Point of Sale System Software Reviews

Retail POS

noreply@blogger.com (Abhay) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 05:37:00 -0700

Retail POS systems have such a wide variety of uses – Grocery stores, apparel stores, convenience, stores, and other specialty niches have used point-of-sale technology to their advantage. Not only are businesses made more efficient and profitable; customers have also share the benefits of POS.

Point of sale, at it’s core, is the action that happens at the time of a retail purchase. Items are scanned, cash and credit cards are used to pay for the purchase, and receipts are printed. All actions are accurately recorded by the POS software, and the customer is on their merry way in as little time as 45 seconds.

The premise of retail POS is to help streamline your transaction and accounting processes. Inventory tracking is a snap, and automatically calculated. Employees can be monitored, theft is reduced, and customers are able to move through the store quicker. Many systems also can be integrated with accounting software like Quickbooks to help assist and speed up accounting procedures.

Source : Retail POS

Video Store POS

noreply@blogger.com (Abhay) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 04:59:00 -0700

A lost videos, video games, or DVD in a rental environment not only create inventory nightmares, but also lose earning potential. Having a huge selection generally will help give video stores an increased edge on the competition. If you want to keep accurate track of your video store inventory, you will need to rock solid management tools.

Converting your video store to a point of sale system can help address your management issues. You no longer will have a separate cash register and rental management database. Full integration creates a simplified checkout process. Every transaction is recorded in a split second and places all of the vital information at your finger tip.

With the high inventory turnover in video rental stores, you must constantly be on top of the hot releases. Games, blockbusters, and other eagerly awaited releases will sizzle for a few months, then begin stagnating. With the proper POS solution, you can easily view your traffic and note slowdowns, then act accordingly. You can order many titles directly from your supplier in just a few hours with the proper software modules.

Likewise, you can be instantly notified of late rentals and have the fees automatically calculated. POS will also allow you to compete with the new shape of video rental business models, such as NetFlix or Blockbuster’s no-due-date offerings. Billing can then be automated using recurring billing of the customer’s credit cards.

Source : Video Store POS

POS Buying Guide

noreply@blogger.com (Abhay) — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 04:57:00 -0700

1. Choose Your Software First

Retailers often make the common mistake of purchasing all of their POS hardware, then seeking out software for their system. This is a backwards and COSTLY way to do things. Why?

POS software generally has it's own hardware requirements. If you purchase hardware first, then you could be limiting yourself to point of sale software that is available to only your system configuration.

Perhaps the best software suited for your industry has only been written for Windows machines, but you have already purchased a system that runs on Linux. Or maybe the software is not backwards compatible. All of these issues will come up if you choose hardware before you choos software.

2. Stick to on supplier/solution provider

Buying your hardware from the same provider that you purchased your software from is always the safest bet. The providers often have intimate knowledge of not just your software, but also your hardware. They know how to optimize your system for maximimum performance.

You will also find that you won't get caught in the "blame game". The "blame game" happens when something goes wrong with your system, the hardware provider will often blame it on the software, and vice versa. If you use the same company for both hardware and software, you will find yourself with much more reliable support.

3. Look for systems tailored to your industry

If a provider has experience within your business niche, they are often your best choice. The provider will have more understanding of your businesses needs and requirments. Often the provider will be able to provide customized solutions geared solidly at your line of business.

4. Recognizable Brand

Buying name brand is generally safer than going with no namers. Make sure your provider is using point of sale software with a proven track record, as well as reliable hardware known. Querying other businesses, consumer reports, and buyer's guides will often aid your research.

5. Pad your budget for variables

When recieving a quote for a company, make sure they include all of the other costs associated with the system. For instance, your barcode scanners, receipt paper, leasing information, etc. These costs can add up, and while Point of sale is always going to save you money in the long run, you want to make sure you aren't going to be nailed with hidden costs.

