iPad Point-Of-Sale (POS) System

If your businesses considering an iPad point-of-sale (POS) system, you may be up for a challenge. Not only can the plethora of providers be overwhelming, but you must also remember that not all iPad POS systems are created equal. iPad POS systems do more than process payments and complete transactions. They also offer advanced capabilities that streamline operations. For instance, they can eliminate manual data entry by integrating accounting software, customer databases and inventory counts in real time, as each transaction occurs. With these systems, you get 24/7 access to sales data without having to be in the store. The challenge, however, is knowing which provider and set of features offer the best iPad POS solution for your business. iPad POS systems vary in functionality far more than the traditional POS solutions and are often targeted at specific verticals rather than the entire market. For that reason, it’s especially important to compare features between systems to ultimately select the right system for your business.

To help you choose a provider, here are things to look for in an iPad POS system.

Backend capabilities

One of the biggest benefits of an iPad POS system is that it offers advanced features that can streamline your entire operations. These include backend processes, such as inventory tracking, data analysis and reporting, and social media integration. As a small business, two of the most important time saving and productivity-boosting features to look for are customer relationship management (CRM) capabilities and connectivity to other sales channels. You’ll want an iPad POS that has robust CRM and a customizable customer loyalty program. It should tell you which products are most and least frequently purchased by specific customers at various store locations. It should also be able to identify the frequent VIP shoppers from the less frequent ones at any one of your store locations, creating the ultimate customer loyalty program for the small business owner. If you own an online store or use a mobile app to sell your products and services, your iPad POS software should also be able to integrate those online platforms with in-store sales. Not only will this provide an automated, centralized sales database, but it can also help increase total sales. You should be able to sell effortlessly through online, mobile and in-store channels. Why should your customers be limited to the people who walk by your store? Your iPad POS should be able to help you sell your products through more channels, online and on mobile. E-commerce and mobile commerce (mCommerce) aren’t just for big box retailers.

Cloud-based

The functions of an iPad POS solution don’t necessarily have to stop in-store. If you want to have anytime, anywhere access to your POS system, you can use one of the many providers with advanced features that give business owners visibility over their stores, its records and backend processes using the cloud. The best tablet-based POS systems operate on a cloud and allow you to operate it from any location you want. An iPad POS provider, with a cloud-based iPad POS system, businesses can keep tabs on stores in real time using any device, as well as automatically back up data. This gives business owners access to the system on their desktops, tablets or smartphones, even when not inside their stores. Using a cloud-based system also protects all the data that’s stored in your point of sale so you don’t have to worry about losing your data or, even worse, getting it stolen. Because the cloud plays such a significant role, businesses should also look into the kind of cloud service an iPad POS provider uses. In other words, is the system a cloud solution capable of expanding, or is it an app on the iPad that is not dependent on the Internet? Who is the cloud vendor? Is it a premium vendor? The type of cloud a provider uses can give you an idea about its reliability and the functions the provider will offer.

Downtime and technical support

As a small business, you need an iPad POS provider that has your back when something goes wrong. There are two types of customer support to look for: Downtime support and technical support.

iPad POS systems are often cheaper and simpler than traditional systems, but that doesn’t mean you can ignore the product support needs. The POS is a key element of your business and any downtime will likely result in significant revenue loss. You could, for instance, experience costly downtime when you lose Internet connectivity. iPad POS systems primarily rely on the Web to perform their core functions, but this doesn’t mean that when the Internet goes down, your business has to go down, too. Many providers offer offline support to keep your business going, such as Always on Mode. The Always on Mode setting enables your business to continue running even in the event of an Internet outage. Otherwise, your business will lose money during a loss of connectivity. Downtime can also happen due to technical problems within the hardware or software. Most iPad POS providers boast of providing excellent tech support, but you never really know what type of customer service you’ll actually receive until a problem occurs.

Test the friendliness of customer service reps by calling or emailing the provider with questions and concerns before signing any contracts. This way, you can see how helpful their responses are before you purchase their solution. Your POS is the most important device in your store. It’s essentially the gateway to all your transactions, customer data and inventory. If anything happens to it, you’ll need to be comfortable knowing that someone is there to answer your questions and guide you through everything.

