The POS Software Blog

The POS Software Blog

News from Tower Systems about locally made POS software for specialty local retailers.

ArchiveNovember 2016

What are reasonable small business retail benchmark goals?

November 30, 2016
3 Min read
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Benchmarks are vital in every retail business. They provide the business performance goals to aim for, target of aspiration.

In our work with small business retailers beyond our smart POS software we often help with benchmark suggestions. We offer the as a starting point, to guide.

While the data points are common, the numbers can vary by retail channel.

Here are benchmark data points and the values we have suggested to transforming newsagency business owners – these are hybrid businesses that are part newsagency, part toy shop, part gift shop. See what you think:

BENCHMARK GOALS

I am often asked for benchmark goals newsagents ought to aim for. Here are some benchmarks I have developed in my work with newsXpress and through Tower Systems:

  1. Gross profit: this is the goal gross profit for all product sales not taking into account any revenue or costs related to any agency business. The traditional newsagency average sits at 28% to 32%. For a newsagency focused on the future, the goal has to be at least 45%.
  2. Ratio of Gift revenue to Card revenue: 50% minimum. The goal ought to be 100% or more. If you do $100K a year in cards, target to do $100K in gifts, or more.
  3. Revenue per employee – $250 an hour minimum not including agency revenue.
  4. Revenue PSQM $4,500 – $8,500 depending on country vs. city / high street to shopping centre and depending of product mix. Higher GP lower revenue required.
  5. Overall revenue mix percentage targets: Cards: 25%; Gifts/toys/plush: 25%; Stat: 10%; magazines/newspapers: 20%; other: 15%.
  6. FLOORSPACE ALLOCATION: Cards: 25%; Gifts/toys/plush: 25%; Stat: 8%; magazines/newspapers: 15%; other products: 15%; office/back room / counter: 12%. It’s rare you make money from an office or store room.
  7. Mark-up goals: Stationery: 125%; Gifts 110%; plush: 110%.
  8. Occupancy cost: between 9% and 11% of revenue where revenue is product revenue plus commission from agency lines. Location and situation are a big factor in this benchmark. For example, a large shopping centre business will have a higher cost than a high street situation.
  9. Labour cost: between 9% and 11% of revenue where revenue is product revenue plus commission from agency lines. Labour cost should include fair market costs for all who work in the business. (See above).

We are sharing these benchmark goals here as a guide for other retailers to contemplate appropriate numbers for the measurement points for their businesses.

Tower Systems is not your average POS software company. We engage beyond the software, to help our small business retail partners to run more successful and enjoyable businesses.

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POS software update an early Christmas gift for small business retailers

November 29, 2016
1 Min read
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We are thrilled to have shared with our customers another update to our POS software in time for Christmas. This update contains some bonus facilities, previously unannounced.

Surprising customers with unexpected enhancements has been common this year as we have delivered more valuable retail focussed tools across each of the specialty marketplaces we serve.

Our customers received a comprehensive email yesterday with details of the latest fresh retail software for: gift shops, jewellers,  bike shops, toy shops, fishing/outdoors businesses, garden centres/nurseries, pet shops, produce stores, firearms businesses and newsagents.

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Extraordinary small business retailer e-commerce success

November 29, 2016
2 Min read
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Wow!  Thank you! We have the best customers!

We are on cloud nine as a result of extraordinary sales success being achieved by retailers connecting through one of our new e-co0mmerce sites.

Tens of thousands of dollars of business generated for partner small business retailers in a few short weeks. This is cream revenue – on top 0of what these retailers are making even day in their businesses, bonus revenue, unexpected revenue for which they have had to pay nothing to achieve.

Our website has done all the work – found the customers, processed the sales, provided fulfilment guidance and delivered extraordinary customer service.

