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The Difference Between a Salesman and a Consultant

Are You Being Asked Enough Questions?

Don’t settle for “Cookie Cutter” Point-of-Sale systems. We all want the best Point of Sale system for our business. But there are so many options out there, and so many companies are all claiming their Point of Sale solution is the best. So how do you know? Well, let’s look at this one indicator, the Point of Sale provider. You can separate all the Point of Sale providers into two groups, the Salesman, and the Consultant. What is the difference between them and how can you tell? Quite a bit and the tell is how many questions they ask you. Let’s dive deeper into this.

The Salesman

One type of Point of Sale provider is The Salesman. The Salesman works for a Point of Sale provider that only sells one Point of Sale system. This might be a one-size-fits-all Point of Sale system, like Square or Clover, or they only specialize in one industry, like Toast for restaurants. Because they only sell one option, your business’s unique aspects and any questions or concerns you might have don’t mean anything to them. The Salesman just talks up their one Point of Sale option and claims it can do anything and everything you ask of it. This type of Point of Sale provider is most apparent in how many questions they ask you, which in this case could just be “how many stations do you want?”.

The Consultant

On the other hand, the other type of Point of Sale provider is the Consultant. The Consultant works for a Point of Sale provider that sells several different Point of Sale systems. This might be a local Point of Sale dealer like Total Merchant Supply. Unlike The Salesman, The Consultant wants to know all the unique aspects of your business because they are trying to figure out which of their several Point of Sale systems fit your business. They want to hear what questions or concerns you have because that will help both of you decide and agree on the best possible solution. The Consultant will bring up features and drawbacks of the different systems, provide insight on best practices, and what option similar companies have chosen, etc. This type of Point of Sale provider will ask a TON of questions because they care about what Point of Sale systems you get.

It should be noted that while The Consultant asks lots of questions and genuinely wants to find the best Point of Sale system for your business, best doesn’t always mean perfect. There are no perfect solutions, we all know that, but you will probably hear that there ARE perfect solutions from a Salesman. He just says what he thinks you want to hear, but you know better, so take it with a big grain of salt… and go find a Consultant.

As always, we are here to help. Let us know if you have any questions.

Vipre Security

Have you thought about getting a security system for your POS station? A security system is an important tool for protecting you against virtual threats. The number of security threats have done nothing but increase over the past few years. We offer Vipre, an enterprise-level security system designed to take the hassle out of protecting yourself.

Cost

Vipre is $15 a month. We guarantee that if your systems are compromised, it will cost you more than $15 in money and time. WorldPay estimates that you will pay up to $156 per record lost. Also, the cost of repair in our shop is $50 an hour, that’s enough for over 3 months worth of protection! The cost of recovering from a data breach can bankrupt a small business. For the cost of a video subscription service, you can stay protected.

Hassle-Free

Vipre runs by itself in the background. If any sort of malware is detected, it will automatically quarantine that threat and send us a notification of what it found. From malicious programs to sketchy websites, Vipre has you covered 24/7.

Constant Updates

The war against viruses is an ever-changing one. It’s like an arms race; Both sides are constantly evolving in order to take over the other. Vipre automatically and constantly updates their software so that it’s always ready for whatever threats it may face.

All of these factors together create a security system that’s designed to prevent and eliminate threats and give you peace of mind.

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Total Merchant Supply is a POS Dealer based in NC & SC.