There is a scam in the software business space where software companies are invited to pay to be put on lists of the top software.
Some lists are application specific like POS software while others are retail channel specific like gift shops, jewellers and similar. There is another list going around for top inventory management software and another for top retail software linking to accounting software.
Tower Systems has been approached five times in recent months to pay to be listed on such lists. In one case, the amount you paid determined your position on the list. The fee sought to be on such a faux list of the best has ranged from $2,500 to $15,000. With between 8 and 15 companies on such a list and the promoters often creating 10+ lists every few months you can get a sense of the financial value, to them, of the scam.
In each case the invitation said they had assessed us and our POS software as being worthy. We checked them out and there had been no assessment whatsoever. Each approach was, in our view, a scam, a commercial operation designed to drive revenue for the business in control of the like by providing a fake ranking that the software companies listed could point to in their marketing – further promoting the fake.
We have never participated in these scams at Tower Systems. We have not and will not pay to have our POS software listed in a list that says we are one of the best.
The only assessment we trust is that of each of our POS software user small business retail customers. The toy shop owners, farm supply business owners, jewellers, garden centre owners, landscapers, pool repairers, newsagents, bike shop owners … these small business owners matter to us.
Paying to be on a list reflects poorly on the software companies on the list in our view. It demonstrates that the software and services provided by any company on such a list were not a factor in determining place.
The next time you see a software company promoting that they are on a list, ask them how they got there, ask them if they paid anything to the creators or promoters of the list. You will not see our Tower Systems POS software there, and for that we are grateful.
