The POS Software Blog
News from Tower Systems about locally made POS software for specialty local retailers.
2020 has been a huge year for us, and not because of the coronavirus. No, earlier this year we released R3, next generation POS software for independent specialty retailers. R3 delivers on a new tech platform, a new database platform and a new look and feel. The reaction from our 3,000+ customer community has been terrific.
We are grateful to our 3,000+ small business retail customers for their support.
Today at Tower Systems it is business as usual with the majority of our retailers open for business as essential services. Farm supply, produce, garden (veggie) centres, fishing and newsagency businesses are all providing healthy, safe and appreciated services to local.
To help them in unique times we have:
All of these things and more help our small business retailer community and right now there world is depending on small business retailers, they are genuinely the backbone of the economy, providing work, produce and other necessary items for sustenance – physically and emotionally.
We are helping in other ways, too. For exam please, we are working with several retailers on their covid pivot opportunity – pursuing new traffic opportunities through online, leveraging product categories that are new to their businesses.
Thanks to our advanced remote support and training services we are thrilled to be installing new rooftops through this, expanding our customer base as retailers select software made for their type of business. Our experts can train people in our software using smart tools – we have been doing this for years.
2020 is the year of small business. While big businesses are shutting, small business retailers are trading with safety and certainty. They are doing this as a community service first. Not profiting. Not being greedy., many are doing it with the owners themselves running the businesses. This is what small business owners do – they serve their communities in times of need.
Safety is the key. We see small business retailers being careful about customer contact in-store. Many are offering curbside pickup or home delivery – our software works a treat supporting this.
To our customers and our team members, thank you. All of us in small business are helping many people in our communities.
In our own shops we have encountered seniors who refuse to follow social distancing requirements. So, we put this on our social media pages yesterday:
There is no seniors discount with social distancing.
We’re all in this thing together, keen to get out the other side healthy and happy. This is why we are asking all customers to respect social distancing. Our floors are marked to show the required distance and we are limiting how many come into our shops.
We have had several older people say the rules don’t apply to them or that we don’t have to worry about them because they are okay or that they like to shop together with the grandkids. The coronavirus is not aware of age. The rules apply to everyone. The rule is 1 person per 4sqm. The distance from you to the person in front is 1.5m.
We love serving seniors and we want to serve you for years to come. So we can continue, please know and follow the government rules. Thank you. Stay safe. Stay healthy. #SafeShopping #KeepYourDistance #NoSeniorsDistanceForSocialDistancing
For several weeks now we have been sending daily updates to our POS software customers, at 7am AEST. The updates are short and succinct, offering COVID-19 related advice designed to help our customers through their day. We share links to trusted state and federal government websites as well as help on trading through for the many of our customers permitted to be open.
We have also been running regular web conferences to help retailers connect.
Plus, we have eliminated pricing on software options that make countless and other trading easy in retail.
These moves from our company with is at more than 90% of staff working from home is helping small business retailers.
We are grateful to all who support us.
Here are some tips for your consideration should your retail business be designated an essential business in the looming lockdown. We hope they are useful:
At some point, retailers around you will be shut down for a time. If you are designated essential, the move will see affected retailers possibly upset at your favoured treatment for the newsagency channel, upset at you that you are open.
Your focus needs to be on how to adjust your business to the changing conditions. That does not mean going all out to rake in as much cash as possible. Rather, our advice is that you modestly adjust the business to serve the needs of locals. Those shop permitted to remain open could serve broader needs through this time
Look around and plan now for modest moves you could make to broaden the appeal of the business. Our advice is that you focus on categories you are already in – but with an expanded range, or products that fit with categories you already serve today.
We think stores remaining open need to make significant shop floor moves, to reflect the needs of the tougher circumstances and to demonstrate your respect for these as well as the wellbeing of shoppers and your team.
Every day in our POS software company we are grateful to see and hear wonderful examples of optimism in small business retail.
From a boost in foot traffic to an increase in sales revenue to an increase in the overall average gross profit percentage achieved in a business, the stories are inspiring.
These are stories backed by good business data, data cultivated in the POS software.