Grows with your business

All growing businesses need tech solutions that can grow right along with them. Not all iPad POS systems are scalable, so look for a provider that makes it easy to add on more terminals and employees as your business expands. Pay attention to how the software handles growth in sales and in personnel. As a business grows, so does it sales volume and the required software capabilities. Some iPad POS solutions are designed for very small businesses, offering very limited features and transactions. If you have plans for growth, look for a provider that can handle the changes in transactions your business will be going through. Find out about features and customization. Does the system do what you want it to do? Can it handle large volume? How much volume? What modules can you add, and how do you interface to third parties? You should also consider the impacts of physical expansion and adding on new equipment and employees. If there are plans in the future for you to open another store location, you’ll need to make sure that your point of sale has the capabilities of actually handling another store location without adding more work for you. If you plan on hiring more employees for your store, you’ll also want to know that the solution you choose can easily be learned, so onboarding new staff won’t take up too much of your time.

Security

POS cyber attacks have risen dramatically over the past couple of years, making it more critical than ever to protect your business. Otherwise, it’s not just your business information at risk, but also your reputation and entire operations. iPad POS system security is a bit tricky, however. Unlike credit card swipers and mobile credit card readers that have long-established security standards namely, Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance — the criteria for the iPad hardware itself as a POS terminal aren’t quite so clear-cut. Since iPads cannot be certified as PCI compliant, merchants must utilize a point-to-point encryption system that leaves the iPad out of scope. This means treating the iPad as its own system, which includes making sure it doesn’t save credit-card information or sensitive data on the iPad itself. To stay protected, look for PCI-certified, encrypted card swipers.

 

 

Posted in Best Practices for Merchants, Mobile Point of Sale, Point of Sale Tagged with: (POS) systems, accounting, app, business, card, cloud-based, credit, credit card readers, credit-card, crm, customer, customer relationship management, customer support, data, data analysis, database, desktops, e-commerce, inventory, iPad Point-Of-Sale, loyalty program, mcommerce, mobile, mobile app, mobile commerce, online, online platforms, Payment Card Industry, payments, PCI, platforms, POS, POS solution, products, sales, Security, security standards, services, Smartphones, social media, software, tablets, terminal, transactions, web

16 Free Online Tools for Small Businesses

16 Free Online Tools for Small Businesses

Whether you’re starting a small business or you’re just thrifty, you can likely benefit from some free online productivity tools.

There are apps for accounting, collaboration, customer management, development, scheduling, general office tasks and more. All of these tools have free plans, and several are entirely free.

Appointlet

If you make appointments with customers, you may need Appointlet, an online appointment-scheduling app for Google Calendar. Add it to your website and let your clients do the booking. Confirm, decline, cancel, or reschedule any appointment right from the comfort of your Google Calendar. Easily gather all the information from your clients that you need to fulfill the appointment.

Boomerang for Gmail

Lets you write an email now and schedule it to be sent automatically at the perfect time. Write the message as you normally would, then click the Send Later button. Tell Boomerang when to send your message by using the calendar chooser or the text box that understands language like “next Monday.

Dropbox

Is a cloud-storage service that lets you access and sync files across all your devices. While Dropbox only offers 2 GB of initial free storage (Google Drive and SkyDrive offer more), it expands free storage up to 16 GB free for referrals. Dropbox offers native support for Linux and Blackberry, as well as Windows, Mac OS, iOS, and Android. To supercharge your Dropbox, utilize the many third-party apps, which offer enhanced file syncing with Dropbox’s new Datastore API.  

Evernote

Is an app to remember everything, from lifelong memories and vital information to daily reminders and to-do lists. Everything you store in your Evernote account is automatically synced across all of your devices, making it easy to capture, browse, search, and edit your notes everywhere you have Evernote.

Gmail

Is a Google’s email application, which includes 15 GB of free storage (across Gmail, Google Drive, and Google+ photos). Gmail also lets you communicate via SMS, voice, or video chat. See who’s online and connect instantly. See your contacts’ profile photos, recent updates, and shared docs next to each email.

Google+ Hangouts

Turn any gathering into a live video call with up to ten friends or simply call a contact to start a voice call from your computer. Enhance your call with Cacoo for online drawing, SlideShare for sharing presentations, and Conceptboard for whiteboard collaboration. 

HelloSign

Is an application for getting documents signed. It includes tools to facilitate document signing, tracking and management. Notifications keep you appraised of the signer’s activity. Signed documents are securely stored and always accessible. Sign an unlimited number of documents for free. HelloSign has mobile apps and a Gmail extension.

HootSuite

Is a social media dashboard to manage and measure you social networks. Manage your messages, get custom analytics on your social campaigns, and communicate internally without leaving the HootSuite dashboard. Access a single interface to monitor Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+ Pages, WordPress and more. Or add more social networks with the HootSuite App Directory.

KeePass

Is a free password manager to help manage your passwords in a secure way. Put all your passwords in one database, which is locked with one master key or a key file. Remember one single master password or select the key file to unlock the whole database. The databases are encrypted using secure encryption algorithms (AES and Twofish).