Here is a comment from one retailer who resisted being part of the Tower Systems created website:

We have just gone live on Monday, this week. It took me ages to get organised and do a stocktake. I had too many other things to do. It was the last thing on my list. Well I REGRET not doing it earlier, please hang back tonight or on the weekend and do a customised stocktake. The stocktake is NOT hard and it only took me a couple of hours and I have lots and lots of stock. But do the stocktake, then contact head office and go live. This week, not next month, not next year, THIS WEEK.

Here are comments from another small business retailer.

I am shocked. You have given us a thousand dollars in extra revenue in just two weeks. You cannot understand how important this is to me and my small business.  Thank you form the bottom of my heart.  I feel re-energised thanks to you.

And then this from another retailer.

O H  M Y  G O D!!!! It is like you turned on a tap in the middle of a drought and gave my business water. Thank you thank you thank you.

We love helping small business retailers find new customers.  8ur smart POS software connected to websites we have developed is one of the many good news stories that put wind in our sales.  We love what we do here at Tower Systems.

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Small business retail management advice: be David to the big business Goliath – how small business retailers can compete against big business

November 27, 2016
4 Min read
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Small and independent retailers often feel helpless when a big national retailer opens up nearby. There is no match for their range, buying power, advertising coverage or even news coverage.

The sheer size of a national competitor is what scares many smaller retailers. This is often enough for them to give up and close the business.

Giving up and running is the easy way out. There is no lesson learned, just an escape from the fear.

The alternative is to find out how to deal with the national retailer.

Here are five tips for small businesses on how to face and deal with a national retailer moving into the area:

  1. Don’t compete. By not talking about the competitor, pricing against them or pitching your business in any way, you separate yourself. While they may have similar products, it is unlikely that they are targeting your specific business so why target them? Focus instead on your own business.

Not competing should include not advertising price comparisons, not focusing on the competitor at staff meetings, not expanding your range to sell more of what they sell and not obsessing about them.

I was working with an independent retailer recently who decided to offer a product they sold which is also available in a nearby national retailer for 10% less than the sale price in the national retailer. This move gave the independent retailer a margin of 15%. In discussion I discovered that most of the customers who visited the independent retailer were unlikely to shop in the national retailer. So why compete on price?

If you know why customers shop with you, you have the opportunity of not giving up margin out of fear.

  1. Run a better business. From the moment you hear about a new national retailer coming to town, look at every aspect of your business for opportunities for improvement. From the back room to the font counter fine tune your processes, employee training, stock buying and the look of the business. Dramatically improve your business from the inside out. This will improve your business health and help you weather challenges which may lie ahead.

Too often, independent retailers wait until the national retailer is open to react. This is probably a year or two too late.

  1. Be unique. Look for ways to make your business unique. It could be on product range, operating hours, add-on services or something else. Embrace any opportunity to make your business unique. Even a unique niche range of products can give you traffic a big competitor will not chase. Try and focus on products which require a level of retail skill and knowledge to sell – national retailers have challenges hiring and retaining retail employees with specialist knowledge and skills.
  2. Engage the community. Connect with the community at every possible opportunity. Support local groups, speak at functions, get known as someone and a business who care deeply about the local community. Subtly make the connection that you are fortunate to be able to help because of your local business.

Being smaller and independent you are better able to personally engage with the community. You and your team are the business whereas a national chain will always be the corporate. They can throw money around locally, you can throw time, knowledge and more flexible assistance.

  1. Tell your stories. Your retail narrative, your stories, connect you with the local community. Tell these through the people you contact, your own blog, a Facebook page and in the pages of the local newspaper. Tell human stories about your business, the people who work in it and the local stories which connect with it.

Your stories could be about local community connection, convenience of shopping, commitment to range, personal customer service, product niche knowledge … there are many different narratives with which an independent retailer can connect. It is important that one you have your narrative you stick to is, that it inhabits your decisions, marketing and public presentation.

By acting early and in advance of a national retailer opening, you better position your business to weather their advertising and PR onslaught. Get in early, build a stronger business and understand that through this the new business in town will not be your competitor.

