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Research shows that 8 out of 10 retail establishments are out of business within the first 5 years of operation.

POS Software.
The Important
of POS
Choosing
Right POS
5 Reason to
Automate Your
Retail
Top 10 Reasons
to Failure

POS Software

With the right POS software you could

Increase profits by $10,000... $25,000... $75,000 or more!
Lower inventory costs by 5% to 40%
Improve customer service
Automate tedious tasks and maximize efficiency
Simplify the management aspects of your retail business
Improve the efficiency of your business by at least 20%

Point-of-sale technology solutions such as Cell.O can improve not only your business performance, but your quality of life.
It may not be the old stereotypical, paper-based cash register we still see in the movies. It may instead be a personal computer with special software known as "point-of-sale" technology.

More and more retailers are switching from electronic cash registers or outmoded paper-based systems to PC-based solutions. Why? Because it gives them the ability to generate better revenues, increase productivity, and, in the end, have more time in their personal lives for something besides work.

Cell.O is an affordable, user-friendly, and can help you grow and take your business

The important of POS

What is POS data?
Some companies get confused when talking about POS data. They often think of their shipment data or order data as POS. When we refer to POS, we are not talking about internal reports and we are not referring to shipment or order data. In addition, we are not talking about the format of the data. POS can come in many formats, EDI, flat file, txt, csv, AS2, etc.

Regardless of the format of data or the products you sell, POS data is the data that comes from the retailers regarding your products’ sales. It has a transaction associated with it when the product was purchased. The type of product can vary. It can be cellular phone, communication device, cosmetics, healthcare, vitamins, OTC, home improvement products, clothing, general merchandise, consumables, personal care, etc.

Other companies think that because they have a broker or distributor that POS does not apply to them. POS does apply. Whether you sell through food, drug, mass, big box, department, c-stores, military, etc. POS data is available. Understanding it and using it strategically will provide huge value to your company. Any product that people buy at any cash register will have a transaction record that is considered POS data. Sometimes that data comes to manufacturers and/or distributors. Sometimes that data is in flat files, EDI, txt files, csv, etc. POS data can also come to you through third party vendors, VAN’s, data providers, syndicated data providers, etc. It can also come to you in formats that you have to access from the retailers own web site like Retail Link and Partners.

The above paragraphs describe the data dilemma that companies have with integrating POS data. Before how to integrating POS data, let’s explain why using POS should be on your radar.

Why should we care about POS?
POS data is quickly becoming a strategic advantage for many consumer goods manufacturers. In the past, many companies used their shipment or order information to identify how much they were selling. Today it is critical to know when products are selling, which products are selling and where they are selling. Any company hoping to achieve a competitive advantage must be using POS to it’s full extent. Over the next few years, any company hoping to sustain their competitive advantage will have to have the ability to analyze their POS data.

This ability is quickly becoming a necessity where once it was considered a luxury. Why is POS data so important? Because it gives precise information on your consumer’s actions. It helps improve retailer relationships as well as maximize internal business efficiencies. It improves retailer relationships by providing you with the ammunition to help them understand your sales. You are now able to tell exactly when products were purchased and from what stores at various levels of granularity. More and more retailers understand the value of providing POS data to their vendors. In the past, they didn’t want to share this information. That philosophy has been changing rapidly. The more the manufacturers and distributors know about their product movement, their customer’s actions, the effectiveness of promotions, overall sales, etc., the more value they can bring to the retailers.

The whole philosophy of category captains revolves around this concept of providing so much value to the retailer, that they trust you to manage shelf space. This is a great status for a manufacturer to have with their retailer. Understanding and streamlining the POS data integration process also improves your internal business efficiencies. No longer do companies have to worry about going to dozens of different sources to create reports. Now they can access a single, integrated area of information. They are freed up to actually analyze data rather than spend their day gathering data and pulling together the same reports over and over.

In addition, it makes you smarter about your business. An integrated solution provides you with faster, more accurate access to information. It can be integrated to help you better manage your supply chain, measure effectiveness of promotions, determine effectiveness of sales territories, identify exceptions quickly, etc.

How to handle the POS data dilemma
The POS data dilemma is infamous. Every manufacturer knows that data arrives at different times from different retailers and third party sources in different formats. Data comes at sporadic times of the month, in a multitude of different formats with varying information. Retailers restate data all the time, products change categories, etc. All of these things can be viewed as difficult and cumbersome to manage.

