The POS Software Blog
News from Tower Systems about locally made POS software for specialty local retailers.
Monday last week at the office we shot and released this stocktake video to our POS software customers as part of a kit of advice on stocktake 2021. This was sent to our customers by email as well as shared on our private social media platforms.
This is another example of fresh content we provide to our customers.
We also released a longer form full stocktake training video for those keen for more of a specific how to stocktake.
Greeting cards are big business in Australia, responsible for hundreds of millions of dollars in retail sales.
Here at Tower Systems, we are grateful to help gift shops, greeting card shops and newsagents to sell more cards. Thanks to specialty card product specific reporting and close relationships with key greeting card publishers, we have a leadership position in driving good card sales outcomes.
Cultivating accurate pocket-level card sales data and providing access to insights from this data in accessible forms enables us to help small business retailers drive good card sales.
In one high street retail business, card revenue is up 50% year on year, off a very solid base and even smoothing data for Covid impact.
In another high street business in regional Australia where the Covid impact on retail has been nil, card sales are up 37% following the implementation of advice guided by the reporting from within our POS software, the greeting card category and segment reporting for which we are well known.
Growing card sales is good business as it plays well in retail for gift sales. Also, with the margin on cards, growth in revenue is beneficial to bottom-line performance.
Related to our work with greeting cards is our work gift packaging. Gift packaging has been a focus in one of our client shops over the last six months. It was accounting for 3.7% of revenue within cards/gift packaging. Looking at their most recent data this morning, it is contributing 6.2% of total gift packaging revenue. This growth is even better considering the overall card/gift packaging revenue growth of 36% being achieved.
In our retail channel specific POS software we have tools that aim to help card and gift packaging businesses to achieve excellent results, thereby adding value to the businesses, helping them to be not only more successful today but more valuable tomorrow should be business be put on the market.
Card success really is rooted in card performance data. The toolkit in our specialty retail POS software in terms of cards is deep and strong, and it has a terrific track record of success … of which we are most proud.
Tower Systems goes beyond the software, offering support and services on which retailers can rely to achieve greater success in the greeting card and gift packaging spaces.
We are loving the reaction from our new range of POS software marketing postcards, which are out now. Each features a happy image representing our software in a specialty niche retail channel. They are a good reflection of the specialty nature of our small business retail focussed POS software.
This is us, Tower Systems. We are proud of what we make and the businesses we get to help.
We are grateful to the many retailers who have already embraced our end of financial year offer for a $1,000 gift off our fixed price Shopify POS software integrated website development.
This is a genuine EOFY offer, not one of those inflated prices discounted to make it look like you’re getting a deal situation.
Our fixed price through to life POS software connected Shopify web development packages cost $6,600, which includes a commercial and beautiful template of your choice.
The EOFY offer is $1,000 off this.
There are a couple of conditions, which our sales people can help you with,.
Here is what is included in our fixed price Shopify POS software integrated website solution:
Tower Systems offers to create a Shopify website for $6,600.00 for which you receive:
What this list does not show is the back and forth, the discussions, explorations and investigations with you that lead to the creation of a website that serves your needs. This is a comprehensive and iterative process between you and our webbed experts, all of whom work here in Melbourne Australia.
Tower Systems is grateful to help more small business retailers get live with beautiful Shopify websites connected to their POS software. Our work doin g this has evolved over the years, from sites we have developed for our businesses to websites for many of our customers across many different retail channels.
Our work in this area is considerable and diverse. It starts with understanding the needs of our customers. Our approach is comprehensive and transparent.
We also host online workshops for retailers interested in considering Shopify web development. Here is one such workshop from a few weeks ago. It is one of many we have hosted already this year.
We share the video of this meeting is it demonstrates our openness without pitching sales. We genuinely want to help small business retailers make informed decisions about web development, so that the money they invest in a website for their business us useful for the business and for its stakeholders.
Winter can be tough for retail as traffic is often down. Local indie retail businesses have an opportunity to leverage the season, to make it more enjoyable. Here are six suggestions to get you thinking abut winter differently:
If your shop is in a really cold area consider an outer door to keep the warmth in. They do this a lot in Europe and the US in Winter.
