You are ready to open your own little boutique shop, one-of-a-kind specialty store, or friendly gas station. Now, you need a POS system to help you run your new business. There are a lot of them out there, with some being better than others. So, what features and capabilities should you look for in a retail POS system? Read on to make sure you have everything you need.
Inventory
Managing inventory is always a big priority in retail stores. You’ll want a retail POS system that can do it well. But don’t stop looking at POS systems with inventory management for just your current store. What will you do when you eventually open up a second location? Is your chosen retail POS system capable of handling inventory between two locations? What about when the time comes to open a warehouse? Can the POS system manage the inventory between a warehouse and several retail locations? Ask these questions now and find one that can. It will save you the pain and stress of switching out your retail POS system later.
Barcodes
Barcodes are everywhere in retail stores, and there are a lot of them. Most of the products you sell will come with them, and the ones that don’t, you will wish they had. Therefore, you’ll want a retail POS system that can handle scanning barcodes quickly for checkout. Also, you’ll want it to scan a new product’s barcode into the POS system seamlessly as well. This will save you a lot of time week in and week out.
Speaking of products that don’t come with their own barcodes: a POS system that can print its own barcodes will be invaluable to any small business owner. It will save you time as you check out your customers.
Food
Another feature to look for in a retail POS system is a food sales feature. Now, it may seem a bit counterintuitive to consider this for your retail POS system. But far too often, gas station and convenience store owners discover there is extra money to be made by selling pizza or fried chicken at their establishment. This realization typically comes after they’ve been open for a while. They soon find the retail POS system they picked does an awful job handling modifiers, a key component of food sales. This will dampen their ability to make that extra money by selling food. So, before you vow to never sell food at your retail shop, see if your retail POS system can manage it, just in case.
I.D. Check
There may come a time when you wish to sell an age-restricted item. This could be because your customers are demanding it, or the item would go perfectly with your brand. Either way, you want to make sure that when you aren’t around, your employees can’t sell it to someone they shouldn’t. Having a retail POS system that doesn’t allow a sale to go through without proof of age is critical. This is done in conjunction with a scanner that can read driver licenses. Without scanning a license that is of age, the POS system simply will not allow the sale to happen. This prevents underage sales and saves you from the negative legal consequences. Now that’s just smart.
Whatever kind of retail business you are looking to open, Total Merchant Supply has the POS solution for you. Our cloud-based retail POS software, Merchant Advantage POS, can do everything talked about in this blog and more. To see how this POS software can help your retail business, contact us today and schedule a free demo in our showroom or online.