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Archive for the ‘Blog’ Category

POS Software and the Retail Stock Ledger

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If you have your choice between luck, timing and brilliance, take timing first, luck second, brilliance third and don’t ever confuse the three. Timing involves having inventory at the right place, right time and in the right quantities. Brilliance is saying to yourself that you can pick winners and losers without any help, luck is buying inventory on a whim and hoping more will sell than has to be marked down and timing is using POS Software with a built in Retail Stock Ledger that can give you exact data based on historical sales figures. You need inventory in quantities that maximize your turn rates and minimize your markdowns. The right amount of inventory at the right place, at the right time.

ProphetLine POS Software has an automated retail stock ledger that gives you comparatives on vendors, items, classes and departments. You can immediately tell which vendor gives you the best turn rates and sell-through. This information coupled with the automated open to buy furnishes you with the knowledge to make smart business decisions. The typical retailer is overstocked by 10-25% at any given point in time, meaning that for every $100,000 in sales, there can be $5,000 to $25,000 (at retail) in excess inventory on the shelves. When you start looking at $500,000 in sales, the wasted investment runs into six figures. Imagine converting $100,000 of excess inventory into cash. Take the guess work out of you purchasing decisions with POS software that has built-in open to buy and retail stock ledger.

Why the Variance in Price for POS Software?

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How much does it cost is the first question asked by many retailers inquiring about ProphetLine POS/Retail Management Software. They see Quick Books POS software sold at Sam’s Club for next to nothing and ProphetLine POS Software at a much higher price and wonder why. Quick Books POS software is targeted to retailers that are making a move from a cash register to their first POS Software system and do not have a tight set of rules in place regarding the merchandising of their inventory. If you are selling T-Shirts in Times Square and a quarter million new customers come by every day, the need for strict inventory control and who your customers are, for targeted marketing, is unnecessary. Quick Books and Microsoft RMS have developed a horizontal POS Software product for retailers new to technology and with simple needs.

ProphetLine POS Software is designed for retailers in tough retail markets with more complex needs where capturing information at the point of sale is essential to mining more business from their existing customer base. ProphetLine POS Software is a modestly priced software system which caters to single store operators or small chains with fewer than fifty stores. You will find all the basic functionality in ProphetLine POS Software, and all the advanced features to insure the success of a small retail chain.

Now back to the first question, how much does it cost? We are more than the entry level products, but a lot less than most of the POS Software products we normally compete against. The most bang for your buck does not have to cost more. If you are not interested in improving your business processes, cost should be your main concern and a two hundred dollar cash register should work just fine.

Latest ProphetLine POS Software Enhancements

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ProphetLine POS Software has just released the latest version of their award winning software and listed below are some of the enhancements:

After hours processing can now run the Retail Stock Ledger End-of-Month procedure in conjunction with automated reports.

Retail Stock Ledger End-of-Month changes done at a remote location will now update the appropriate Open to Buy plan when they are received at the host location.

Added the ability to make G/L postings at the time of a Receiving Ticket instead of when a Vendor Invoice is produced.

Ordering items for a remote location on a host’s Purchase Order has been enabled for Inventory Matrix Header items.

The POS Software now has an option to print a Packing Slip to the Finalized Inventory Transfer screen.

An option was added to automatically recall and tender Recurring Sales Orders to House Charges or Credit Card.

In an attempt to keep you updated on the latest enhancements in ProphetLine POS Software, I have just touched on the highlights and you can contact sales for a more in-depth report.

POS Software With Built-In Consignments and Trade-Ins

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Consignment and trade-ins are a snap in ProphetLine POS Software. Consignment items are inventoried, assigned a unique bar code with label and accounting is properly handled when the consignment item is sold. A record is also maintained as to the condition, length of time in inventory, cost and retail for a concise history that enables you to quickly evaluate like items brought in for future consignment sales. When the consignment item is sold, a payment to the consignor can be marked as cash, check, batch check or simply a credit in their account.

The functionality for trade-ins in ProphetLine POS Software is the same as consignments except for the accounting and when the cost of sales and income is realized. When you take a trade-in, the amount you gave for the trade-in is put on the books as a cost of goods sold and the item is immediately in inventory, labeled and made available for sale.

There is also a function that allows you to hold large amounts of trade-ins and consignments as assorted items and then itemize, receive and label at a later date. POS Software is much easier when the functions are built-in and not add-ons.

POS Software On Subscription Model

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ProphetLine POS/Retail Management software is available on a low monthly subscription fee that will help small businesses compete in the marketplace against the large mass retailers with the huge IT budgets. Small retailers will receive all the necessary ProphetLine Software; including customer marketing, rentals, reservations, trade-ins, consignments, order tracking, manufacturing, open to buy, retail stock ledger, true inventory matrix, layaways, built in accounting, IP credit card, debit card, gift card and many more function sets. ProphetLine internet communications with replication empowers multi-store chains with centralized views and procurement. ProphetLine POS software is a business system for developing and enhancing your retail processes.