Mural.ly

Is a visual-collaboration whiteboard app. Drag and drop images, links, and documents to organize your ideas. This simple visual tool can keep your team in sync through brainstorming, planning, or designing a project. Features include private murals, auto-save and backups, comments, activity feed, and chat.

NutshellMail

Takes copies of your latest updates in your social networking accounts and places them in a snapshot email. The NutshellMail update is then sent to your primary email address. NutshellMail supports Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Yelp, MySpace, YouTube, Foursquare, and Citysearch. Receive updates as often as you wish.

Rapportive

Shows you everything about your contacts right inside your inbox. Immediately see what people look like, where they’re based, and what they do. Establish rapport by mentioning shared interests. Record thoughts and leave notes for later.

Streak

Is a customer relationship application for Gmail. Track your deals from your inbox. Group emails from the same customers together, utilizing spreadsheet view right inside Gmail. Use the mobile app to keep track of your customers, make calls, and send emails. Share selective parts of your inbox. Schedule emails to send later.

Trello

Is a collaboration tool that organizes your projects into boards. Trello tells you what’s being worked on, who’s working on what, and where something is in a process. Trello uses boards, lists, and cards to create projects and develop your workflow.

Wave

Offers online accounting and finance applications for small businesses. It includes invoicing, accounting, payroll, payments, receipts, and personal finance software. Accounting, invoicing, receipts, and personal finance applications are free.

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10 Reasons Point Of Sale Systems are Better Than Cash Registers

Cash registers were the only game in town not too long ago, but these days companies have many more choices. Replacing antiquated cash registers with modern POS (point of sale devices carries a number of important benefits, including: 

1. Can cut down on user errors. Hitting a wrong key is always a risk when ringing a sale, but point of sale devices have built in checks to ensure that the information is entered accurately.

2. Customers receive more informative itemized receipts with a point of sale devices. Many cash registers can only print the date and the amount of the sale, but since point of sale devices are tied into the inventory control system they can provide much more detailed information, including a description of the item, the list price and the sale price.

3. Easy to look up past transactions. If you need to know how much you sold last Tuesday a point of sale system can give you that information in a snap. It would take many hours of laborious work to find the same answer using a cash register.

4. Maintenance and repair costs are often much lower on a point of sale device than a cash register.  The number of companies that repair cash registers is dwindling, and that means that repair costs can be rather high.  There are many vendors who repair point of sale devices, and that can keep repair costs low.

5. Provide faster service than old fashioned cash registers. Every part of the process, from authorizing a credit card transaction to printing a customer receipt, is faster on a point of sale device.

6. Simplify the accounting process. Old fashioned cash registers force accountants to sort through hundreds of receipts, but with a point of sale system financial personnel can simply use the built in reports or create their own.

7. Unlike a cash register, a point of sale system often includes an overall inventory management system. Store owners can use a point of sale system to track their biggest sellers and reorder those products when stock gets low.

8. Workers now a days are often more comfortable with point of sale devices than old fashioned cash registers. Generation now entering the workforce never knew a time without computers, and as a result they are very comfortable working with computerized technology like point of sale devices.

9. You can use a point of sale system to create your own purchase orders, eliminating an extra step in the ordering process. You can even automate the ordering process to make sure you never run out of your hottest selling products.

10. You can see real time inventory with a point of sale device, something that even the best cash registers simply cannot do.  In fact, many companies have found that implementing a point of sale system virtually eliminates the need for a costly hand count.

There are many reasons why your company should consider  state of the art point of sale device and ditching the old fashioned cash register. These devices can lower the cost of doing business while increasing productivity, and that can be good for the bottom line.

Ready to make the switch from a cash register to a point of sale system? National Transaction can provide the software, hardware and support for any POS need. NTC integrate your payment processing into many accounting software titles such as Intuit Quickbooks or Peachtree Accounting. NTC can also provide integation for any restaurant cash register system and all industry specific solutions. NTC provide credit card readers for Android, Apple and Blackberry smartphones and tablet devices. National Transaction can make the World your Point Of Sale.

Posted in Credit card Processing, Mobile Point of Sale, Point of Sale, Visa MasterCard American Express Tagged with: accounting, amount, Android, Apple, authorizing, benefits, blackberry, cash register, computerized, control, costs, credit-card, date, devices, hardware, inventory, itemized, low, maintenance, point of sale, POS, price, print, process, readers, receipts, reorder, repair, sale, sale price, Smartphones, software, stock, system, transactions, vendors, virtually