These ideas are all about relaxing things, bringing opportunities for joy to the business and evolving the narrative associated with the business. This is what having fun through Winter is about. It’s abut the less obvious, you doing things you can and that a bigger business are less likely to try.
We are grateful and proud. This is us:
This POS software for gift shops packs a punch, a good punch, delivering for a few dollars a day valuable facilities and benefits:
The latest version of our Aussie made and supported gift shop software, released recently, is visually and technically fresh. It’s made for Australian gift retailers to help you run a more valuable business.
Here is what your customers can access:
Our goal is for you to enjoy valuable outcomes for you and your business from using our software. We’d love the software to be a genuinely useful partner for the long term, to help you and your business do well.
See the software for yourself. here is a short video in which we show some of what this specialty POS software offers:
Our gift shop POS software does much more than this. It is feature and function rich, easily learned and valuable at many touchpoiunts in the business.
Okay, software are the tangible, bankable, useful benefits of the Tower Systems gift shop POS software? That’s a big question because, really, what differentiates this software from other software out there. Let;’s try and answer.
In our experience, here is what we think people find to be beneficial about our gift shop POS software…
Sweet huh? We love this list because everything on it is good and because other benefits not on it are good, too. We are proud of our local business specialty retail gift shop POS software and the ben edits it delivers to the retailers with whom we work.
The thing is, the benefits in our gift shop POS software are there because of our customers. They have guided us and they guide us. This is a collaboration. It always has been. This software is awesome because we have awesome customers and for this we are sincerely grateful.
If you own a gift shop, let’s talk …
So many questions, so much to unpack. And, maybe, you are wondering why a POS software company even wonders about these questions. Like, seriously, what does this have to with gift shop POS software? Why are nerds asking these questions.
We care.
Seriously, we care. Okay, we are nerds too, but we do care and have cared for many may years.
Our business relies on thriving local gift shops, small business gift shops, independent gift shops. We need you to be successful as much as you need your business to be successful.
This is why we have built and continue to build into our gift shop POS software facilities, tools and nuggets on which you can rely to bank better results.
If you are thinking of turning off because this reads as too salesy, too glib, please don’t. We are trying to show that we do care about local gift shops, businesses like yours.
In our Aussie made and supported specialty gift shop POS software you have access to cool and useful tools that can help:
This is smart gift shop POS software made solely for local independent gift shops. It has been made to help that channel of businesses compete with much bigger businesses. It does this by helping to leverage you and your people and your knowledge, by helping to consistently pitch local without shouting and by giving you tools that match and, in our view, pass what the big end of town retailers use to chase customers.
So, yes, we are nerds. But … we are nerds who understand retail, especially local retail, independent retail, gift shop retail.
This is locally made gift shop POS software we are proud to offer.
Good POS software is valuable for a retail business, especially a small local business like a gift shop. Our gift shop POS software has been made to nurture value for any business using it. By value, we mean bankable results in terms of sales, margin and, ultimately, the valuation of the business itself.
Our gift shop POS software is made to focus on guiding you to nurture value from the business. It does this through facilities built into the software to help you on this path.
if you have a spare 22 minutes, here is a video in which we look at several of the facilities included in this gift shop POS software, facilities that differentiate it from other more generic POS software. We shot this video in August 2020. While the software continues to evolve, what we discuss in the video is in the software today.
This video is designed to briefly overview this gift shop POS software. Any of the Tower Systems sales team can show you more of the software, in as much detail as you would like. However, before they do that, they will want to know about your business needs as your software choice is 100% about you and what you need for your business.
We are grateful for the many hundreds of gift shop owners, managers and retail team members who have contributed and continue to contribute ideas and feedback on the software for it is their engagement that guides where we take this software.
Each year we release several gift shop POS software updates, bring new facilities and enhancements to the software to ensure its service to our customers grows … as you’d expect from any business.
This is specialty POS software made for gift shops, specific to their business needs. Too often we win business where a gift shop wen with a generic software product only to find that it does not serve their specialty retail needs.
If you think your retail business is unique in any ways, look for software that serves your uniqueness. This is important. Software sits at the heart of any retail business. It is critical to how you see your business that you match your view with tools up to the task.
