3 Important Factors to Consider When Shopping for POS System Equipment
If you’re planning on starting your own business, or you simply want to improve customer experience while helping your employees at the same time, then one piece of equipment you can benefit greatly from is a point of sale system. A point of sale system, in case you’re unfamiliar, is a piece of equipment that can help you gain a competitive edge over your competition by improving customer service and developing customer loyalty. With that said, picking the right POS system equipment is essential, as it can also help increase your annual revenue. With that being said, here are a few important factors to consider when shopping for a point of sale system.
Set a Budget For Yourself
First and foremost, you need to remember that the best POS system equipment is the one that meets your business needs, but also fits your budget. Picking the right system will pay itself off in no time through reduced labor and inventory costs and increased sales. You don’t want to buy a cheap system only to find out that it lacks the functionality your business needs. A common way to set the budget is to base it on a percentage of your sales (typically somewhere between 1% and 3%), or by setting budget restrictions based on annual revenue, which depending on the size of your business, can range anywhere from $3000 to $20000.
To Meet Your Needs, You Must Define Your Needs
Determining your needs is essential to finding a point of sale system that has the scalability and functionality to meet them. Make a list of all your requirements to help narrow down your search. Involve your managers and staff and ask them about challenges, frustrations, goals and so on. Involving your employees into the decision-making process can be helpful because after all, they’re the ones that will be using it on a daily basis. Some important things to consider when defining your needs include the size of your operations, whether you have multiple locations and the level of inventory visibility that you need.
Peripherals Are Worth Their Value
Buying extra equipment may sound expensive and unnecessary, but point of sale peripherals can enhance the system’s functionality and improve customer experience at the same time. The basic system generally includes a touch screen terminal, pole displays, magnetic stripe reader and receipt printer. Peripherals such as barcode scanners, kitchen display systems, bump bars and mobile point of sale equipment can all help make your business more efficient.
