Benefits of Point of Sale Software
Running a retail business may be challenging but rewarding at the same time. With a dedicated team of employees, marketing strategies and the right type of business software, a retailer can look forward to a successful venture. A POS or Point of Sale software helps to automate many of the transaction processing at the cash register and is a time-saving investment. Here are a few benefits of POS software.
Transaction Management
When you check out at a cash register at the front of a retail store, you may encounter a POS system which consists of a display monitor for your purchase, a barcode scanner, an electronic payment system and a receipt printer. The brains behind the POS system is the complicated software that commands and controls the hardware. Every store transaction is tracked with the cashier’s id, store id, date and time of sale, sold prices, received payment type, rendered coupons or discounts and other miscellaneous data.
Customer Management
A feature that is often overlooked by a POS system is the ongoing relationship between a client and a retailer or CRM. If enough information is gathered about the customer beforehand, a business will have a more direct and individualized connection with a customer. Depending on the nature of the business, personalized customer profiles, spending history and buying habits can be tracked by the POS software. A smart POS system will be able to offer product coupons to the buyer on the fly at the checkout counter as a customer incentive.
Inventory Management
A store manager is responsible for maintaining the store inventory and doing this will be a nightmare without the assistance of a sophisticated software system. The POS software keeps track of every store item being stocked, sold, exchanged, returned and removed. Every sold item and who bought it is also tracked along with the cashier who was manning the register at the time. The sources for the inventory, usually wholesalers and other distribution channels are managed in the inventory system as well. For example, a pharmacy pos software will offer different prices for generic drugs versus brand name drugs depending on the supplier.
Employee Management
Employees are the backbone of a business and employee satisfaction will determine pretty much the success or failure of an organization. A POS application keeps track of employment history, promotions, pay scales, performance and suggests incentives for each employee while managing different levels of personnel.
As with any software, employee training is needed to understand and execute a POS system. It is worth the investment of a modern retailer who wishes to run an efficient and streamlined business.