Our gift shop POS software has been make for local specialty retail gift shops.
Tower Systems is grateful to offer local gift shops locally made and supported POS software for their niche retail businesses.
The needs of gift shops when it comes to gift shops POS software are unique. Too often, gift shop owners are told that any software can serve their needs.
The thing is, software can only do what it can do. A specialty retail business does not want to be limited in what it can do by the limits of the software it selects.
There is where the Tower Systems specialty gift shop POS software plays. It has been made for gift shops and is used by gift shops to serve unique and specialty needs of these specialty retail, businesses. It does this for physical businesses as well as online businesses thanks to a seamless integration with platforms like Shopify.
This gift shop POS software does not stand still. It is regularly enhanced to serve evolving marketplace needs. Gift shop owners often find ways to evolve their businesses thanks to opportunities in the software.
being locally made and supported helps local small business gift shops to serve their local communities. This is software made for your situation. It’s not from an overseas software chop shop that uses different lingo or from nerds who expect you to meet them on their nerd platform.
The Tower Systems gift shop POS software is make for local gift shops. But what does this mean? Fair question. It sounds like marketing spin. How is this gift shop software made for gift shops.
Okay, let’s explore that, let’s consider how this gift shop POS software is made specifically for gift shops. here are a couple of examples.
These are two of the many gift shop specific facilities in our POS software on which local small business gift shop owners can rely to leverage their businesses for greater local success.
Here at Tower Systems, through our work with our specialsist retail POS software, we get to see many different types and sizes of retail businesses. we are grateful for the insights they share and the inspiration they provide.
We have put together this collection of local small business retail every day marketing tips. These are tips that could work in almost any business situation. We hope you find it useful.
Our goal with this list is to give you ideas you can use right away as well as ideas that will get you thinking of your own ideas.
Go for it. Remember, if you do next week what you did this week you cannot expect any growth. Growth only comes from change.
We urge small business retailers to take care when selecting an individual or business to undertake Shopify web development. Inside the Shopify web developer ecosystem there are people who take the money, do the bare minimum and run – failing the retail businesses that paid them.
How do you spot a Shopify web developer who is not likely to serve the needs of your retail business? Here is our advice …
Look at their quote. Is it professionally laid out? Is it well written? Is it understandable? Is it complete? If it is none or only some of these things they may not be the developer for you for if they take this approach representing themselves what approach will they take representing you?! we say … be particularly concerned about text based quotes.
Look for understanding. In their words there should be indicators that they understand your needs and that they want to understand your needs. The website is all about you and your business after all.
Speak to them. We have seen shonky web developers void this at all costs. Speak to them. Talk with them. Engage in conversation. You are looking for someone you can trust your business with. Speak to them.
Look at them. Ask for a Zoom meeting, so you can meet face to face. Ask them to show you sample Shopify sites in this meeting and to explain why each is a good sample site for you to consider. Sometimes we see web developers avoid Zoom meetings so they can hide behind typed words. face to face can be revealing.
Say you don’t understand. Tell them you don’t understand some or all of their pitch. Test their patience. See if they meet you at a tech jargon level that you are comfortable with. Challenge them. test them. It is vital they use words and terms you understand. They have to meet you, not you them.
Be in control. You are the customer. You choose the web developer you go with. Decide whether you accept their quote and their terms. You do these things when it suits you. Do not succumb to pressure as anyone pressuring you on timing may be serving their needs and not yours.
Website development right now is like the 1800s gold rush – fast, unregulated with a lot of people being negatively impacted along the way and only a few finding gold.
Take your time. Be sure of what matters to you. Choose the business you want to work with, they business you think can hell you achieve what you want.
Know that you get what you pay for. by that we mean … some web developers under quote as a business model either because they will cut corners or because they know they can charge extra for what they did not know at the start. Again, take your time, be sure of your needs, and remember the carpenter adage: measure twice, cut once. Time spent before you make a decision on your Shopify web developer could ensure that the outcome is better for you and your business.
If you are looking for a Shopify website for your retail business: Email sales@towersystems.com.au or call us on 1300 662 957.
