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Why Retailers Need POS System? Complete Guide

by admin | Updated: May 15, 2024

by admin

Updated: May 15, 2024

Why Retailers Need POS System?

In my 20+ years of consulting with retailers on their business challenges, I have heard a lot of questions that seem to be consistent across different stores of all sizes. Here are a few of them. I have a retail store. Why do I need a Point-of-Sale system? The short answer is you don’t. Not unless you are planning to be successful. If that’s your goal, you need a POS system.

Here Are a Few of the Reasons Why:

Pricing  

I was installing a new Cloud Based POS system in a small grocery store a few years ago, Part of the service contracted was to help the owner capture all the 3000 or so items in the store into a price file for his new system. We scanned every item in the store and entered the correct retail price to be imported into the system in bulk. Almost immediately I ran across an item that wasn’t marked.

POS Pricing
The owner told me to ask the cashiers because “they had all the prices memorized”. One cashier said 59 cents, one said 79 cents and one said 99 cents. He was right, they did have the prices memorized. They just weren’t the right prices.
The item, by the way, should have been priced at 1.59 according to the supplier price list. A POS system really does memorize all the prices, but it does it accurately. The owner decides the right price for each item to be both profitable and competitive. NO guesswork, NO debates.

Customer Convenience  

I have never heard a customer say that they patronize a particular business because they have such great long checkout lines. Or that they love the surprise when they are charged a different price than the marked price for the items they are buying.
A quick efficient checkout procedure is a minimum expectation from customers who often could just as easily be shopping online or across the street. Keeping the checkout process efficient is vital to a successful retail operation.

Inventory Control  

Stores owners spend weeks finding just the right items for their store, pricing them perfectly and attracting customers to come in and buy them. Then disappoint that customer with an empty shelf.

Having the right items in the right amounts prevents out of stocks, overbuying of slower items and keeps cash moving from inventory to profit. And most importantly it helps ensure that every customer leaves your store smiling and planning to return when they need whatever it is you sell.
POS Inventory Control

Tax Reporting

I helped a couple of guys with a POS system who were partners in a small nutrition store. They did a lot of things very well and within a year were expanding their business and making a profit while their competitor across the street closed his doors. Their business was one I would call a success made from hard work, diligence, and a lot of perseverance.
But one of the partners decided they needed the extra profit they could gain by neglecting to pay the taxes they owed. One of the partners closed the business and went to work hoping to pay off some of the debt left behind. The other partner went to jail. Reporting your taxes properly is required and can lead to big trouble if you don’t.

The time you spend figuring out the amount owed and reporting it properly is time spent away from making your business grow and make money. Do it right with the least amount of effort and make sure you can show you did it properly. Use a POS system to keep up with taxes and provide the audit trail you will need if a person from those 3 letter government agencies asks to see it. You’ll be glad you did.

Here are some further insights to keep in mind:

  • Financial Integrity
  • Ethical Responsibility
  • Long-Term Viability

Payment Integration 

Not only do most customers pay with electronic payments now; The number of customers using electronic payments is growing steadily every year. Customers expect electronic payments to be completed quickly and correctly using their card, chip, phone and more yet to come.

POS Payment Integration

Having your credit card payment processing integrated into your Point-of-Sale software is not only the most efficient way to handle those payments, but it can also save retailers some money on the cost of their POS system. Allow your cashiers to focus on your customers and not on recording the sales by ensuring your electronic payments are integrated into your POS.

Customer Loyalty 

Rewarding repeat customers with points or some type of free merchandise for set levels of spending is normal business practice now. Once seen as an additional perk, customer rewards are quickly becoming a basic part of all retail promotion efforts. There are several ways to implement a Customer Loyalty program. But integrating it into your POS system has some real advantages.

POS Customer Loyalty
  • Improved control over customer point accrual
  • Enhanced management of customer information with greater privacy protection
  • Automation of points accumulation and redemption
  • Comprehensive insights into repeat customers
  • Better understanding of desirable items for customers
  • Increased awareness of total investment in rewarding loyal customers

In many cases, it can do all this at a lower cost than a separate loyalty program that is less powerful.

Cashier Convenience 

Smaller retail operators exclusively have part-time people as cashiers. Even in a small startup store where the owner is the cashier, they are only a cashier part of the time. More mature operations may have full-time employees working behind the counter. But these are often people new to the workforce and are generally the lowest-paid employees.

Too often we assume these cashiers will dedicate their complete focus to servicing our customers and maintaining our records at the register with full dedication and focus. Yet we also know that the owner/cashier is likely thinking about inventory, the rent, taxes, the electric bill, next weeks schedule, and tonight’s dinner even though they know that interacting with their customer is the most important task they have right now.
That part-time employee likely isn’t watchful of all their actions for many of the same reasons. The bottom line is, we are all human and we frequently get distracted when we are doing the same task repeatedly. This is why your POS system needs to be easy to use. It’s hard enough sometimes to focus on customers without the additional distraction of a cumbersome POS system.

Benefits of a SaasyPOS User-Friendly POS System:

  • Easy to learn and use for all staff.
  • An intuitive interface enables quick navigation.
  • Automation features reduce errors and speed up transactions.
  • Customization options cater to specific business needs.

Conclusion

In conclusion, a Point of Sale (POS) system is indispensable for retailers striving for success. It ensures accurate pricing, streamlines the checkout process for customer convenience, optimizes inventory management, simplifies tax reporting, integrates electronic payments efficiently, and supports customer loyalty programs. 

Moreover, it offers user-friendly interfaces, catering to both part-time cashiers and distracted owners. In an era where customer satisfaction and operational efficiency are paramount, a POS system is a fundamental tool for retailers of all sizes.

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