We are thrilled to play a part of helping independent small business retailers realise their dreams through our software. We are grateful for the opportunity to share optimism among our customers.
These good and optimistic stories help others navigate change and lean into opportunities through which they can themselves find good news, find optimism.
There is plenty of good news out there for small business retail.
Optimism matters because it fuels small businesses, retail businesses that are independent of the usual support networks big businesses can access. We preference small businesses and do work hard ton help and encourage them to be stronger, better and happier laces, more optimistic places.
In one situation we learned how a retailer using our software achieved thousands of dollars of incremental business in a three month period by using a facility they had never used before. By turning on this facility in their software, for no additional cost, they were able to achieve sales they were up until then losing. This was done with no increase in inventory investment.
Small business retailers can increase sales through smart shopper engaging tools in our software. Beyond the usual help desk facilities, we enjoy talking business management with our customers – to help them leverage even more value from their relationship with us.
Here at Tower Systems our focus is solely on independent small business retailers in a select number of retail channels. This helps us provide specialist advice to our specialist retailers.
We are grateful to be able to help small business retailers cultivate and harvest business data for optimistic business outcomes. Beyond the software, we help businesses and the people who rely on the businesses for shelter and food on the table. It’s the small business way.
If you pitch shop local in your local high street retail business…
Tower Systems is locally owned and run POS software company. We make POS software for a range of niche and specific types of retail business.
Using our software is an investment in the Australian tech industry. Our employees work and live locally, often shopping locally. Money spent with us boosts the Australian economy.
Our POS software has tools that help you show off your local credentials. We can help you shine a light on locally sourced products and we can help you bring structure and customer engagement to your local community giving.
We are grateful to serve more than 3,000 locally owned retail businesses, garden centres, jewellers, bike shops, fishing shops, produce businesses, toy shops, firearms businesses, newsagencies and gift shops, in Australia with our POS software. We would be thrilled to see if we could serve your needs.
Shopping local starts with how you source what you sell.
Next, to relies on smart tools in the POS software that help you pitch your local credentials, tools through which to show shoppers that what you sell is local and thereby demonstrate the value of the shop local p[itch that you offer.
In a systematic and consistent way, thanks to unique tools in our POS software, we help small business retailers to pitch shop local every day to shoppers who are swayed by the local connections in these shops.
We take shopping locally seriously in our business and in retail businesses that we own. We are grateful to help our retail partners to make the same shop local connections, thanks to our POS software and the facilities it provides in this mission.
POS software made locally is best for local businesses as the people behind the software are more accessible and more able to serve local needs.
Tower Systems is your shop local POS software company.
3 years ago we established infrastructure to serve online live demonstrations of our POS software as well as line online training for new and existing POS software customers. Today, we are well advanced from those early moves and it is paying off.
Retailers are loving online live demonstrations of our POS software – timed to suit their needs. They love that each demonstration is live for them, about their business and genuinely interactive.
When it comes to remote installations, retailers love that they get to save money, schedule the training as and when they want and can have training recorded for later play back. These and other innovations are standard to the way we serve our Tower Systems POS software user community.
We are grateful to the whole Tower Systems team for helping us adopt this online / video technology years ago and evolve with it over time as it is paying off today as business changes fundamentally.
With people working from home, we remain a connected team, working together, welcoming new customers and serving existing customers. Thanks to a solid tech infrastructure, we are resourced and skilled to help our customers no matter where they are.
Footnote: our reference to online training is different to the weekly online workshops that we have been running for more than 10 years.
Retailers with strong online businesses are able to trade through some of the Coronavirus related challenges.
Businesses experiencing lower than usual foot traffic in-store can rely on online sales to keep the wheels of the business turning. This is where our POS software integrated Shopify and Magento website solutions have helped retailers be proactive in this space.
As people stay at home more and have less human to human contact, especially in shopping malls, retail; businesses with well-established and strong online presences are able to trade through, connecting with these home-based shoppers and arranging for purchases to be safely delivered.