Source : POS Buying Guide

Coffee Shop POS Software Demo : Coffee Point of Sale System

noreply@blogger.com (Abhay) — Fri, 21 May 2010 05:36:00 -0700

Video Source : Coffee Shop POS Software Demo : Coffee Point of Sale System

Bar POS Systems : Nightclub Point of Sale Software : POS Demo

noreply@blogger.com (Abhay) — Fri, 21 May 2010 05:30:00 -0700

Video Source : Bar POS Systems : Nightclub Point of Sale Software : POS Demo

Business Plan Resources for your Restaurant

noreply@blogger.com (Abhay) — Fri, 21 May 2010 05:20:00 -0700

From the start, it will be a well-researched restaurant business plan that will be your single greatest asset. It is the greatest key to convince anyone to make a loan, invest capital, lease, or do any type of business with you. Think of the restaurant business plan as an extremely valuable road map for your restaurant business. Long before you open the doors of your new restaurant, having privy to the best restaurant business ideas and restaurant business information will serve to enlighten you on both the possible pitfalls and various opportunities of the new venture.

Restaurant start ups should incorporate in their business plan such elements as company description, industry analysis, products and related services, the target market, information on the competition, sales and strategy operations, planned management and organizational structure, a long term development plan that includes an exit strategy, and financial data projections.

Many restaurateurs omit these crucial stages when buying a restaurant. They are focused on getting the financing to open the restaurant doors to create cash flow as quickly as possible. Doing the hard work, creating a winning image, great food, and the burning will to succeed are not enough. Proper training will be perennial among the restaurant resources that must be in place. The restaurant business plan must also include well-established operating procedures that will be followed on a religious basis. At any point in time, the winners of any venture are the ones that have the best tools to work with.

Knowledge alone is not power! Power is knowledge applied effectively! You will need to be exposed to up-to-date restaurant business ideas, restaurant business information, complete sample plans and more to stay abreast and competitive in the market. And for both parties, it makes the transactions of buying restaurant and selling a restaurant a lot easier.

Many of the challenges that will face the restaurant owner will be in the area of menu and recipes costs, hiring, illness and complaints, foodborne illnesses, sales breakeven points, operations, employee corrective actions, restaurant maintenance, employee and manager reviews, food cost yields, labor scheduling planning, running inventories, employee time-off requests, scheduled restaurant evaluations, and customer service surveys.

An excellent source of information for your overall restaurant business plan can come from business software. Planning experts, consultants, executives, and CPAs use the Business Plan Pro 2004 PREMIER. The package allows the user to combine several businesses plans to see the big picture and track results more efficiently. You will be able to see advanced financials, sales forecasting, and profit and loss statements far more clear. Another great software tool is the “Restaurant Business Plan Software” that incorporates all the tools necessary for the small business owner to succeed.

Perhaps for the restaurant owner, the best software package available might be the QuickPlan 2003 Restaurant Business Plan software package. This is a complete package that is industry-specific, and covers full service, limited service, fast food, bakeries, caterers, nightclubs, franchises, and expansions with that incorporate a definite them.

These software packages can be great tools for setting up a fantastic business plan that will help you to get funded. All of this may at first seem difficult, but you can rest assured that your competition is privy to such information. The sooner you are on board, the sooner your success will be insured. Knowing your business, your market, and your strengths and weaknesses is just smart business. Remember, it is a sound business plan that will make your dreams of restaurant ownership a reality. And, should you decide to sell a restaurant business in the future, you can serve as a valuable font of information for a potential buyer.

The National Restaurant Association is an excellent industry tool that has the latest information on industry trends and research results. Being part of such an organization encourages networking with others to share information and discover new strategies that will make member’s operations more effective. Some of the group studies include internal auditing, human resources, risk & safety issues, marketing, quality assurance, and nutrition. It is a privilege to have access to leaders in the industry that can offer timely insight on the things that matter the most—as well as help you continually fine tune your restaurant business plan.

In fact, any support group that offers assistance and networking is worth looking into. The immediate gain is access to a constantly expanding array of insights, tools, and resources from fellow independent restaurant operators. You are embarking on a time-honored endeavor of business ownership. How you mentally approach the task will weigh heavily on your chances of success. Right actions only have one consequence: Right results.

Source : Business Plan Resources for your Restaurant

Restaurant POS Systems: Enhancing Revenues Through Innovation

noreply@blogger.com (Abhay) — Wed, 19 May 2010 05:52:00 -0700

It doesn’t seem so long ago that hospitality operators were excited to see Remanco POS Systems hit the marketplace. Does anyone out there still remember the original Remanco POS System? You had a sleek looking keypad, a little black plastic “key” and a bible of PLU codes to memorize. You punched in your food and beverage orders, and miraculously, your beverage orders printed out at the bar while your food orders printed simultaneously in the kitchen. It was exciting, sleek, and revolutionary. In many restaurants, the main Remanco terminal was proudly located next to the Pac-Man machine. Enough said.