Recently released websites we have developed for Tower Systems customers.
www.backobourkecollective.com.au
www.inspiretasmania.com.au
www.brindabellastockfeed.com.au
www.heavensabove.com.au
www.loavesrobe.com.au
www.masterjewellersonline.com.au
www.chitchatgifts.com.au
www.eidsvoldrural.com.au
www.forevergiftsandmore.com.au
www.funporium.com.au
www.goulburnstationery.com.au
www.rehfisch.com.au
www.merimbulaextra.com.au
www.morganpark.com.au
www.nextragiftsorange.com.au
www.northsideproduceagency.com.au
www.pamperedpetz.com.au
www.www.paperplayonline.com.au
www.parkesnewsandgifts.com.au
www.rivercitypets.com.au
www.smithstreettraders.com.au
www.sprengersruraltraders.com.au
www.hefeedshop.com.au
www.shop.newcastle.edu.au
www.toyworldcanberra.com.au
www.toyworldwauchope.com.au
www.reasureboxgifts.com.au
www.uncletomspps.com.au
www.warragulpetemporium.com.au
www.welbygardencentre.com.au
www.wollongongbikehub.com.au
Plenty of local retailers consider the VEND POS software when looking for as POS software solution. here at Tower Systems we have an alternative the VEND POS software, a POS software alternative that is available to be rented for $99.00 a month.
Using this software, retailers can have tools like they would have with VEND POS software and more, including the ability to…
These are some of the benefits available in our POS software, which competes with the VEBD POS software. Included with the software rental and embedded with software access is:
We are local. Tower Systems serves 3,500+ specialty businesses. If you think we could help you, please call 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au.
The software continues to evolve, too. With updates released every eight weeks or so. The enhancements in these updates are guided by suggestions from customers, for which we are sincerely grateful.
The Tower Systems gift shop software offers many benefits from time saving to shoppe engaging to team member enjoyment. Delivering tangible benefits through our POS software is important to us, especially benefits beyond the traditional, beyond what people expect.
The top benefits from using the Tower Systems Gift shop software, as told to us by our customers.
We are grateful to have launched more POS software connected Shopify websites for small business retailers in our community. These sites, all developed by us here in Australia, deliver terrific new customer acquisition opportunities for our shoppers, helping them to sell 24/7 and sell as far afield as they would like.
Here are some of the recently made live websites from our web team:
www.backobourkecollective.com.au
www.inspiretasmania.com.au
www.brindabellastockfeed.com.au
www.heavensabove.com.au
www.loavesrobe.com.au
www.masterjewellersonline.com.au
www.chitchatgifts.com.au
www.eidsvoldrural.com.au
www.forevergiftsandmore.com.au
www.funporium.com.au
www.goulburnstationery.com.au
www.rehfisch.com.au
www.merimbulaextra.com.au
www.morganpark.com.au
www.nextragiftsorange.com.au
www.northsideproduceagency.com.au
www.pamperedpetz.com.au
www.www.paperplayonline.com.au
www.parkesnewsandgifts.com.au
www.rivercitypets.com.au
www.smithstreettraders.com.au
www.sprengersruraltraders.com.au
www.hefeedshop.com.au
www.shop.newcastle.edu.au
www.toyworldcanberra.com.au
www.toyworldwauchope.com.au
www.reasureboxgifts.com.au
www.uncletomspps.com.au
www.warragulpetemporium.com.au
www.welbygardencentre.com.au
www.wollongongbikehub.com.au
If you are interested in a POS software connected website, please reach out to our sales team: sales@towersystems.com.au.
USEFUL, EVERYDAY WEBSITE ADVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESS RETAILERS.
Regardless of who you choose to create your website, here are tips we offer to help make setting up a Shopify site successful for you.
We make POS software integrated Shopify websites for a fixed price: $6,600.00 (inc. GST).
Too often we see small business retailers pay a web consultant anything between $5,000 and $15,000 for an awful website, one not connected to your POS software.
A retailer called us just recently in tears about money wasted on a site that looks like it is from the 1990s … thousands down the drain.