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More newsagents switch to our newsagency software

November 26, 2016
2 Min read
M

We are having a terrific run up to Christmas in the newsagency software space with more newsagents switching from other software to our software. While this is not unusual, it is this time of the year as retailers are busy with the most important retail season of the year.

What is different this year is the facilities unique to our software that help engaged retailers leverage Christmas opportunities. We have embedded in our software tools and facilities that specifically help retailers make the most of extra Christmas traffic. The help leverages the traffic way beyond the busy Christmas season.

But software tools are one thing, important but only one thing. Our real help comes through advice and business guidance on leveraging the tools for genuine benefit for the the business for the longer term.

As long-term retailers ourselves in major shopping centres and high street situations we know how to make the software sing. This is where we can really help. Whether it is new traffic, strategic change or dealing with new suppliers, our newsagency a=software and retail business management experience combine to deliver to retailers benefits beyond what one might usually expect from a software company.

We are grateful to the newsagents who are in our community and welcome with open arms those who have recently joined us from other software. Hello, welcome and thank you for being part of what we are doing here.

Strap in and let’s get down to work…

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The best way to get your business online is through smart POS software

November 21, 2016
2 Min read
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Independent retail businesses can get their business transacting online easily with less effort, greater accuracy and transactional consistency by linking their POS software direct to their e-commerce platform.

Here at Tower Systems we are expert at connecting our POS software to Shopify, magento and other web platforms. We are doing this easily for our customers, to new websites and to existing websites. The results are wonderful.

One customer processed thirty online orders in a few days where they were not online days earlier.

Being able to get online without double entering of stock makes it easy. This is where Tower Systems makes the pathway for a small business to move online easy, fast and accurate.

As retailers ourselves with with websites for our own businesses we have personal experience on which to draw to guide retailers as to the best moves for their businesses. This practical experience helps us provide our customers with retailer-centric solutions rather that a more tech software company solution.

Retail is personal after all. We get that from being retailers ourselves in several different retail categories. This is especially useful in the online space where service is paramount. Good service begins with a seamless and accurate link between the online and high street retail operations.

This is another Tower AdvantageTM.

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40 Christmas marketing ideas for any independent retail business anywhere

November 20, 2016
8 Min read
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Tower Systems works with more than 3,500+ small business retailers in speciality retail niches including jewellers, garden centres, bike shops, toy shops, gift shops, newsagents, pet shops, adult shops and more. We offer these ideas as our Christmas gift to you.