The world of restaurant POS systems & POS technology in general has come a long way since those early days. Today’s hospitality operators are much more tech savvy than they’ve ever been, and the point of sale industry is slowly responding to this fact. With this said, here’s the top features you, as a hospitality operator in 2009, should be looking for once you’ve decided to invest in a new restaurant POS system.

Data Reporting

The top two issues every hospitality-based business wants to get a handle on are food cost, and labor costs. Keep those things in check, and your chances of succeeding in such a competitive market are greatly increased. Modern POS systems will help you get a handle on these profit killers by allowing managers access to important, easy to understand data on demand, and in real time. A POS system with state of the art data reporting capabilities will allow you to forecast business volumes, which gives managers the information they need to fine tune scheduling and avoid unnecessary labor costs. Time and attendance can be precisely monitored. Real time and instant access to data also allows managers to spot problems quickly and make snap decisions to address discrepancies in cash flow and adjust inventory levels. The POS system will pay for itself many times over if it can help you get a handle on these two issues alone

Back Office Management & Database Integration

Having all your POS terminals linked together, combined with the ability to run reports, make menu and pricing changes on the fly, check inventory levels and consolidate payroll at one central location is crucial to running your business efficiently and profitably. Your POS system should allow you to do this quickly and easily, all from the back office. Database integration and back office management capability should be at the top of your shopping list.

Customer Relationship Management

Effective promotions can go a long way in boosting profits. Determining if your coupon or gift card program is working as it should, however, can be difficult. POS systems that can quickly help you evaluate which promotions are working and which ones aren’t, can save you time and money in spades. Having a POS system that can keep track of customer histories, their likes and dislikes, comments, etc. can give you valuable insight into what future promotions to put in effect, and which ones should bite the dust. Effective customer loyalty and points programs keep your customers coming back. When it comes to CRM, let your POS system do most of the thinking for you.

Wireless Mobile Computing & Handheld Devices

Wireless point of sale is imperative for businesses that operate outside of traditional, brick and mortar locations. Venues such as ski resorts, theme parks or even stadiums can greatly benefit from wireless POS systems (think concession stands or private suites for instance). In a more traditional environment, such as a restaurant, the benefits of having wireless, at the table ordering capabilities through handheld devices are many.

With wireless handheld units, serving staff save time by not having to line up to get access to the POS terminal, and therefore are much more productive. Managers can reduce staffing levels by scheduling just a few skilled staff, give them larger sections, and make their primary focus greeting customers, taking orders and up-selling. Non-serving staff can then be hired (at significant payroll savings) to dispatch food and clean sections. When serving staff are able to remain on the floor, the result is a superior customer service experience for your patrons and increased sales for you through up-selling and faster table turns. Also, waste is cut down considerably, since placing orders at the table greatly reduces errors.

Wireless handheld devices have been greatly refined in recent years, with increased battery life for handheld units and improved ease of use for staff. The time indeed has come to embrace wireless POS technology.

Payment Security & PCI Compliance

Payment security is crucial in today’s marketplace. With the incidence of fraud and identity theft reaching epidemic proportions, safeguarding the safety of your client’s credit card data is vital. The PCI Security Standards Council is an open global forum for the ongoing development, enhancement, storage, dissemination and implementation of security standards for account data protection. It’s imperative that POS systems today follow this standard. Is your POS system secure and PCI compliant? If it’s not, it needs to be.

Self Service Technology

Self service technology has created quite a buzz in recent years. Having moved beyond kiosks, POS systems now offer self serve options that give restaurateurs’ the ability to delegate the food ordering process to customers themselves. Touch screen terminals are now intuitive and easy to use, and offer add on/up sell items items instantaneously, which boosts average check totals. The traditional “Server” is replaced by food runners, or counter staff, who can also do quality checks. Even the payment process can be taken care of by the customer, allowing for quicker table turns and increased cover counts. Self service technology may not be appealing for patrons looking for a fine dining experience, but it certainly is attractive for those who operate fast food or quick serve/casual dining establishments.

