The POS Software Blog
News from Tower Systems about locally made POS software for specialty local retailers.
Small business owners work incredibly hard. With a little help, you’ll be turning your local success into grand global adventures with your family | #family #local #retail #POS #success #smallbusiness #smallbiz | www.towersystems.com.au
Here is a new infographic we created to help small business retailers pitch their economic value. We have made this available for use at no cost.
We are loving the location we have at the Sydney Gift Fair, the space, the openness. It allows a professional pitch to small business retailers. Plenty of people have been stopping by to talk and check out our software and discuss retail business websites.
With two days to go we are excited for the opportunity ties and the people we will meet.
This is a valuable event for us for reasons beyond connecting with prospective customers. We get to say g’day to existing customers and talk with suppliers. The trade show works on a range of levels.
We love it and are grateful for the opportunity.
This is proving to be a terrific show with wonderful new connections being made as well as reconnecting with existing customers.
We love our location in the Gift Fair. The first two days here have been terrific.
People are reacting well to our new POS software.
Yesterday, we figured this is our Twentieth Gift Fair. We are proud to be the most consistent POS software participant.
Tower Systems!
Every day can be tough in small business. You can feel like the big competitors are winning and that you can’t climb the mountain to compete. You may not know where to start.
There are green shoots of good news and opportunities in every small and independent retail business. The key is to find these and to leverage them for more success.
A green shoot is a product or a category of products or a supplier performing above average in the business. Often, these successes have gone unnoticed.
We were working with a retailer recently who said business was down by 20% and they did not know what to do. It turned out that the best performing product category in their business was ‘failing’ for six months because they had not replenished stock.
They invested, instead, on new lines that had not gone as well as the successful product.
They, in part, created their own downward spiral and had not looked at their business data to understand that contributed to the problems they were confronting.
Once they realised the situation, they re-stocked the successful range of products and numbers started to improve. More important, their confidence level grew and with this their business decisions improved.
There are opportunities for optimism in every business.
Finding optimism is like mining, you have to look for it, sometimes for a long time. It is there, though, in every retail business.
As soon as you hear yourself talking your business down, STOP. Look at your data, look for the good news. That is what you need to think and talk about.
By looking at your data, we mean looking at year on year, quarter on quarter or month on month comparison data for departments, categories, suppliers or even individual products. Look for growth and once you see growth, think about what you can do with and around the products achieving growth so that you can achieve other growth.
Any product achieving year on year increases in unit sales is a product to be appreciated, nurtured and used to help grow other products that can sell to the same customer.
This is how you grow optimism. Find those small green shoots, leverage them with some small steps and, over time, build more success for your business.
While overall revenue, traffic count and profitability may be down, growth even at the smallest data point, such as for one or two products, could be enough to get you looking at your business differently.
In the Tower Systems POS software, the best initial reports for good news are: Monthly Sales Comparison (department level, category level and / or supplier level), the 10×10 Report, Ranked Sales Report (by units) for one period and then for the comparative period.
We’re here to help you find the good news in your business. Your business data is the key.
While there are many reasons Australian retail businesses child have websites developed in Australia by Australian developer companies, here are the top reasons.
There are many more reasons. While there is o doubt that offshore web development is cheaper, often that turns out to be false economy.
Tower Systems offers wonderful POS software for speciality retailers from ur POS division and beautiful Aussie developed websites from ur web division.
As an Australian POS software company, we are proud to serve in excess of 3,500 Aussie independent small retail businesses across a range of retail channels. Through our work, we help local Aussie businesses grow and become stronger. This is central to our mission. We believe in small business and Aussie small business especially.
With an effective marketing strategy and dedication to customer service, your online sales can easily become an essential facet of your business | #smallbiz #smallbusiness #pos #sales #retail | www.towersystems.com.au
Tower Systems provides these touch point services to all retailers using its Australian designed POS software. They are services we have found small business retailers appreciate and enjoy. These services are provided at no additional cost:
Tower Systems is grateful to the support of its 3,500+ customers that enable it is provide these and other services in support of small business retailers. This is what we do. We love it!
Here is fresh collateral we have created in-house and released to small business retailers for their free use.