  1. Make it easy. People often talk about how hard Christmas is. Be the local business that makes it easy. The ways to do this are with easy Lay-By, free wrapping, better shop floor help, guide buying advice or tips on perfect gifts no one else will think of. Consider making Christmas easy as being a key part of your messaging.
  2. Be thrilled people are in your shop. Your personal smile or greeting is something they may not see in a big business where employees are less invested in each shopper and where the owner is usually thousands of kilometers away.
  3. Make the giving easy. If people purchase items from you to send somewhere else. Offer a one-stop shop. Save them the trip to the post office.
  4. Make the shop less about Christmas. Consider pulling back on the Christmas visual noise. Go for something simple, muted, respecting the season but making a calm statement. Consider declaring the shop a Christmas carol free zone – not because you hate carols but because you want to help customers take a break.
  5. Help people rest and recharge. Create a Christmas shopping rest and recovery zone. Offer free tea, coffee, water and something to eat. Encourage people to take a break in your shop – without any obligation for them to spend money with you.
  6. Let your customers help each other. Setup a whiteboard or sheets of butcher’s paper, yes keep it simple. Get customers to write gift suggestions under different age/gender groups. For example: Girls 18 – 25, Boys 55+. Encourage your customers to help each other through their suggestions.
  7. Make price comparison difficult. If you sell items people are likely to price compare with other businesses, package them so price comparison is not easy. Put items into a hamper as a perfect Boy 8 to 12 bundle for example. Or offer the item with pre packages services if appropriate for an item.
  8. Less is more.  The stack em high watch em fly mantra can be wrong. Indeed, it is often wrong in retail. Shoppers can be store blind because a shop is too full or a display is too busy. Consider creating simpler less cluttered displays and window promotions. Draw attention to what you want people to see by promoting that one thing. Every time someone asks if you have something that you think through should be able to find easily – take it as a challenge for you to address rather than a commentary on a facility of the customer.
  9. Change. Christmas season in your shop should evolve. Major change weekly is vital for people to see what you have that they could buy.
  10. Be socially engaged. On Facebook, Instagram, twitter and elsewhere, be the calm voice, the person people enjoy reading or seeing photos from. Provide entertainment this Christmas rather than the usual retailer shrill of come and shop here!
  11. Be community minded. Choose a local charity or community group to support through Christmas. Consider: a change collection tin at the counter; a themed Christmas window display; promotion on your social media pages; a donation to their work; a collection point for donations from customers.
  12. Facilitate sharing stories. Find space in your shop for customers to share their Christmas stories. It could be a story wall inside or in front of the shop. This initiative encourages storytelling by locals and better connects the business with the community.
  13. Award a prize at a local school. Fund a year-end prize at a local school. Attend a school assembly to award the prize. Work with the school leadership on a prize appropriate to your business.
  14. VIP preview. Host a VIP shopper preview night when you show off your Christmas ranges ahead of being available to the general shoppers. Respect and reward your local shoppers with deals and the opportunity to preview ahead of others.
  15. Leverage Christmas traffic. Encourage the Christmas shopper traffic surge in after Christmas. Give them a reason to come back. A coupon promotion or a discount voucher on receipts could be the enticement to get shoppers back in-store. Note: the Tower POS software produces discount vouchers to rules you establish.
  16. Become a gallery. Work with a school, kindergarten, community group or retirement village to bring in local art for people to come and see through Christmas. A small space commitment can drive traffic from family and friends of those with art on show.
  17. Dress the shop. Fully embrace Christmas. Create a Christmas experience such that shoppers know they have stepped into somewhere special this Christmas. Go for more than some tinsel and a tree. Fully embrace the opportunity.
  18. Make your shop smell like Christmas.
  19. Send cards. Send Christmas cards early in the season to suppliers, key customers and local community groups. This connects you with Christmas. Invite all team members to sign each card.
  20. Host a Christmas party. For shops nearby. You are all in the season together – let your hear down before things get crazy.
  21. Ensure you have gifts targeted at occasions. For example: Kris Kringle, by price point and by recipient. Make it easy for people to know what they could give.
  22. Stocking stuffers. At your counter always have one or two stocking stuffers for impulse purchase.
  23. Offer gift vouchers – for someone to give when they are not sure what to give.
  24. Be local. Ensure you have a selection of locally sourced products available for purchase. Make it clear in-store that these products are sourced locally.
  25. Tell stories. On your Facebook page, talk about what is important to you at Christmas. Personalise the season and deepen the connection with those who could shop with you.
  26. Offer a free gift. Bulk purchase an item to offer those who spend above a set amount. For example, spend $65 and receive XX where XX may have cost $5.00 but could have a perceived value of $20.00.
  27. Keep it fresh. Every week make significant change to your Christmas displays and promotions to keep your offer fresh.
  28. Share Christmas recipes. Each week for, say, four weeks, give customers a family Christmas recipe. This personalises Christmas in your business, creates a talking point and makes shopping with you different to your bigger competitors.
  29. Free wrapping. Sure, many retailers offer this. Make your offer better, more creative and more appreciated.
  30. This is essential in any business. Manage it through your computer system with strict rules.
  31. Work the floor. Increase time on the shop floor. Be present to manage shopper flow and to facilitate purchases.
  32. Christmas is crazy busy I most retail situations. Give yourself and your team members sufficient time to recharge so the smile greeting shoppers is heartfelt.
  33. Keep a secret. If yours is a business selling gifts a partner may purchase for their loved-one, create some mystery with a closed off display for the shopper to see the products.
  34. Free assembly. If you sell items that require assembly. Offer to do this for free.
  35. Free delivery. Offer free Christmas Eve delivery for items purchased for kids for Christmas.
  36. Sell training. Leverage the specialist knowledge you have in your business by selling as gifts places at classes you run sharing your expertise.
  37. Hold back. Don’t go out with everything you have for Christmas all at once. Plan the season to show off what you have as the season unfolds. This allows you multiple launches.
  38. Share a taste. Regardless if your type of business, bake a family recipe of Christmas cake, Christmas pudding or Christmas biscuits and offer tastings to shoppers on select days. This personalises the experience in your shop.
  39. Offer hampers. Package several items together and offer them as a hamper. Time-poor shoppers could appreciate you doing this work for them. We have seen this work in many different retail situations.
  40. Buy X get Y. Encourage people to spend more with a volume based deal. Pitched right, this could get customers purchasing items for several family members in order to get the price offer you have. Use your technology to manage this.