Online has a much larger shopper catchment area than local high street retail. It can be a whole country, or beyond whereas a high street situation will pull from 30 fo 60 minuets away depending on the local situation.
As the challenges of then Coronavirus play out for small business retail, Tower Systems is pleased to have helped plenty of indie small business retailers take their businesses online for efficient and broader reaching shopper opportunities.
Whole one does not wish to trade off the misery of others, we are grateful to have helped retailers be prepared for a situation like this where people want / need to shop but do not wish to do so face too face.
The Coronavirus COVID19 has certainly presented complex challenges to retailers and other businesses. In our own situation we have been structured and certain in our approaches, to ensure the best customer service possible and to help the 3,000+ small businesses retailers we gratefully serve as customers using our POS software.
Early on in the Coronavirus challenge, many weeks ago, we offered advice. This was operationally practical as well as opportunistic. It included:
Health and business experts we respect are forecasting that the economic impact of COVID-19 will be similar to the global financial crisis of 2008. We think this is a reason to be prepared now, to be prepared for the worst. Here are five things we recommend you do:
Every keystroke in business is a possible mistake. Cutting keystrokes cuts mistakes. This is one reason our POS software integration with Xero is awesome for indie retailers. It cuts keystrokes, saving time and cutting mistakes.
Thanks to the POS software Xero link and thanks to the supplier connected EDI facilities in our POS software, retailers are able to arrive invoices and have these pass through to Xero without the need to key invoices into the POS software or into the accounting software.
Accuracy is everything is business. Tower Systems helps facilitate accuracy through supplier relationships as well as through the Xero link from within the POS software
The Xero integration designed by Tower Systems, working with the folks at Xero, makes it easy for small business retailers to cut accounting paperwork and thereby tap into time and money saving benefits.
We use our Xero integrated POS software ourselves. This enables us to provide practical advice on how to benefit the most from Xero and our POS software working together.
Our customers have access to our in-house accounting services, to provide a professional accounting perspective on the link and how to get the most from it.
Our POS software Xero link is well established and widely used. We are grateful to our retail business customers for their faith and support in using this link in their businesses daily.
Tower Systems is a unique POS software company. In addition to serving 3,500+ small business retailers, we own and operate several retail businesses as live test sites. Our in-house CPA manages the accounts for these retail businesses.
There are versions of the software serving the business specific needs of:
Linking directly to Xero enhances the time-saving gained through the software as well as facilitating the accuracy of data managed by the software.
Our Xero link provides for a data feed of sales as well as purchases.
We are grateful for the opportunity to see some cool specialty retail businesses in the UK. here’s a short video of some of what we saw:
In this new video from last week, we share how the events facilities in our Pet Shop POS software can also help o9ther retailers as they serve unique needs of customers in their specialty retail businesses.
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Here’s a new video from us from a week ago overing advice on POS software connected websites:
Tower Systems helps tobacco retailers run more efficient and successful businesses with tobacco retail POS software.
This retail specific POS software for tobacco retailers offers terrific tools.
Here are some of the benefits people in businesses like yours tell us they love:
Respecting the capital needs of retail today, we offer rental of our Tobacco shop POS software for $145.00 a month. For this you get…
The $145.00 is charged per 30 days, in advance. Access can be cancelled at any time. You can also choose to purchase the software outright.
Tobacco retailers can rely on this locally made POS software to help you run a more efficient, enjoyable and compliant retail business.
Our Australian made and supported sporting goods retail POS software helps local and indie sporting goods retailers to run more efficient and successful businesses.
This POS software offers a bag full of facilities sporting goods retailers can use to focus on the specialist nature of their retail businesses. Facilities such as:
Respecting the capital needs of retail businesses, our sporting goods POS software can be rented for $185.00 a month. For this you get…
The $185.00 is charged per 30 days, in advance. Access can be cancelled at any time. You can also choose to purchase the software outright.
This is awesome POS software for sporting goods retailers. We’d love to help you enjoy your business more.
The music shop POS software from Tower Systems is packed with facilities music shops can use to run more efficient and enjoyable businesses.