Many companies simply take the POS data that comes in and they store it in a database somewhere in case they need to get information out of it someday. This is without a doubt the reason that most companies still do not have a POS solution in house today. Companies do not use POS data proactively. It is used reactively in case there is a problem. Because they are not using their POS, a lot of companies have a hard time understanding the value in it. The problem these companies will soon run into, is that their competition is starting to see the value and they are taking action to use it.

Historically, instead of dealing with the data issues, those companies that do use POS data efficiently have been relying on outside consulting companies to clean data and prepare reports for them. This option has been popular in the past, but is quickly becoming obsolete. Why is this option falling out of favor? Several reasons…
First, the costs associated with paying these outsourced companies another fee every time you want a new report is becoming astronomical to many companies, especially when they are already paying a monthly fee.

Second, reports that are being sent are not interactive and do not allow users to save their own views, drill into detail, filter, trend, etc.

Third, reports are static and do not allow sales people to easily take them off-line and manipulate them when working with buyers to understand their sales. They do not typically export to other applications.

Fourth, many retailers do not allow their data to be housed off site.

Fifth, as companies gain knowledge about their sales, they want more information. This leads to new reports which lead to more money. If a company can’t afford it, they have to tell their users “no.” This results in a less informed sales team. Limiting their competitive advantage can be catastrophic in many cases.

Sixth, companies want to integrate data with internal information so that they can look at sales versus forecast or shipments or promotions, etc. They are becoming smarter about their business and they want more options to enhance applications themselves.

Seventh, companies want to empower their business users and have an easy to use, collaborative mechanism for sharing reports and information, often within their own internal web site or intranet. Off site companies do not accommodate this need.

Choosing Right POS

Common Mistakes
Common Mistakes of Retailers When They choosing POS System & Software!

If you're like most retailers, you're worried about making a mistake when you choose point of sale (POS) software. Buying POS software is a big investment. POS software can have huge impact on the efficiency and success of your retail business!

What's more, there are around 1,000 different POS systems to choose from. And they're all different. All these choices can be overwhelming and confusing. The truth is choosing POS software is very difficult. And too many retailers end up with the wrong system. In fact, it's common for retailers to go through 2, 3 or even 4 different POS systems before they find one they're happy with. Those mistakes probably cost at least $10,000 - $100,000.

Here are few mistakes that retailers making over and over again.

They Buy Hardware First – Wrong Decision
Too Many retailers repeating to say, "I just bought new computers, printers and I have everything ready to go. Now I need to find POS software." We recognized as soon as we heard from the retailers. They could have saved a lot of time and money if retailers selected POS software first.

Why?
First of all, your POS software will have hardware and operating system requirements. For example, the software will require a certain version of Windows, Unix or Linux, unless it's an open architecture system. In addition, each program will only function with certain types of printers, scanners, cash drawers and card readers.

Second, and more importantly, not all POS systems are the same. And the system that you choose is very important. It will have a huge impact on the efficiency of your business. If you install your computer system first, you will limit your POS software choices. The perfect fit for your unique business might run on UNIX but you already bought a Windows 2003 Server. You might also find that the printers and scanners you just bought aren't compatible either.

You can avoid frustration and save money if you choose the POS software first. Then you can ask the software company about their recommended hardware and operating systems.

They Ask the Wrong People
All too often retailers ask a local computer consultant for suggestions about POS software. Most computer consultants have good intentions but they tend to give poor advice when it comes to choosing POS software.

Computer consultants are great sources for information about computers, hardware, and networking. However they don't usually understand the intricacies of POS software and retail management. Nor do they realize that there are almost 1,000 different POS systems to choose from and it's VERY easy to choose the wrong one.

Every retail business is different and has different needs. If you get poor advice and select the wrong type of system, your business will lose money.

They Don't Place Enough Focus on the Character of the Software Company
When you invest in point of sale software, you're buying a relationship, not just a product. In fact, the "quality" of the software company is usually just as important as the product.

Why is the software company so important?

After you purchase the software, you will rely on the software company to supply updates, training, technical support, and possibly hardware.

There are a few questions to help you understand why the company is so important.

5 reason to automate your retail

Most often we heard retailer saying following:
Why do I need retail management software?
What are the reasons to automate my Retail?
I am running a successful retail without any IT system.

