Point of Sale Software
Point of Sale Systems | Buyer's Guide
The basic functionality of point of sale software does not vary
much from one package to the next. However, as you add more
features, the point of sale software becomes more complicated and
costly.
Make sure you know what you need the software to do before
comparing long lists of features. Draw up a list of the factors that
make your business unique. What unusual purchasing programs do you
have? Do you offer incentives that require very detailed or specific
tracking? A good POS salesperson will ask you these types of
questions to determine what software would be best for you - do
yourself a favor and ask them of yourself beforehand.
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Basic features
Most point of sale software supports a large number of common
functions: displaying the items and prices in a sale, handling
taxes, returns, voids, payment options including credit card
processing, layaways, discounts, accounting reports, and
inventory tracking. Restaurant POS software allows creation of
checks by diner or table, special orders, tracking orders per
server, moving diners from the bar to a table, waiting lists,
and more. It is safe to assume that any standard customer
transaction will be handled by all major POS software.
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Capabilities for multiple locations
Some point of sale software offers an "Internet data board." This is
essentially a snapshot of the day's business that you can access
from anywhere with a web connection. For franchises or other
businesses with multiple locations, this can provide significant
peace of mind. Other systems can be set to download daily totals to
a central server.
For businesses with branches in different regions, "multimanagement"
can be particularly useful. Multimanagement allows you to share some
settings but vary others between sites - for example, offering the
same menu but with different prices in different locations.
Frequent diner programs POS systems can make
frequent diner programs available to small restaurants, which until
now have primarily been in the domain of large chains. These
programs, which reward return visitors with incentives or discounts,
are rapidly growing in popularity. Examples include point systems
that work much like frequent flyer miles - each item on the menu has
a point value associated with it. Diners accumulate points that can
be later exchanged for a free desert, half price special, or dollars
off their meal. By assigning higher point values, you can give a
boost to high-profit or low-performing items. You can also market to
customers based on their typical purchase or time of visit.
Questions to ask about POS software
- Does it interface with my accounting software? How extensive
is that integration - does it simply an export of journal entries
for the day, or is there a thorough integration of the two
programs?
- How easy is it to make changes to the programming? You will
need to be able to change prices, items, and employees regularly -
make sure you can comfortably work with the setup interface.
- Does the credit card processing feature work with my current
merchant account? Or would it be cheaper to switch to the POS
vendors preferred processor?
- What type of reports is it capable of producing? Every piece
of software will give you basic reports - ask for samples so you
can compare.
- Does it support gift card transactions? How thoroughly - can
cardholders check their balances online?
- Does your POS vendor have a good relationship with their
Software manufacturer? IE: You need a hard programming change,
will it take years or months to get it? Or will it take much less?
- Does it interface with liquor control devices? (LCDs track
each pour of a bottle, reducing shrinkage and free drinks.)
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