Christmas is the perfect time to plan for next year. It is the time to do everything possible to leverage bonus Christmas traffic to benefit your business through next year.

Tower Systems offers Point of sale / retail management software tailored for your specific type of retail business. Our software can help you leverage Christmas traffic for year-long benefits.

We provide you with loyalty facilities that are fresh and small-business focussed, loyalty facilities through which you can pitch a point of difference compared to big business competitors.

One of our retail experts can help: Please call our sales team at 1300 662 957 or email them at sales@towersystems.com.au.

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Actions do speak louder than words

November 19, 2016
1 Min read
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A newsagent called us this morning out of desperation. They use software from another newsagency software company and have been unable to reach them for help – despite claims from this other company they offer support on the weekend. The experience of the newsagent is otherwise. Calls to the help number and a call to one of th owners resulted in no returned call.

We have helped them get their system up and running and business transacting. We have done this without obligation or pressure for them to switch to us.

Our marketing claiming we are open for business over the weekend is true. Customer service matters to us.

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More Xero skilled accountants list with our POS software co.

November 19, 2016
1 Min read
M

Tower Systems is grateful that more accountants have provided their details for including on our website where we list the details of xero skilled accountants.

Connecting our small business retail customers with Accountants skilled in xero helps our customers and helps the growing bro community.

As Xero users ourselves we understand the value of working with like-minded service providers. Xero is innovative and time-saving. We are thrilled to have made the switch for our own shops and to be accessing the benefits we pitch to our sales prospects.

Using our POS software and the Xero add-on, our customers are able to easily, seamlessly and in the background share data between the POS and Xero, reducing bookkeeping costs, improving data accuracy and feeding more informed business decisions. This is a win for our customers.

Not all POS software companies are approved to partner with Xero. This can lead those not approved to be critical of Xero. Those of us in the room are grateful for the recognition and support of the company as we help retailers to pursue more efficient and successful businesses.

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Tower Systems helps local small business retailers with free shop local marketing collateral

November 18, 2016
1 Min read
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LocalPosters2015_Page_3POS Software company Tower Systems is helping small and independent local retailers to promote the support of local retailers through an innovative campaign of collateral created by the company for its retailers.

We are thrilled to be investing our creative resources in support of our retailer partners in this way.

This artwork is part of a series we developed in-house through our amazingly creative marketing team to give our retailers different voices and platforms through which to pitch their shop local credentials.

This is another Tower AdvantageTM.

More free collateral is available on the Tower website.

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How discount vouchers help small business retailers beat big business at loyalty

November 17, 2016
4 Min read
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This is a personal story about small business retail and the value achievable from a smarter and more customer respectful approach to rewarding loyalty … but in a different way, a way that is counterintuitive in that it front-ends the approach.

Here is our story…

I want to share with you a true story of what happened recently in my own retail business. It is a story of how a small everyday purchase led to something bigger and how this happened as a result of fundamental changes in how the business is run.