We are seeing too many WooCommerce / WordPress websites that businesses want to switch from. Web developers recommend WooCommerce as it guarantees income for them. In our experience, this is an expensive platform to maintain, a platform we moved from ourselves for e-commerce years ago.
If you want a website for your business, please ask us. You have nothing to lose and much to gain by getting us to quote.
See some of the beautiful websites we have created: www.towersystems.com.au/Websites-we-have-created
Before we start creating a beautiful website for your business, we want to know about what you need from the site, your competitors and how you’d like to handle things like shipping, payment methods and more.
We also share details of our experiences with the consumer facing websites we run ourselves as well as experiences from the websites we have developed for others.
Here’s where to start: contact one of our sales people, please call 1300 662 957 or email sales@towersystems.com.au.
Australian made.
We make websites for our customers ourselves. We do not outsource this work offshore. There is something to be said for locally made websites for local retail businesses that, themselves, want local people to shop locally.
At the core of what we do, we create websites that we would want if we owned your business. Each website is a calling card, something we want to show off to win business for you and to win business for us.
Website Q&A.
Can I run multiple Shopify websites from the one business? Yes
Can Retailer POS software connect to a website? Yes.
Where is the best place to manage stock description and price data? Retailer.
Can I have a different price online to in my shop? Yes.
Can I have a different description online to in my shop? Yes.
Does Retailer store photos for what I sell? Yes.
Can these flow to the website? Yes.
Do I have to put everything I sell in my shop online? No.
Where do I start? Do our online questionnaire.
After I do the questionnaire, what’s next? Sign up with us and we will guide through a structured process designed to get the best website possible for your business.
Money is tight. I can get a website cheaper elsewhere. You should go with the web developer that best suits your business. Remember, you get what you pay for.
Let us show you what we can do in creating a website for your business.
We’d love to show some of the beautiful, functional and flexible websites we have created for our customers. Let’s talk …
A website of itself will not drive success. What’s needed is a beautiful website with the right tech and connections to help you reach more customers than you do now.
The gift shop POS software from Tower Systems provides access to plenty of benefits … financial, operational and personal. The gift shop POS software is packed with opportunities for local small business gift shops to engage with to make the business for successful, and enjoyable for those working in the business.
here are some of the benefits of the gift shop POS software from Tower Systems.
This gift shop POS software is packed with opportunities.
Local small business retailers are benefiting from the local web development that we offer here at Tower Systems. Our POS software connected web development is tuned to the needs of local retail businesses in Australia and New Zealand.
By doing our web development locally and within our own POS software develop0ment community, we are able to deliver a more whole of business solution, something tuned to the needs of the physical and online businesses.
Our web development work is done in Shopify, magenta or WooCommerce. Our customers can choose, which is often done based on the types of needs they have.
Here is a list of what we deliver in our fixed price web development solution for local small business retailers:
Developing beautiful websites is something we are proud to offer here at Tower Systems. Helping local small business retailers transact online is wonderful and fulfilling. The joy they experience from their first sales is a thrill for them and for us, too.
Do a Google search for POS software and most likely ad from several POS software comparison websites will list first.
Do a search for Tower Systems in Australia and, again, most likely ad from several POS software comparison websites will list first.
These Marketing companies are paying for the POS software and for the Tower Systems keywords.
There is no law against it. But … and it’s a big but … there is a law against misrepresentation.
If a software comparison website claims they have done the research for you, if they claim to offer to suggest to you the best businesses, if they pitch anything indicating any research into the products they list, ask for the evidence, ask for proof of the research they undertook not only of the companies they recommend but the companies they do not recommend.
Tower Systems has not been evaluated by any POS software comparison website. They have not seen or used our software, they have not experienced our training. They have not experienced our support services.
No POS software comparison website can speak with authority as to how Tower Systems may compare with any other POS software company in the marketplaces in which we offer our specialty retail POS software:
… and more.
Having looked at POS software comparison websites, we can’t see any we recommend, any we would trust to provide valuable help or guidance as to this software or that.
In our opinion, the comparison websites are merely marketping platforms paid by software companies to effectively advertise their businesses.
We suspect this is why some POS software comparison websites pay for keywords that match the names of successful POS software companies.
