
Managing inventory and stock requirements are keys to reducing costs. A good Point of Sale system should allow you to see current, accurate stock levels at any point in time.
Another key to controlling costs is preventing theft. Your POS system should have security measures in place, like passwords and manager swipe cards, to prevent workers from pocketing cash without your knowledge.
Your POS system should be able to generate numerous sales reports. As a manager/owner, you need to see which products are selling or not selling, which products have too high or too low profit margins, and which products should be kept or removed from inventory.
To help drive sales, gift cards are a very popular tool, especially during the holiday season. Your POS system should allow you to sell and track gift cards.
You will want a Point of Sale system that allows you to ring up sales and perform manager functions efficiently and with speed. In the retail industry, time is money. If you are not able to quickly see the status of your business, you could be losing money and not even know it.
Finding The Right Equipment
Though you can use just a keyboard and mouse, it is recommended that you use a touch screen to ring in sales. Simply put, it is much faster than a keyboard and mouse based system.
The hardware that you purchase from a POS company should have warranties with them. Anything can happen with electronics. They can be damaged in shipping, cables can go bad, computers can get errors, etc. There needs to be a support system and warranties in place to ensure minimal downtime if something goes wrong.
Finally, a good POS system should be secure. Especially in today's world where identity theft is common news, it needs to meet all PCI Compliance standards. Start your search for a new POS system by reaching out to Business Software Solutions.
