Seven Must-have Features for your Next Retail POS Solution

 The modern point-of-sale (POS) system has become  much more than a cash register, especially for large retail stores offering  a wide range of products.

Today’s POS systems enable retailers to manage their business better and ensure customer satisfaction, while cutting costs. Below we focus on seven key features of the modern POS that will help your business rise above the competition and maximize the benefits of today’s omnichannel retail environment.

 Get Your Head in the Cloud

Retailers who invest in cloud-based technologies specifically geared towards retailers will be able to gain more control of their inventory movements, speed up everyday processes, and benefit more from omnichannel capabilities.

Cloud-based POS systems allow retailers and employees to access from anywhere there is internet access and on any device, enabling retailers to keep a closer eye on their businesses no matter where they are.

Backed by the highly reliable Amazon Web Services platform, a subscription-based IAAS like the Openbravo Commerce Suite reduces  hardware and IT maintenance costs dramatically, allowing retailers to focus on their business, instead of worrying about their IT.

Make Your Inventory Visible from Anywhere

A POS with inventory tracking along with integrated barcode scanning provides store owners with real-time snapshot of what’s in stock, where in the store it’s currently located, what’s been sold, and what needs to be ordered.

Verticals such as hardware stores handle a large number of SKUs and require very detailed information for each item, including measurements, styles, and manufacturers. Modern POS systems can be configured with as many features as you need, and whether it is sold by weight or by piece. In addition, specialty or out-of-stock item can easily be located at another store, distribution center, or the manufacturer and delivered to the customer much faster, which makes for happier customers.

Fine-tune Your Pricing and Promotions

Modern store solutions allow retailers to not only manage a larger assortment of products, but contain a flexible pricing and discounting engine that allows you to  set prices and promotions for set periods and stores. This allows retailers to maximize profit and minimize overstock and deep discounts that will cut into profit margins.

 Make Supply Chain Integration a Priority

For rapidly expanding retailers like Uniqlo and Zara, integrated supply chain management is an essential component for future growth. However, the added logistical complexity of omnichannel can impact profit margins unless the traditional supply chain processes are transformed and integrated to be truly agile and responsive. Faster and more reliable inventory counts also improve the accuracy and coordination of replenishment between stores and distribution centers.

Keep in Touch with Your Most Loyal Customers

Modern POS systems allow sales assistants to create profiles for your customers to save their name and contact details. Recording customer contact details allows retailers to send receipts by email, build their customer loyalty program, and target their promotions more accurately.

Accept All Types of Payment

There is no reason to lose a potential sale because your POS system doesn’t accept mobile payments. According to Business Insider, by 2020 mobile payments will account for $503 billion in sales. By accepting mobile payments, Retailers will not only be more efficient, but they will also be able to avoid errors, update stock levels automatically, and improve customer satisfaction. POS solutions  accept credit and debit cards with leading payment processors around the world, and the ability to issue custom gift cards to be used in-store or online also enables retailers to increase revenue while reducing processing costs.

Work Offline Now, Sync Later

The ability to continue selling if the internet goes down is a huge advantage for retailers. With traditional POS systems, loss of connectivity could result in data corruption, operational downtime, system failure and ultimately, lost customers. Whether you are running a pop-up store or operating in areas with intermittent connectivity, distributed store server architecture and built-in data protection ensures sales and operations are stored on the POS devices and automatically synced with headquarters once connectivity is restored.

For more information on the full capabilities of today’s POS store solutions, please visit https://www.openbravo.com/solutions/products/cloud-retail-pos-system-omnichannel .