Tower Systems has been a champion of discount vouchers for years. From launch to regular innovation, the benefits delivered have been valuable for small business retailers.
Through our work with the newsXpress gift, toy and newsagency marketing group we have produced channel-speficvi training. Here is a new video we shot last week outlining the benefits of discount vouchers from a business owner perspective. We share it here today to shine a light on the business support and management resources we produce for customers.
We appreciate the feedback from our POS software user customers about the preview we provided to the year in this video we shot in house. In addition to introducing some tech innovation coming early this year, the video also reflects our human and personal approach to software development, it underscores that we stand behind what we sell.
Here are seven steps we suggest to cut the cost of shopper theft in your retail business. While there are other steps you could take, these seven are most valuable from our years of working with retailers.
The more likely people are to be caught the less likely you are to experience shopper theft.
Tower Systems has many years of experience in helping independent small business retailers mitigate em ploy theft and shopper theft. We leverage this experience for our customers through excellent POS software, free training, group training workshops, data analysis and expert witness support for authorities in specific cases.
Our advice to retailers is that you can cut the cost of theft if you manage your business to achieve this goal. Sadly, too many small business retailers do not do this because they do not see theft until it is too late. We say be on the front foot, manage to cut theft even when you cannot see it.
Choosing POS software for a retail business is a daunting task. The software companies usually make it difficult to compare.
Tower Systems is a software company. Our goal is to make it easier for you.
We don’t want you to choose our software if our software is not the right fit for your business.
This is why our first advice is to make this decision about the software first. Make sure that you compare what each software package does. However, before you do this, ensure you know what you want out of software for your business and the amount you are prepared to pay for what you want.
Knowing what you want is as important as is knowing what you are prepared to ay for what you want.
The reality is there are cheap POS programs out there. You get what you pay for, every time. The cheapest product is the cheapest because they have either not invested as much in the development of the software or because they do not back the software with the same level of service.
Yes, you get what you pay for. This is why you haver to be realistic about the amount you are prepared to invest.
In considering software, start with the functionality. Look at each software package. Compare how it works against what you want from software you purchase.
Once you have a list of software packages that do what you want, dive deep into support coverage. Look carefully at how support is delivered, how you can access this, the training opportunities and how your business can be helped with the training and support.
If you are not sure what to look for in support, consider this wish list:
Ultimately, only you can know the best POS software for your type of business and your business. The value of the decision you make will reflect the approach yo7u took in making the decision. The old maxim of measure many times and cut once is true here.
We are thrilled to welcome new customers using our small business POS software. We have a welcome page on our website, which is part of our structured approach to welcoming new customers.
The welcome is sincere and personal:
Welcome to Tower Systems. This page welcomes new customers to our business, small business retailers switching to our POS software.
Thank you for your business, for your faith in our software and our services. We appreciate it.
Our goal is to help you make your business more valuable and more enjoyable through your use of our POS software.
Here in our website you have access to a knowledge base, available 24/7, which contains excellent advice and articles about how to use the software. It is like a live and evolving user manual – but searchable. Log into the customer side of the site and you can immediately access the knowledge base.
Our help desk is based in Melbourne Victoria. There we have a team of skilled IT professionals, with good retail experience, available to help with your queries. You can contact them through our national help line – 03 9524 8000 – of through your local Tower office number or by email: support@towersystems.com.au
We release software updates every few months. We announce by email when these are available. You choose when you wish to install each update. This gives you control.
If you have suggestions on changes you would like to see in our software, please use our Software Ideas page on this website. Through here other customers using our software can vote on your idea.
Every week we will send you a customer email with tips, ideas and inspirations. This is another touch point designed to help you get more from the relationship.
As a customer, you have access to free training. To schedule free one on one training, please email bookings@towersystems.com.au.
Welcome as a new customer of Tower Systems. Our motto is we’re here to help. Please, let us know how we can help your business.
Thank you for reading.
Mark Fletcher
Managing Director
0418 321 338
There is also a video welcoming our new customers:
Older employees can being terrific value to a retail business that is keen bring change to the business. Young employees cost less and this is a common appeal among retail business owners.