While this story is about what happened in my newsagency, it could happen in any type of business. This newsagency, by the way, is not your typical newsagency. Close to 70% of what we sell is non traditional. It is high margin higher price point items that sit at the core of this unique business.

At its core, this is a story about shopper loyalty, especially shopper loyalty in a retail situation where between 25% and 30% of shoppers visiting the business are not local and therefore not likely to engage with the old-school points-based loyalty program.

A customer passing the shop noticed our greeting card range and stepped into make a purchase because of a specific need. They purchased two cards. On their receipt was a voucher for almost $2.00. As they are not usually in the shopping centre they looked around for something in which to spend the $2.00.

This is the key: the customer came in to make a quick destination purchase. The type of business we were did not matter. They were on the way to the car park and happened to pass buy our shop. Point 1: location is in our favour. The stepped in because they saw our greeting cards. Point 2: the floor placement of cards was key in getting them in the shop.

Having made the purchase, the customer then noticed, for the first time, what else we sold – because of the $2.00 discount voucher on their receipt. Point 3: we got them to look around and see what else we sold.

The customer did a 180 degree turn and saw a locked glass cabinet of beautiful collectible bears. This was in the right place at the right time as they had been looking for a gift for a child. Money was not an issue. They wanted something to last a lifetime. They purchased a $500.00 bear.

This purchase would not have been made had they not been given the $2.00 voucher on their receipt. The voucher is what got them to notice what else we sold.

Fast forward several weeks and this customer who said they don’t usually come to the shopping centre was back for another $500.00 purchase. Now, several more weeks later, the customer has another $500.00 order placed.

I can directly trace more than $1,500.00 in sales back to the $2.00 voucher.

The software produced the voucher based on rules I established. The initial staff member serving the customer made a brief professional pitch highlighting the voucher. These are both important factors as they are at the core of a structured consistent approach to what has become the most lucrative loyalty program I have seen in my 30+ years involved in retail as a retailer myself and working with retailers in many different channels.

While most times vouchers are handed out they are not redeemed, they are redeemed enough to make them worthwhile. They are redeemed for good margin product as they get people looking at the shop for the first time and discovering items to purchase they were not in our four walls to consider.

The discount vouchers are disruptive and this is why I love them. People respond in unpredictable ways.

Best of all, the discount vouchers are profitable.

For this story to work in any retail business you need to have the right products, placed strategically in-store. Your employees need to make the right pitch. Plus, you need to be attracting people who don’t know and probably don’t care what shop they are in.

Tower Systems offers not only excellent software but also the business acumen, experience and drive to help you make the most of the opportunities in the software.

From points on a purchase to buy X and get Y FREE to Discount Vouchers, the Tower software offers flexibility in loyalty offerings that enable you to make the pitch right for your business to bring shoppers bag to spend more than might usually be the case.

Mark Fletcher, managing Director. Tower Systems. M: 0418 321 338.

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Fact checking POS software sales claims

November 16, 2016
2 Min read
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A competitor of ours recently said that our newsagency software was not compliant with XchangeIT, an industry owned EDI gateway.

Our newsagency software is compliant with XchangeIT and always has been.

The claim helped us win a sale as it proved a lie and that led the prospect to us.

Every claim a representative of a POS software company makes about a competitor ought to be documented and fact-checked. Any claim about a competitor found to be unsupported by the facts should be a reason to not deal with that POS software company.

Salespeople lie about competitors and competitor products when they or the product they represent are inferior.

We are grateful when we are told of a competitor claim that is untrue and are given the opportunity to present facts that speak truth.

The process of selling software to newsagency businesses, or any small business for that matter, demands professionalism and a commitment to ethics. We are committed here at Tower Systems to be the company sales prospects and small business retailers using the software can trust. Trust comes from telling the truth and from acting in a way that is true to our words. Those who do not do this are found out.

