The POS Software Blog

The POS Software Blog

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

CategoryBike Shop

New bike shop software facilities embraced by bike retailers

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Bike shops participating in the beta release program of new Bike Shop Software are loving new facilities in our software. Their feedback has been helping us further tweak the latest release of the software to go beyond even what we had expected to achieve through the new facilities.

Having a professionally managed beta release program in partnership with engaged retailers helps us drive better outcomes for our retail partners. What has been happing over recent weeks with the beta release of our new bike shop software is evidence of this.

Using our industry standard Bike Shop Software, bike retailers have tools through which they can better serve customers, more efficiently manage repairs, resume the cost of inventory and have easy access to accurate data for business planning.

How POS software helps small business retailers from the front door to the back office

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Software is only as valuable to a business as the contribution it makes. This contribution can be measured in time and money for its from these two that all other benefits flow. Here are ways our point of sale software will help gift shops, jewellers, bike retailers, pet shops and more make more money and free time

  1. Better customer service. Our software guides the sales process and gathers all necessary information, freeing retail staff for selling.
  2. Saving time. Using our software, sales are processed quickly. As retailers ourselves we have focused on delivering fast and efficient processing for sales.
  3. Reducing theft. Stores without a POS system are more susceptible to employee theft. In fact nearly 50% of retail shrinkage comes from employee theft. Our software can help to significantly reduce or eliminate these occurrences. We draw your attention to suspicious behaviour. For more security, you can password protect any area that you do not want employees to be able to access.
  4. Better decisions. We provide access to real-time information. Whether you have one store or 30 stores, you have instant and up to the minute access to sales numbers, stock, margins and more. This ability to have instant and accurate information enables you to make the absolute most out of your investment.
  5. Increased sales. In many ways throughout the business we help with this.
  6. After sales marketing. Using our loyalty program you send targeted letters, emails, and direct mail to customers based on purchases and other criteria. We have several loyalty options.
  7. Payment integration. With integrated Eftpos you can un clutter the counter, streamline sales processing and make record keeping easier. Time and money saved.
  8. Reduced mistakes. Using our software you can cut paperwork and this cuts mistakes. You can rely on the software to advise sales data and thereby stop you buying products which are not selling. Good retailing begins with good buying.
  9. Better integration with suppliers. Thanks to the supplier links in our software you are able to give suppliers data in return for better deals. There are many case studies in our files of this working to the benefit of our retail customers. Good retailing begins with good buying.

Sunday retail management advice: don’t pay too much for POS software support

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Here at Tower Systems, paying annual software support is optional. We want our POS software customers to pay to access support because they value it rather than because it is a tax imposed which must be paid for them to access the software.

Our support fees are transparent and consistent.

If you use other POS software, before you pay your bill check what others are paying. In one case recently one business was paying around $1,000 while another nearby using exactly the same software purchased at the same time was paying over $3,000. The second business was being grossly overcharged.

One way you can save money on POS software support is by shopping around.

Sunday retail business management tip: small steps matter

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We often see small business retailers focus on grand plans, big moves they intend to make to lift their business. Our experience is that many small steps deliver a better result to a retail business and for a lower cost.

Using our retail management software, retailers are able to uncover and nurture small steps to growth in their business.

Every retail business has small steps they can take to drive traffic, achieve a better margin from products, get shoppers purchasing more, reducing wastage, reducing theft and more. Each of these alone done in a step step strategic way will compound on the other and deliver a greater than the sum of the parts benefit to the business.

Beyond its terrific POS software, Tower Systems helps retailers to see what they may be missing, to understand the opportunities for growth through a small steps strategy.

Leveraging our own retail experience and our intimate knowledge of what our software cal do, we can help retailers to lift their businesses through co-operative partnership.

Not all POS software companies are the sale. We’re here to help.

Bike shop software users to benefit from Tower Systems US retail tour insights

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nybikesLearning from US bike retailers and how they engage with bike fans is one of the takeaways from Two weeks in the US for two Tower Systems executives. The trip culminated in almost a week in New York including attending the National retail Federation annual conference. While in New York at the conference and on the streets meeting with bike retailers, insights were shared that will help position tower Systems to further improve on its already popular and widely-used bike retail management software.

Using the Tower Bike Shop Software, retailers are able to manage warranties, track serial numbers, manage repairs and provide a whole of customer life experience and thereby drive (ride) more value for the business. Our intuitive bike shop software is world class as we have seen in this most recent overseas marketplace study.

For commercial reasons we will not share any comprehensive outcomes here as these are best deployed to our customers for their and our commercial advantage.

Comparing specialist bike shop software to Retail Manager from MYOB

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The Tower Systems specialist bike shop software plays in a completely different field to MYOB’s Retail Manager software.  While both software packages offer Point of Sale facilities, only our software offers facilities which serve the needs of today’s specialist bike retailer.

MYOB’s Retail Manager is a successful mass market package and therefore remains generic in the services it provides.  This is how they keep their price down, by not offering specialist facilities.  It is a business model which has served them well.

We have gone the other way and created specialist bike shop software because we understand that this will help bike retailers make more money from their businesses.  Bike retailers can leverage our specialist facilities to drive revenue and build businesses of greater value for when they decide to sell.

Specialist bike retailers see themselves and quite different to mass merchant bike retailers.  One way of leveraging their specialist focus and services is through specialist bike shop software.  Those who don’t see their business as different opt for mass merchant software and miss an opportunity to drive their unique selling proposition at every opportunity.

Here are some of the bike shop specialist areas where our software is quite different to the generic MYOB and other software:

  • Loyalty marketing.  Bike customers are more valuable than the first tracking.  By tracking purchases through a robust loyalty management and marketing system, bike retailers using our Tower Systems software are able to extract greater value from each customer.
  • Text message customer communication.  Letting customers know when repairs are ready to be collected, special orders have arrived in-store and special offers are available helps better connect specialist bike retailers and their customers.  MYOB does not have these facilities.
  • Multi store facilities.  Centralised internet based multi store facilities.  What we offer beats the current MYOB offer hands down.
  • Supplier connection.  By connecting with key bike shop suppliers, processing electronic invoices and creating electronic orders, we are helping bike retailers cut labour costs.  This makes our software considerably more valuable than generic software when it comes to managing business payroll.
  • Theft management.  By connecting the bike shop software with a sophisticated security camera system, bike shop owners are able to leverage better management of the employee and customer theft risks.  This is another difference between generic POS software and our specialist bike shop software.
  • Serial number tracking.  A full service bike shop wants to provide a more professional and complete service to the mass merchants.  Serial number tracking is one such example.  This can help with insurance claims.  It can also ease the registering of the purchase with the manufacturer.
  • Repairs management.  Tracking a repair from when it is presented to when it is collected can be a real time saver for a bike shop.  Doing this work manually costs time and leads to mistakes.  MYOB offers no such facility.
  • Managing custom built products.  Being able to track the assembling of a number of items and labour into a saleable product is important for a specialist bike retailer.  MYOB cannot handle this.

Bike retailers who see their business as different to that of a mass merchant selling bikes prefer software which respects and supports their difference.  This is the Tower Systems AdvantageTM.

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