When is the Time to Upgrade to a Point of Sale Software Solution?

Business owners having started their businesses using manual processes often struggle to determine when it's the right time to upgrade from those manual processes to a full service point of sale software (POS) system. The issue should be broken down into an evaluation of five issues;

1. How does a software solution support growth of the business,
2. Does the solution measurably improve customer service
3. Are there gains to efficiency by automating,
4. What are the risks to consider, and
5. What hardware is needed to effectively support the software?

If all of those issues can be addressed with an affordable solution, then a POS system may be in order.

Business Growth

The primary reason to upgrade to a point of sale software system is that POS solutions often support growth better than manual processes. Most POS systems have marketing features built in that can automatically execute marketing campaigns based upon actual client activity. While providing quality products and services to customers is the purpose of any business, the growth goals are to increase the number of customers that purchase products or services, to retain those customers for a long time, and to increase the overall spending activity of each customer. A point of sale software solution can address each of these through automated marketing, and staying in contact with customers.

Appointment-Based Businesses (e.g. Salon, Spa, Lessons, etc.)

Marketing Sample Campaigns

• Send 40% win-back discounts solely to those customers who have not visited in the past six months.
• Send notification of a sale on a specific hair color only to those clients who have purchased that hair color in the past.
• Send automated appointment reminders, and follow up thank-you notes with no additional effort.

Retail Businesses (e.g. Clothing, Boutique, Gift etc.)

Marketing Sample Campaigns

• Stay in touch with seasonal clients throughout the year via automated e-mail updates for stores in resort areas,
• Brand a gift-card program with the store's own name to bring in new business with the system tracking all activity for the business owner.
• Market based upon complimentary products (customer buys jeans, send a discount off tops)

Customer Service

Point of sale software solutions certainly enhance the ability to service clients. Most software solutions have a Client-Management component to store information, and streamline the customer experience. By storing client specific information in a secure system, solving issues such as returns or credits, or enhancing the communication with clients through birthday and anniversary messages, and retaining before-and-after photos of clients are just a few examples of how business owners can improve the customer experience.

Efficiency

Efficiency gains are found in all high quality point of sale software solutions. From the automation of inventory management and the ordering process from multiple vendors, to the benefits of offering reporting based upon multiple measures, a point of sale system can reduce the number of hours spent on manual activities down to minutes. For small to mid size business owners, time spent on issues like commission reports and payroll can be reduced dramatically as well. POS software is generally integrated with credit card processing to make checkout a breeze.

Risks

Owners of small to mid sized business must consider the risks associated with deploying any new technology solution, whether those risks are technology related such as meeting the most up to date compliance practices to protect customers' personal information and credit card data, as well as risks to staff such as the training required for current and new employees. Some of the solutions that exist on the market today are so complex, and whereas they are feature rich, the complexity leads to errors by staff members who are not advanced in the use of technology. It is important to see a demonstration of a system before purchasing one.

Hardware

Consider the appropriate hardware solution as well when purchasing a point of sale software program. One mistake made by a number of business owners is to fail to use an integrated hardware, software, and credit card processing technologies. The result is often a failed transaction can result in having to make multiple calls and to personally trouble shoot issues to determine whether the error is the fault of the software, the hardware, the card processor, or something else.

Affordable solutions exist today in the retail marketplace that can be purchased, rented, or leased. Small to midsize business owners must consider all of the alternatives before choosing tools that can ultimately enhance efficiency, customer service, and ideally help to grow the business.