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Actions speak louder than words for POS software companies

November 16, 2016
1 Min read
A

Here at Tower Systems we are proud to have continued in 2016 our free weekly live training workshops for users of our POS software. These sessions are popular, often being fully booked, like our session today on how to use our powerful stock manager.

Screen Shot 2016-11-13 at 9.06.48 AM

We are grateful to the support of our customers for this free training.

We headed this post actions speak louder than words because we fulfil our promises, we deliver on our marketing claims. This training is one example.

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BOGO offers easy with Tower Systems POS software

November 15, 2016
2 Min read
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BUY ONE GET ONE FREE. 

This is a common offer in retail, especially in pet shops, garden centres, some gift shops and some newsagencies.

The Tower Systems POS software handles these BOGO offers easily as part of our comprehensive loyalty management solution. This enables small business retailers to compete with big business competitors in a way that is easily understood, and indeed expected, by shoppers.

We enable local small business retailers to compete with big chains by making these offers easy to run, easy to manage and valuable to offer. yes, a locally owned retail business can eliminate the competitive advantage in this area for a big business.

In addition to BOGO offers, we offer discount with purchase, free with purchase and more. Plus loyalty points and discount off future purchase.

Having options for loyalty and discount offers for retail is important in retail today where things move quickly. Thanks to rapid-setup, a store can pitch BOGO quickly, in response to the activity in a competitor business.

Big retailers like BOGO as it is easy to implement and easily understood. In some respects it is lazy. This is where small business retailers can leverage BOGO on their own terms and in a way that is more respectful of shoppers.

Tower Systems supports the BOGO facilities with training, documentation and other assistance to help our retailers make the most from the opportunity.

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Easy access to the POS software help desk

November 14, 2016
1 Min read
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We have posted two of these POS software help desk contact cards to our customers – to ensure easy access to our team when staff in a retail business need it.

SupportCardOct16

This business card size card is part of an integrated campaign to ensure easy access to information on how to contact the Tower help desk.

In addition mailing two copies of the help desk contact card, the company sent a print newsletter with news on our latest software update, free training opportunities and other news for our 3,000+ retailer partners.

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Christmas marketing tips for local small business retailers

November 13, 2016
4 Min read
C

Christmas is a noisy time for shoppers. Every retailer is pitching to them on TV, radio, in print, on social media and in-store.

Christmas marketing tends to be the same: jolly, celebratory and, often, price based.

It is a challenge for small business retailers to cut through all of this noise.

Here are some tips for cutting through. Sure we are a POS software company, but we are retailers too and have been for decades. We have experience in several retail channels. This helps us create better small business software and provide advice beyond the software itself.

We hope this Christmas advice is directly helpful or unlocks ideas of your own.

  1. Make it easy. People often talk about how hard Christmas is. Be the business that makes it easy. The ways to do this are with easy Lay-By, free wrapping, better shop floor help, guide buying advice or tips on perfect gifts no one else will think of. Consider making Christmas easy as being a key part of your messaging.
  2. Be thrilled people are in your shop. Your personal smile or greeting is something they may not see in a big business where employees are less invested in each shopper and where the owner is usually thousands of kilometers away.
  3. Make the giving easy. If people purchase form you to send somewhere else. Offer a one-stop shop. Save them the trip to the post office.
  4. Make the shop less about Christmas. Consider pulling back on the Christmas visual noise. Go for something simple, muted, respecting the season but making a calm statement. Consider declaring the shop a Christmas carol free zone – not because you hate carols but because you want to help customers take a break.
  5. Help people rest and recharge. Create a Christmas shopping rest and recovery zone. Offer free tea, coffee, water and something to eat. Encourage people to take a break in your shop – without any obligation for them to spend money with you.
  6. Let your customers help each other. Setup a whiteboard or sheets of butcher’s paper, yes keep it simple. Get customers to write gift suggestions under different age/gender groups. For example: Girls 18 – 25, Boys 55+. Encourage your customers to help each other.
  7. Make price comparison difficult. If you sell items people are likely to price compare with other businesses, package them so price comparison is not easy. Put items into a hamper as a perfect Boy 8 to 12 bundle for example. Or offer the item with pre packages services if appropriate for an item.
  8. Less is The stack em high watch em fly mantra can be wrong. Indeed, it is often wrong in retail. Shoppers can be store blind because a shop is too full or a display is too busy. Consider creating simpler less cluttered displays and window promotions. Draw attention to what you want people to see by promoting that one thing. Every time someone asks if you have something that you think through should be able to find easily – take it as a challenge for you to address rather than a commentary on a facility of the customer.
  9. Christmas season in your shop should evolve. Major change weekly is vital for people to see what you have that they could buy.
  10. Be socially engaged. On Facebook, Instagram, twitter and elsewhere, be the calm voice, the person people enjoy reading or seeing photos from. Provide entertainment this Christmas rather than the usual retailer shrill of come and shop here!

