A Complete Guide To Selecting The Best POS System

May 20, 2021 | 5 Minute Read

Gone are the days when businesses used two-ton cash registers to keep track of daily transactions. A POS (point of sale) system might sound familiar to most new businesses. However, times have changed and so will the obsolete POS software we used back in the days. Modern technology is constantly evolving and bringing massive changes into the point of sale system.

What is POS?

A point of sale system is a transaction space for your retail business, essentially where your customers make online or in-store payments at. Each time a purchaser buys something from your store, a point of sale transaction occurs. It acts as an efficient inventory to keep all the daily, monthly, quarterly and yearly transaction reports. Software for point of sale is designed to bring the business’s ecosystem together, making daily business operations a smooth ride.

What are the advantages of a POS system?

The accelerated growth in the digital industry has paved the way for an improved POS technology, turning it into an all-inclusive payment processing system integrated with smart business tools.

Here are a couple of benefits of having a cutting-edge POS system.

Sales process automation: simpler and rapid transaction for businesses and clients.
Transaction tracking: POS system automatically gets updated upon new transactions, therefore making it easy for businesses to track daily revenue, purchase history and stock counts.
Partner integration: A POS system can be integrated with your accounting software and other reporting solutions to get overall insights on sales, purchases and cash flow.
Mobile POS capability: POS systems can be integrated with mobile and tablets converting them to POS capable of accepting online credit card payments. All you have to do is connect your card reader to your respective devices and your customers can pay by swiping or tapping their credit cards on it.

Hardware essentials for a POS system

The conventional physical components of POS.

Monitor/tablet: Computer monitors are for viewing employee clock-ins clock outs, sales reports transactions and the product database. In current times, iPads are way convenient than overweight monitors.
Barcode Scanner: Barcode scanners automate the checkout process by pulling out product details and updating the total checkout amount. When you integrate a barcode scanner with the inventory management system, it can automatically modify stock levels.
Card Reader: A card reader machine is an integral part of your POS system to provide customers with a safe payment gateway. A non-compliant credit card retailer can face fraud liability resulting in serious penalties and fines.
Cash drawer: A cash drawer acts as a safety net for businesses to store all cash for transactions. Having a cash drawer can be advantageous as there are no additional credit card transaction fees attached to it.

How to choose a leading POS solution for your business: primary features to look for!

If you own a retail store, it might get daunting to manage and keeping track of your expensive resources. Nevertheless, with the right POS system, retailers can skillfully run the show, keeping daily tasks and business operations at a breeze.

The real question is how do retailers find a POS service that offers more than just daily transactions? The answer lies with a system that streamlines multiple aspects of business management. There are a list of key features that are hard to miss if you’re looking to advance your retail business.

Here are some must-have features you should look for before investing in POS software.

Insightful sales reporting

A POS that provides a clear analysis of the sales data (daily, monthly, quarterly, yearly). These numbers will help you make informed business decisions.

In-depth sales reports ( products sold, cost, sales staff, total profit, etc.)
Real-time data regarding your store performance
Record of the top products sold

Powerful inventory management

The inventory management function offers retail businesses a golden opportunity to update product quantity and stock whenever needed. It’s easy this way to track how often you need to refill inventory.

Scan and calculate products digitally
Create product categorization with colour codes
Automatically update the system with bestselling products

Flawless customer relationship management (CRM)

An integrated CRM can make a huge difference as you’ll be able to audit purchase logs, track leads/prospects and maintain sound communication with your customers at the same time.

Keep records of customer purchase history
Store general customer information (name, contact, age, date of birth)
Offer loyalty points program to the customers and send out marketing campaigns

Workflow management

Imagine keeping a record of all your staff hours, daily tasks and productivity – all from a single system! Employees are indeed the cornerstones of your business, being able to set targets, monthly goals and identify star performers can take your staff performance to the next level.

Create staff schedules with respective responsibilities and tasks
Track employee hours and productivity
Determine star performers

In a nutshell, to earn a competitive edge in the digital business era, your POS should be capable of streamlining routine business operations in a single solution.

Unlock your retail business potential with Milano POS system

Integrate a point of sale system that acts as your all-in-one payment and business management solution. We have added countless features to make your journey a hassle-free experience with us, offering a simplified POS system that unifies all your retail business processes, starting from sales to transaction reporting.

Choose from a set of effective hardware, receipt printer, smart card reader, cash drawer and a barcode scanner.
Accounting support- a great option to import sales, tax, cash, inventory data and transaction history.
Track comprehensive KPIs, staff performance and marketing analytics.
Credit card integration with some of the major financial institutions.
Smart card security integration feature to safeguard crucial information.

The most vital job is to evaluate your existing POS and making sure that it’s up for the job. Set your business on the path of success with cloud-based Milano POS – get all the essential features you need to boost your retail business.

Start your journey with Milano