An older employee could bring more value to the business, they could leverage a better return on labour investment for the business. Here are other benefits that can be available depending on the background, skill set and work interest of the older employee:
When you are looking to fill a vacancy or a new role in the business, consider older person for these and other reasons you can think of. The could bring to the business skills and interest the you can leverage more valuably than the skills and interest of a younger lower cost employee.
Of course, the value of any employee depends on your hiring, training, management and motivation of them.
The post of this post is to suggest that next time you hire you think about an older employee.
Note: The federal government jobactive restart program can help Australian businesses that hire older employees financially:
Restart is a financial incentive of up to $10,000 (GST inclusive) to encourage businesses to hire and retain mature age employees who are 50 years of age and over.
Older employees can bring new insights and energy to a business. The right hire could be just want the business needs to explore new traffic opportunities.
Some of our team have been at the Americasmart gift fair in Atlanta this past week looking at new trends in the gift and homewares retail spaces.
It has been a busy few days of networking, learning and making new connections.
We appreciate the opportunity to learn and bring some of this back to our growing customer based on retailers in the gift and homewares spaces.
2018 is looking like a most exciting year.
It can be tough for a small business to compete with big business. Those who do so successfully have access to excellent quality up to date business data. They leverage this to fuel quality business decisions.
The best business data is that which flows immediately between POS software and accounting software. Tower Systems provides to small business retailers a beautiful, easy to setup and easy to use link between its POS software and the cloud based Xero accounting solution.
The Tower Systems Xero POS software link is ideal for small business independent retailers. It helps small business retailers compete through:
The most effective ways small business retailers can compete with big businesses and online is through efficient operation, accurate data and customer service touch-points that add appreciated value.
Tower Systems only sells its POS software to small business retailers.
We believe in small businesses, their importance to local communities and their broader economic value.
Through our software, our personal in-store training, 24/7 human and locally based help desk service, regional user meetings, weekly online workshops and other touch-points we help small business retailers beyond what is usual for POS software companies.
Our company motto is we’re here to help. We take this seriously. Everyday, out motto challenges us to help our customers in ways they do not expect, ways beyond the software itself.
Founded in 1981, Tower Systems has evolved as technology has evolved. The software we sell today is generations away from where we started. We are proud to have served some of our customers for decades.
More than 3,500 specialty small business retailers in Australia and New Zealand use our specialty POS software.
To us, a specialty retailer is one that offers services unique to the channel, services that define the business. We embed in our software for each retail channel facilities that serve needs unique to that channel. We take pride in doing this and enhancing these channel-specific facilities as the needs evolve.
Mistakes can be expensive in small business retail, especially mistakes made in accounting.
The Tower Systems POS software Xero link helps small business retailers cut mistakes. The link eliminates tasks by automating the flow of data from the POS software where data is received into the business in the form of invoices for inventory, returns notes for products going back to suppliers. sales data, LayBy data and plenty more.
Capturing this data at the source, at the point of sale, and flowing the data without additional human intervention to Xero, to the right part of Xero, eliminates time, cuts mistakes and provides small business retailers with more control.
Every error made in accounting has a cost. In fact, there can be multiple costs – labour and financial. This is why it is better to get it right the first time.
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 CPA, to provide a professional accounting perspective on the link and how to get the most from it.
Setting up the Xero link is easy. You map the data flow from invoice entry through to the chart of accounts managed by Xero. Once this is done, supplier invoices, sales, credits, LayBys and other everyday business transactions flow from the POS software to Xero.
This makes business accounting easier, more certain, less expensive and more useful to the business.
By cutting mistakes we help bring certainty to business reporting and management. This posts confidence.
Tower Systems is keen to help small business retailers cut mistakes. We know the more we can do this the more our customers will appreciate the practical benefits a relationship between our businesses can deliver. With our software support being optional we know that our customers can switch any time. The best way for us to keep them is for us to deliver practical benefits at each touch point.
Managing operating costs is a key goal for small business retailers in this world of greater competition.
The Tower Systems POS software Xero link helps small business retailers cut costs. It does this in a range of practical ways that small business retailers can leverage without having to spend more money on software or professional services.
Thanks to the Xero POS software link retailers are able to eliminate bookkeeping work and have accounting data flow through accurately from the POS software where data originates to Xero where it is accessed for key business accounting functions.
