Point of Sale: Going Beyond the Obvious

Between competition from "brick and mortar" stores and countless online retailers, a business owner really has to work at differentiating his or her store and being the most responsive retailer possible to survive in today's marketplace.

The key to making it work is a point of sale system and software that work for you when it comes to meeting stock demands in the most timely and lucrative ways, as well as helping you stay relevant and memorable to your customers.

Aside from the obvious benefit of providing a smooth and fast customer transaction, and collecting their data, point of sale software can help a retailer make smart inventory investments and manage stock along the way. Point of sale data gives you the insight to invest only in items with a quick turnaround rate and those that are highest in demand with a good return on investment, so you gain a competitive edge -and more money in your pocket.

A result of becoming smarter about your inventory is not only that you make wiser choices, but also reduce the need and frequency of markdowns. As you may know all-too well, the longer an items sits on your shelf, the more money it is costing you to have it there. A lot of markdowns mean wasted money, poor sales margins and lost revenue opportunities. Point of sale software identifies the gaps in productivity for you, so that you can get back on track - and back to the happy task of making money, not losing it!

Another quiet benefit of point of sale systems for retail in action is the creation and maintenance of a "top of mind" experience for customers. Every retailer wants to be the first place a potential customer thinks of, and that key aspect of doing business is something that needs to be nurtured and reinforced. There are a number of ways to do this, and point of sale programs for retail offer you several built-in opportunities:

• A point of sale system will automatically print bar code labels when you log an item as inventory, and aside from ensuring correct pricing, you can have your store name printed on the label. The label goes home with the customer, and if the item is used repeatedly, your customer is seeing your store name repeatedly as well, reinforcing that "top of mind" customer experience.
• Customer tracking done by a retail POS system will tell you who has not spent money in your store in a while, so that you can send a promotional postcard or email, reminding them to come back. It also tells you who your best customers are, so that you can implement promotions to thank them, and keep them coming back to you.
• Loyalty programs not only reward initial loyalty, but solidify it and encourage customers to be walking word-of-mouth vehicles for your business. One frequently used way to implement a loyalty program and to keep your name visible is to create plastic customer cards that can be clipped on a key chain or kept in a wallet and presented at the time of a purchase. Point of sale software easily works with these cards to store data you can refer to at a later time.

If you'd like to learn more ways that point of sale systems and software go beyond the obvious to boost your business and keep you competitive with ease, please give us a call at (734) 453-9200. We would be glad to set up a time to speak with you about your business and your individual needs!