Our advice: be curious, ask questions, ensure that any claim as to research undertaken has actually be undertaken.
Tower Systems is a local POS software company making POS software for specialty retailers in New Zealand and Australia. We research each retail channel in which we operate thoroughly to ensure that our specialty retail POS software is specialty in function.
No one wants to plan for disaster. It’s a negative activity, easily put off for more happy and optimistic pursuits. The reality is that most business owners will confront some form of disaster at some point in their business life. This advice is far-reaching, designed to act as a broad list of steps you can undertake to be prepared. Do it all or some, but do something … otherwise when you need good planning you will not have a plan on which to fall back.
Too often, the need for good disaster planning is realised after a disaster has hit the business. Our retail business advice here offers business and computer related advice which is designed to mitigate the impact of a disaster on your business.
Insurance Protection
Insurance coverage is vital to helping a retail business overcome any type of disaster. In addition to ensuring that your insurance policy covers all disaster situations of concern to you, including flood, theft, water inundation, fire, earthquake, riot—be sure to carefully read the policy, ensure that your insurance policy / policies cover payouts for the following:
Ensure that the value of stock, fixtures and fittings covered by your policy is an accurate reflection of the real value of these items. Talk with your insurance company about the best approach to track this on an ongoing basis.
Insurance brokers can provide access to assessors who can advise on the appropriate level of insurance for your situation.
Use your Point of Sale system to track all stock movements in and out. The stock on hand in your software should be your coverage.
Ensure that your insurance policy protects for the seasonal nature of your business
Data Protection
Business data is one of the most valuable assets of the business. Like insurance, the value is often not understood until you need what you do not have. Retailers who are serious about protecting their business data in the event of any disaster follow these steps:
Disaster Planning
Here are broader suggestions on planning for a disaster in your business property.
How do you choose the POS software that is best for your retail business? Here is our advice based on years helping small business retailers.
Note, while we are a POS software company, our advice here is not specific to our product. rather, it is general and couple apply to any retail business considering POS software.
There is no short-cut or easy way to choose POS software for your retail business for if you do take a short-cut it is likely to hurt you. It’s kinda like the carpenter mantra, measure twice, cut once. For choosing POS software for your retail business, research, research again before you decide.
This is not something to outsource. It is your business, you need to own the decision.
Technology knowlkdge is not required. If a POS software company representative speaks in tech speak tell them to stop. It is likely they would do this to dazzle you into a possibly wrong decision.
But let’s take a step back. before you can start the process of choosing the right POS software for you business you need to know what you want and what all those in your business who will use the software will want from the POS software. Get your requirements right first and your process of selection from there will be easier for you and better for the business.
So, let’s get is a list of what we think you need to do to choose the right POS software for your retail business …
Choosing the right POS software for your retail business is something to approach seriously, in a structured way and with the needs and wants of you and your business paramount at all times.
Remember, you are choosing a relationship with tech ology and not the person selling it to you.
Tower Systems offers local professional POS software connected web development services for small business retailers in Australia.
Our web development work is done locally, by people you can speak with, people who will understand your business and its needs. This matters because too often web development work is sent offshore and that’s not good for the local narrative or for local IT jobs.
Our web development work is done primarily for small business retailers using our POS software and through this and our web development services connecting to Shopify, Woo Commerce or Magento websites.
Finding the right web developer for your retail business can be a challenge. Our advice is …
All of our web development work is done on the basis of an agreed quote. This quote is prepared following a consultation with your about the needs of your business.
Our fixed price quote includes an outline of the work to be done and the outcome delivered for the quoted price.
Key to successful POS software connected web development for a retail business is having a complete understanding of everything that is expected to be delivered with the resulting website. It is essential this is known from the outset.
Since all of our website work from sales through to development and support is done out of our Australian based offices, we provide a local perspective and context for all we do. This delivers better outcomes for locally focussed businesses.
Our web development work is done from scratch, for each specific business. This takes care and time and is built on a thorough understanding of the business needs.
We are grateful to the many different retail businesses that we have helped already to bring them online. Every new site we develop adds to our experience and that helps us to continue tis evolve our approach and the outcomes we can deliver. This is a fascinating part of our work, something we love.
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