Enterprise POS & Multi Location Capability

For those who operate large and multi-location operations, choosing the right POS system has never been easy. Due to logistics and a host of other obstacles, businesses with multiple locations were forced to be creative in how they coordinated the collection of cash and data. Businesses such as these require enterprise wide POS systems that offer features such as client recognition capabilities, hospitality and retail sales, gift card processing, quick and easy debit and credit options, and more. They also require a POS system that can get around cabling and network issues, and preserve precious data in case of a system or network failure. If your company fits in this category, a reliable and flexible enterprise POS solution is a must.

With the above points in mind, one POS system is without peer in the point of sale industry. Toronto based Volante POS Systems offers a state of the art, modern and flexible POS system. Volante has seamlessly embraced all the above features and more, and is fully PCI compliant. Volante is also cross platform compatible, meaning it will run on Windows, Linux or Unix. Linux POS solutions are very attractive these days, since they allow business owners to cut costs by saving on Windows licensing fees, and are easy to use.

According to Eddie Stutz, VP of Operations for Woodbine Race Track in Toronto, Volante’s flexibility has been key to ensuring smooth operations on a day to day level.

“We are a very complex company.” Says Stutz. “Woodbine has given Volante much more exposure than anticipated, due to the fact that it can be used in many venues. It’s an all encompassing system. I’m able to pull up any menu I want from any location, I can pull up a dining room menu, then switch to a lounge menu, for instance.”

Other reasons for choosing Volante POS systems included Volante’s array of other applications, including purchasing, rewards and retail, as well as the ability to integrate with Woodbine’s player-reward application. Woodbine installed Volante at all their various venues (club, casual and fine dine, cafeteria and quick service), numbering some 200+ registers in a mixed Linux / Windows enterprise topology.

“Nowadays everything is about convergence and getting all systems into one”, says Randy Folmes, director of IT at Woodbine. “We want to get to the point where we can say ’how much did we sell today?’ and run one report to find out”.

Volante also utilizes peer-to-peer technology, which allows each terminal to be connected, yet operate independently, without being reliant on a main server. Volante’s unique implementation ensures that your business will continue to run smoothly in the event of a terminal or server failure. In other words, if your system crashes, your POS terminal still operates without losing any data or interrupting service.

Volante is a perfect fit for many different types of hospitality operations, having been successfully installed in such venues as restaurants, hotels, stadiums, race tracks, ski resorts, universities, outdoor sales areas (patios), casinos, theme parks and pizza chains. Its multi location capability makes it a full enterprise POS solution. For more information, visit www.volantesystems.com.

From a self service perspective, Volante POS Systems has recently announced a partnership with uWink, a new interactive restaurant and entertainment concept from Nolan Bushnell, of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese fame.

The two companies have partnered to offer the “uV Hospitality Solution”, an end-to-end self-order, self-pay and at-the-table digital entertainment delivery solution, which was pioneered and proven in uWink’s prototype interactive restaurant in Woodland Hills, California.

The “uV Hospitality Solution” is a seamless integration of uWink’s innovative touch screen user interface software and micro-transaction game credit and redemption system with Volante’s point of sale and back office enterprise system. At the uWink restaurant in Woodland Hills, customers self-order and self-pay for food, drink and digital media, including short form video games (uWink offers a library of 70+ casual and social single-player and multiplayer games) all from tabletop touch screen terminals located at each seat. This technology is really the new wave of self service technology, and was recently awarded Best Technology Innovation from Hospitality Technology magazine.

With the above points in mind, restaurant & hospitality operators should feel even more prepared when looking at new restaurant POS systems. If the POS software you’re looking at doesn’t offer the features mentioned above, move on. In today’s economic times, you can barely afford not to. However, if worse comes to worse, you could always sell that Pac-Man machine.

Source : Restaurant POS Systems: Enhancing Revenues Through Innovation

POS Software Overview: Finding The Right Restaurant POS System

noreply@blogger.com (Abhay) — Wed, 19 May 2010 05:45:00 -0700

Overview: Restaurant POS Software

Compare the best point of sales systems and learn about online restaurant management software: for payment processing, order tracking, staff monitoring and more

Restaurant owners would do perfectly well a good restaurant POS system, but between the confusion of your restaurant software, hardware and peripherals, that old cash register brings relief to all.