Developed with careful oversight of CPA qualified accounting experience as well as current small business management accounting experience plus insights from experienced bookkeepers, this link is a true cost saver because of the accounting steps it eliminates and the mistakes it avoids. Both of these have costs to any small business. Eliminating them is a bottom line cost benefit for any business.
Setting up the Xero link is easy. You map the data flow from invoice entry through to the chart of accounts managed by Xero. Once this is done, supplier invoices, sales, credits, LayBys and other everyday business transactions flow from the POS software to Xero.
This makes business accounting easier, more certain, less expensive and more useful to the business.
Your BAS is easier. Your P&L and Balance Sheet are more up to date. This is a big win for any small business retailer.
Tower Systems uses the Xero POS software link itself for retail businesses it owns in the gift and homewares spaces. By using our software, especially the Xero link we are able to draw on broad practical experience when providing advice to our retail business owner customers. It means that our help desk advice is based on us walking in your shores more than is usual for a POS software company.
Tower Systems is keen to help small business retailers cut costs. We know the more we can do this the more our customers will appreciate the practical benefits a relationship between our businesses can deliver. With our software support being optional we know that our customers can switch any time. The best way for us to keep them is for us to deliver practical benefits at each touch point.
We have updated the material we provide to new POS software customers we welcome to our business. Here is a new video we just shot to include in our welcome pack:
Reflecting on 2017, as the year draws to a close, we are grateful for all the new customers who joined us this year.
We are grateful to those installing our software as first time computer users in their businesses.
We are also grateful to those who switched to our software from other POS software – there has been plenty of this in 2017.
To help new customers settle in with our software and our customer support we have a structured welcome process, with assistance provided outside the usual help desk – until new customers reel well settled in their use of our software.
We understand the challenges small business retailers face and do all things possible to ensure their settling in with our POS software is gentle and useful.
For many, years Tower Systems has offered small business retailers access to professional help in detecting, reducing and prosecuting employee theft. In our small business POS software we have excellent services that support this.
In our management team we have skilled professionals who have helped police, prosecutors, insurers and others in situations of employee theft. Our approach is evidence based, professional, discrete and thorough.
Our theft mitigation and theft management services are handled at the leadership team level of the Tower Systems business as this is where the experience lies through helping retail businesses in a variety of retail sectors.
In our decades of experience, it is essential the business draw a line in the sand on the issue of employee theft. This is best done by the establishment of a theft policy. This is best done as a document that employees sign. We provide our customers with a template theft policy. We share this here today for anyone to see and consider for their business.
THEFT POLICY
PLEASE SIGN AND DATE YOUR ACKNOWLEDGEMENT:
Small business retailers who use the Tower Systems POS software have access to unlimited free one-on-one training.
The free training is scheduled at a time to suit and to cover areas of the software requested by the customer.
We have some customers who use the free training to top up their knowledge, others use it to train new staff members while others use it to be surprised at what they don’t know about the POS software. We even have some who take up the opportunity to have us review their business and provide strategic management advice on what we can see in their business data.
Delivered by one of our customer service experts, the training is tailored to each retail situation, to ensure it is useful to the person for whom the training is being provided.
Booked through our head office and managed in a structured way, this free training service provided was unique when first launched, it put us in a leadership position. Today, we maintain that leadership through the scope, professionalism and practical help provided through the training.
Here at Tower Systems our motor is we’re here to help. This free training service is another way we live the motto every day.
Small business retailers using the Tower Systems POS software Shopify link are reporting terrific engagement with shoppers they may not have otherwise found.
Thanks to a direct link between the POS software and Shopify, retailers have one place for managing inventory that is in-store and online. This saves time, reduces mistakes unbend makes management of the online presence easier.
The Shopify link is one of three direct POS software / e-commerce platform links in the Tower software. These three are in addition to a weblink that helps the POS software connect to any website.
Through the Shopify link, data is transferred – inventory and sales – in a structured standard way required by Shopify and in line with the requirements of that business. It is fast, easy and powerful.
Tower Systems is proud to have brought plenty more small businesses online thanks to its work with the folks at Shopify.
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