The client will pay a monthly fee of $187 for software, support, updates and upgrades. There is no long term contract. Client will pay for 2 months upfront and receive the third month free, which will give them the time to set-up and go live. After the third month, they will be billed monthly for the subscription service or if the retailer is not happy, they can opt to no longer continue using the service. For an additional $63 retailer can have a fully hosted and integrated e-commerce web site.

Additional locations can be added for $150 each. This includes Internet communications for multi-store operations, store software, support, software upgrades, updates and usage on two terminals. Additional terminal licenses are $25 each and can be added at any time. Web layout, data conversions and training are billed on an hourly basis.

Even Good POS Software Can’t Overcome Bad Customer Service

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I always use the analogy of a restaurant to make the case for superior customer service. Great service in a restaurant with average food will probably warrant a repeat visit, but bad service with even the greatest food is a sure sign that a customer will not return. People will normally not tell of the great experience in a retail store, but the customer with the bad experience will, on average, tell four other people. Which is easier, finding four new customers or taking good care of that one customer before it turns into a bad shopping experience. All the technology and POS software in the world can’t do the one basic requirement, friendly employees.

There are several areas where POS software can make a difference in the ultimate shopping experience; faster check-outs, being able to pull up customer sales analysis and buying preferences immediately and a gift card and loyalty program. You can advertise as much as you want and without the good customer service, you are throwing your money away. Your primary needs as a viable retailer are to hire, train and maintain good employees and invest in POS software that enables your employees to give great customer service.

POS Software and Running Microsoft Vista

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I just bought all new computer hardware, peripherals and now I’m ready to load my new POS Software. If you are going to run mission critical business applications, Vista is not ready for prime time. Make sure you check with the POS Software company you are buying from for any compatibility issues with Vista or other operating systems. ProphetLine POS Software will run just fine on Vista, but the issues are with most of the peripherals. An example of this is Epson TM88IV thermal receipt printers which are almost the standard in retail locations. After much effort and frustration, we finally learned that Windows 2000 drivers would allow Epson printers to work if running Vista, but this is only the tip of the iceberg because of all the other printers, pole displays, scanners, etc. Another major problem is security and the User Access Controls (UAC) built into Vista. Simplify your life and run Windows XP until all the issues with Vista are identified and solutions available.

What Should You Expect From Your POS Software Company After The Sale?

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You bought the POS Software, loaded your inventory, defined your departments, classes, security levels and are making sales; what should you expect from the POS Software company after the purchase. That is the part that separates successful retailers from those that struggle. On-going training will be the most important issue to fully understanding the features and functionality of the POS Software you purchase. You need to learn all of the software capabilities after the initial set-up training; not just the getting started functions. Take your on-going training in one or two hour on-line sessions, which will give you a much higher retention rate than trying to absorb everything in a two to five day training class.

The next thing you need to expect from your POS Software company is a good technical department that can answer your support questions promptly and resolve your issues. You should also expect a good migration path for up-dates and up-grades to your current software version. At ProphetLine, we encourage our customers to access their on-line account manager and learn what new features are in the shipping version and download it immediately. Most forward thinking POS Software companies can keep you up to date on future trends and needs.

POS Software for the Superior Customer Experience

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Quality POS Software in the hands of a good business person can be the most effective tool in retail. It allows the sales staff to know what is happening with the inventory, their customer buying habits and the financial stability of the retail outlet. Your POS Software will give you that extra edge for creating a superior customer experience. When was the last time you walked away from a retailer and felt that there was a concerted effort to provide you with the best shopping experience you could have. From a warm greeting as you enter to knowledge of all your past transactions and the ability to put the proper product in front of you. This can only be achieved with POS Software that keeps the customer preferences and past purchase history in an easy one click function. When your POS Software is doing all of the work of remembering the past, you can do the task of looking to the future.

An Investment In Point of Sale(POS) Software Can Make The Difference

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Laying awake at night and wondering if your business is going to be around tomorrow is not the way to enjoy life.

Let’s say your Retail Store does $500,000. in yearly sales, you could, according to industry averages, add 15% to your Bottom Line with quality POS Software.

Theft and Shrinkage 2% $10,000.
 
Prompt and accurate statements 1% 5,000.
 
Accurate inventory pricing
    At time of sale
1% 5,000.
 
Built in sales prompts 1% 5,000.
 
Mishandled & inaccurate
    Inventory counts
2% 10,000.
 
Retail Stock Ledger reporting
    Better turn rates, sell
through &
    margin comparisons
2% 10,000.
 
Targeted Marketing
    {know the Buying habits of your
     customer and target market}
1% 5,000.
 
Web Shopping Cart 5% 25,000.
  ________
You could make this   $75,000.

For a small monthly investment, you can improve your financial picture and have the tools you need for better retailing, POS software, support, upgrades, web shopping cart and web hosting.

*All figures are based on industry averages and may vary with each retailer.