Take note of this; that relief can even cause restaurant owners thousands and even more than the what it costs them on a POS system every month. Imagine having one central computer system that can track staff schedule, inventory, the orders, manages reservations system and can even accept orders from your website.

Restaurant POS hardware and Point of Sale Software

Your restaurant POS software, whether it’s an Aldelo, Aloha, FuturePOS or Micros, is the program that you run and not the touch-screen monitor, keyboards, mouse, printers and hand held devices. For high end purchase, you may want to investigate further before sealing a deal on the spot. You may find several vendors who offers very low prices for their POS software, disregarding to inform you that it will only work with their super expensive computers.

Note that a company that really works hard to provide good quality programs does not need to make a business of vending computer components. Or worse, lease computer components at high rates. When closing a deal, you need to investigate how much exactly it costs to pay for each component. Sure, that computer may only cost $50 a month but after a year, it’s likely paid off at $600 and the client will still be paying for that lease after another year, so while technology changes the outdated equipment is still being charged as if it were new.

Managing Your Restaurant Online

If you can remotely access your system from another computer, wouldn’t that be a nice feature? Just imaging, watching the sunset on a beautiful beach resort with your laptop right beside you, watching your restaurant via a security camera. Click a few keys and check that labor percentage, pop off an email to the bar manager to remind him about the celebration party tonight.

Check the logs and see that the new server is online, too. She’s at home studying for her training exam. Well that’s good, they’re training during their off-hours. It is such a relief! Close that laptop and don’t worry too much, just sit back and enjoy the rest of your vacation.

Programming a Restaurant POS System

There are POS systems that are specifically designed to be programmed by the end user, which can really be intimidating at first. Check to see if their company has a list of consultants or other help for programming to help you out. A lot of companies that develops POS software work with the restaurant owner to make sure each menu item is entered carefully, tax rates are imported and that the staff is trained to use the system.

It would be a wise decision to search for these companies that offers this kind of service for free as you get started with your business. Charging for a refresher course after a year later really isn’t out of line but charging for initial training isn’t a requirement for every company.

Finding The Best POS System for your Restaurant

Every restaurant has different needs. A drive through ice cream shop will be needing less options compared to a family style restaurants. A restaurant bar and grill requires different features than of a coffee shop. Every restaurant differ when it comes to their needs. So it is best to send away for every information packet. Is there a warranty or guarantee? How about a trial period? Will it be able to work with your current credit card processor, or it or it needs a different one? Can you export sales data to your Quickbooks or other accounting software?

Weighing all of the hardware and software options before making a decision can save a restaurant owner from the stress and headache of ending up with a restaurant POS system that doesn’t fit the bill. Listen to every salesman’s 15 minute offer and review them carefully. And finally, you might want to consider the perspectives of other restaurant owners before deciding on which point of sale system you’re going to have.

Source : POS Software Overview: Finding The Right Restaurant POS System

Blockbuster Releases Web APIs for Streaming, Inventory Checks

noreply@blogger.com (Abhay) — Tue, 18 May 2010 05:22:00 -0700

Blockbuster has released an API that will allow "deliver films, reviews and real-time inventory to devices that include phones, set top boxes, gaming consoles and other point of sale locations such as gas stations," ReadWriteWeb reports.

Although this is primarily a software play, this also means that set-top boxes and services (the Roku player, for example, or the Xbox 360) could tap in Blockbuster's library of movies.

It's hard to know what this API or set of APIs will mean for the company, but it looks like Blockbuster is preparing to challenge Netflix, Amazon, and others at least in video streaming. The inventory APIs also appears to mimic the "check inventory" features that many retailers have begun placing on their Web sites to allow in-store pickup.

Blockbuster is also updating its iPhone app to reflect the new cross-channel efforts, the site reports.

But will it be too late? Blockbuster has suffered of late, losing business to both Redbox kiosks and Netflix. It looks like the company has tried grasping at Web video as a last-gasp measure.

Source : Blockbuster Releases Web APIs for Streaming, Inventory Checks