Respecting the capital needs of retail, our music shop POS software is available for rental for $145.00 a month. For this you get…
The $145.00 is charged per 30 days, in advance. Access can be cancelled at any time. You can also choose to purchase the software outright.
We are local. Tower Systems serves 3,500+ specialty businesses. If you think we could help you, please call…
Today we are hosting an online user forum for independent small business retailers across Australia and New Zealand to talk business.
This free ranging and open forum is another enamour series of facilitating opportunities for small business retailers to talk to each other. That it is online makes it easier for these retailers to connect without a cost or disruption of travel.
Today’s online forum will include discussion on:
Open to any retailer using our software, the meeting will be recorded and made available to all Tower Systems customers.
We are grateful to all who will participate as it is contributions from everyday retailers that makes meetings like this useful for all.
Retailer Roam, the portable POS software from Tower Systems is being embraced by more retailers with businesses that operate on the road.
Yes, portable POS software. POS software you can use on the road, away from the counter, from a truck, at a market, at a pop up store. This is genuinely portable POS software. Oh, and internet access is not required.
Retailer Roam is serving retailers looking to take their business transactions to customers no matter where they are … local markets, on the farm, from the back of a truck, pop-up stores and more.
Retailer Roam is Aussie made portable POS software thanks to smart app development from the Tower systems web team working closely with the POS software development team.
To back up access to this new and innovative portable POS software product, Tower Systems has released a range of helpful advice and online accessible documentation including these topics:
Offering fresh and evolving documentation for Retailer Roam is another way we are helping new and emerging retailers make the most of the fresh opportunities offered by Retailer Roam. We are loving helping retailers unlock new sales opportunities by disconnecting transactions front sales counter.
A common question we get is: Does Retailer Roam Require An Internet Connection?
Yes and No. You will need an internet connection to install the app and to obtain the base Retailer data. However, when using it, no – it;’s easy and truly portable.
If the location you’re selling from does not have internet connectivity you can use the device to transact, however, you will not receive any product updates or send sales back until the connection is re-established.
There is an ‘Offline Mode’ that can be turned on in settings for a smoother no-internet-connection experience. While in this mode the user will be limited to completing sales with what data has already been pre-loaded on the device. No API calls can be made in this mode, and sales will be stored locally until they can be synced.
There is an option to download all stock-data on the device; so, it can be used offline.
Retailer Roam is portable POS softeware for retailers on the move.
Our head office is closed today for the Labour Day (8 hour day) public holiday. We have other offices open for help desk support – all our usual numbers are live.
Tower Systems is proud to provide small business and indie retailers using our POS software with to free one on one training in the use of the POS software regardless of the version of the software they are using.
Yes, that’s right. Free training. Free one-on-one training. In our POS software. Delivered anywhere in Australia or New Zealand.
We do this because we know that free training makers for more knowledgeable POS software users and more knowledgeable POS software users are happier users and that is good for us too.
There are no strings to this free POS software training offer for small business retailers.
This is a genuine offer by the POS software company to help indie retailers using the Tower Systems software to get more from the software, to unlock tangible benefits for their businesses and for themselves.
It is rare that a POS software company provided free training to any customer, especially those who might have bought the software years ago and not paid for software support for many years. But that is what Tower Systems has delivered with this offer. That is what the company now has available for its customers.
To book for a free training session, all Tower Systems POS software customers need do is email bookings@towersystems.com.au and our training booking team will find out the topics you would like covered in the training, determine the best person to co9ver these areas of the software for you and arrange a time for the free training session.
Our hope its to drive business efficiency, business profitability and business enjoyment for all involved. We know that these are common outcomes from the POS software training that we have provided and can provide in a variety of business situations.
We create, sell, support and enhance POS software for specialty retailers: jewellers, garden centres, produce, toy, firearms, fishing, outdoors, newsagents, pet, gift, book, bike and adult. The free training offer is for retailers in these retail channels, regardless of the age of their POS software, regardless of whether they are covered by a software support agreement.
We are grateful to be in a position to make this investment in our small business user community.
If you know a business using our POS software, please let them know about this free offer from us. Everyone is welcome!
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