Know Yourself

Retail management software is the nervous-system of your retail business and shoulders your responsibility. It automates your tasks and activities and helps you in expanding your retail. Retail management software feeds you with enough information that you can actually view yourself from a complete distinct prospective.

Plan Ahead – Make well-informed decision making

As retail actions are performed, retail management software builds a detailed history of each event. Analysis of this history then provides the basis for merchandising decisions. A collection of predefined reports can be run for any date range with online filters and multiple options to suit the user. Thus, it helps you to stay ahead of the competition and makes your decision-making faster and accurate and most importantly on-time.

Get better prices from your Vendors

Retail management software helps you in comparative analysis of vendor wise pricing and procurement details. It also helps you in finding out which vendor’s stock is moving faster and whose stock gives you more margins on products sold.

Give your Customers what they want

With an integrated loyalty program, you can differentiate between customers who have unique sales potential and the countless flying purchasers. You can also log each customer’s preference and pamper them in various privilege scripts in form of barcoded, magnetic or smart cards.

Keep good financial records

What if you’re asked to enter only 40% of data in Financial Accounting System and your 100% Final Accounts is prepared? Surprised…
It is observed that 60% of retail business transaction comes from Purchase, Purchase Return, Sale and Sale Returns. This integrated system will automatically transfer necessary data into books of accounts. What you need to do is to enter balance 40% of your accounting information (like Cash/Bank and Journal/Contra Vouchers). Integrate retail accounts or any third-party software with your retail management software to rollout your business efficiently.

Top 10 reasons to failure

Research shows that 8 out of 10 retail establishments are out of business within the first 5 years of operation. Why? Simply because many owners do not structure their business for success. Most failures are due to unrecognized problems, solved by minor adjustments after an internal audit.

There are many theories regarding business failures, but all center around 10 crucial areas. N Square Technologies Information & Strategy team has researched the industry extensively. These are the factors below that believe contribute to the failure of retail stores:

Problems with cash flow

Is your business generating sales but not earning the profit it should? Are you able to track where your inflows and outflows of money are going? A common problem for most small retailers is the lack of ability to know where their money is going.

A POS system will not be able to solve every problem with cash flow, but it can assist you by measuring your sales and giving you information of sales trends so you can prepare for future busy times and defend against impending slow periods.

Lack of capitol

Businesses are sometimes like people when they ask themselves “Can I afford this?” Therefore we must justify why we purchase things. For businesses, the decision should always comes down to “How is this product going to generate revenue or improve profitability?” Funds must be spent wisely, because some assets can easily turn into liabilities.

Today retailers have to decide whether to automate or not. This is a question that can no longer be avoided because chances are your competition has already chosen a POS solution. Retailers must consider current needs, but more importantly future needs are essential for an expanding business.

Another factor to consider is that lenders are much friendlier to retailers that have a viable automated system because the statistics for success are much greater when the owner has taken steps to control their business.

Control of Operations

Every business owner struggles to keep on top of all areas of their business. Realistically, this is impossible without a viable system to gather real-time numbers in an easy to read format. If a business owner has the capability to track sales, monitor inventory, calculate balances and all the other important aspects of management on a daily basis, they’re obviously not generating enough business.

Point-of-Sale technology is most beneficial to owners who want to be in control of their business. A POS system will give you the means to analyze your data with up-to-the-minute reports. Wouldn’t you like to know what product sell the best, what times of the day your selling and who’s your best salesperson?

The wrong employees

Every retailer struggles to find the right help. The perfect employee should be someone you can trust with your life because they handle your front counter and are the direct connection between your business and your customers. Which employees are competent to ring-up transactions correctly time after time? How much are the mistakes costing you? It is also important to remember but difficult to admit that 7 out of 10 thefts occur by employees themselves.

The only effective way of monitoring your staff’s performance and honesty is through point of sale technology. When a cashier is required to log in to the register, it is easy to track down problems. Who would skim money off a monitored till? It could also be that an employee is honest and simply making a correctable error. That’s why it’s important to locate the source and eliminate any possibilities that might be to the contrary.

Location

Location, location, location is true to a point. But many retailers limit this to physical location. Customers need know how to approach your store and it must be convenient, but what about Internet location? Using the Internet, your retail store has the ability to grow from a local Monday through Saturday, 10 to 7, to a worldwide, 24 hour, 365 day per week operation.