We think the key to a more successful Christmas is to be different to what people expect from your business.

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Delivering a POS software help desk experience retailers love

November 12, 2016
2 Min read
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How can small business retailers be sure they POS software company they choose will deliver the support they need to get the best value from the software?

This is a tough question because too often you will not know if a customer service experience is working for you until you are well into using it.

Here is how POS software company Tower Systems has structured its business to deliver personal service small business retailers love. We say love because of the retention numbers of Tower customers over many years.

Here is what we strive for and deliver in our POS software help desk experience:

  1. Personal service. No scripts. Our help starts with a conversation.
  2. Accessible service. No waiting days for a call back. We are here, in the moment, when you need.
  3. Follow up. Advice is followed up with an email with supporting material to help beyond the call.
  4. Escalation. If you want to take the call outside the help desk we are happy to do this.
  5. Management access. To anyone. At any time.
  6. Democracy. Software update content is voted on by our customers.
  7. Transparency. Through social media we are accountable to our customers.
  8. Freebies. Weekly live training, one on one training … added value often.

Through these things and more we are grateful for opportunities to serve our customers with personal service.

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Retailers love Christmas marketing tips from our POS software co.

November 11, 2016
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We are thrilled with the feedback from our customers for the unique Christmas marketing tips we published in our customer email last week.

We sought to provide tips from left-field, tips retailers would not expect. Feedback suggests they like what we pitched and some are trying the tips for themselves in their businesses.

Tower Systems is not your usual POS software company. We engage with our customers in a unique way and appreciate the opportunities to do this.

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New POS software Help Desk team member

November 11, 2016
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We are thrilled to have brought on stream a new member for our help desk. Roy has been with us for close to two weeks and has now started dealing direct with customers. He brings wonderful experience as well as a respected university degree to his role with the business.

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Small businesses winning online sales thanks to Tower Systems POS software webstore integration

November 10, 2016
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Screen Shot 2016-11-07 at 7.58.15 AMTower Systems is thrilled to be helping small business retailers win valuable online sales through its suite of websites across multiple retail categories.

The image shows how far one package purchased through one of our our POS software integrated websites travelled this week. Thanks to site design and marketing by us, the Queensland based business found a valuable new shopper in Victoria, delivering revenue from this sale and establishing a relationship that is certain to benefit in the long term.

Connecting local small business shops with customers located on the other side of the country is helping these local town retailers find new shoppers.

Every day we are seeing excellent sales processed through the sites, valuable sales … and they are growing.

There are multiple layers to this success: the websites we created, the POS software integration enabling genuinely live stock on hand data and the guidance through sales processing to help retailers make sure they leverage the opportunity.

Delivering e-commerce revenue to small business retailers without them needing to have their own websites is an achievement of which we are most proud. We have been doing this for months across multiple website platforms and the result is terrific for our retail partners.

While there is no doubt of the value of a business being online for itself, there is even greater value for a business to be in an online community with like minded retailers, leveraging the group for each of the local stores. This is the unique delivery from Tower Systems.

We love helping small business retailers win new customers.

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