E-Commerce may seem like a huge step to many small retailers, but with a small investment into the creation of a website and an E-Commerce POS system, your business could easily open a huge market for your products.

Marketing

Your product has value, but do your potential customer know about it? Every small business struggles with the question of how to promote. If you don’t have enough capital to hire a marketer, there are usually 3 ways to start adverting. Simply ask non-competitive retailers for advice benchmark your competition and take chances. But the most important thing to remember is measuring your advertising dollars by finding out how your customers heard of you. The amount of dollars spent on ineffective advertising is staggering because many businesses use a “shoot from the hip approach” by just throwing their money into Medias without knowing if they’re working.

By taking a moment to ask your customer “How did you find us” and entering that information into a POS system, you’ll generate real numbers to analyze where your money is spent effectively.

Lack of customer knowledge

What are your customers looking for? “Friendly” service, affordability and quality are often the first replies many people come up with. Could you then explain how the airlines stay in business? Please don’t misunderstand; it’s just that many retailers confuse “friendly” service with customer service. Of course employees should be friendly because you want your customers to come back, but finding your customer’s need is the true formula of success. Another point to remember, customers will pay more if they feel they’re receiving value.

In general, do people buy gasoline from Jack’s Auto Shop that is 5 cents a gallon cheaper, or do they spend more money at Chevron or Texaco because they can buy snacks and use clean restrooms? Remember to always think as a consumer because we all have needs and businesses with an answer get our money. Perceived value is true customer service!

With POS, it’s possible to ask your customers what they want and while you store that information into your system. Imagine if you knew what type buying habits your repeat customers have. Mailing a husband a reminder of your products or services 2 weeks before his anniversary or the wife’s birthday would be providing a useful service to him. Directing him to items within his price range on your website would be providing a solution to him.

Flexibility

Triumphant retailers may not embrace change, but they realize the need to adapt to the evolving ways of our society. Ask yourself, are you selling the same products today as you were last year? They might be similar but I’m willing to bet you’ve added and removed product from your shelves. Are the assets in your store the same now as what retail stores had when you were a kid? All retailers must find the right assets, inventory and employees so that customers will come back to ensure they’ll stay in business. Your current strategies might be wrong, are you willing to change them? It took Apple years to realize their strategy was wrong and it nearly eliminated them from the market while practically handing the world to Microsoft. Opening your mind to change will create many difficult questions, but the answers may save you before it’s too late.

Procrastinating

Putting off problems will only double your workload for tomorrow. Paperwork, bills, legalities and maintenance are issues retailers face every day. Would you believe someone would put off earning more money if given the chance? Probably not. Then one must ask, “Why would a business owner neglect problems in their business which subtract from earnings or opportunities for improvement?” It’s because we’re human and we procrastinate decisions which pile-up on our desks and eventually make problem solving overwhelming. The winners in life take care of the issues before they become a mess.

If you’re putting off investments or changes that will increase the productivity and ease of operations, you’re only making your life more difficult. Point-of-Sale technology simplifies inventory management as well as other tasks, giving you more time to concentrate on those looming projects.

Lack of planning for success

These 10 areas are not intended to be in order of importance, but it could be said that the lack of vision, goals, and implementation of a business plan encompasses the all of the stated examples and is the primary reason for business failure.

Although it is possible for a retailer to survive without a business plan, operations are much harder to control and measure. Every business should know where, how and when to advertise as well as how much to spend. Have you ever wondered why Burger King advertises only on selected TV stations at certain times of the day? The most successful retailer knows exactly what their operation is and exactly how they want their product and service to be perceived by clients. K-Mart doesn’t try and tell their customer that they are Nordstroms, nor does Eddie Bauer attempt to sell pastries. It’s surprising how many owners have a difficult time establishing what type of business they own, “Should I add an espresso stand to my shoe shop?”

A POS system will not develop a business plan for you, but in retrospect, a POS system should be figured into your business plan. The retailers that will survive longer than 5 years know how to build their business for long lasting success. A POS solution is one of the first elements they’ll choose as a tool to erect the perfect retail store.

Now, you have enough reasons to use POS, so why not give it a try to using Cell.O which is gives you the best solution for your retail business.