Our software helps retailers easily handle subscriptions

28
June

Subscriptions are bigger than ever in retail and our POS software is ideal for handling subscriptions. We are expert in the area and have solutions to suite a variety of needs.

Subscriptions can take multiple forms and payment can be handled in multiple ways. They can be a powerful way to cement a relationship with a shopper for the long term. They can also offer you a wonderful gift to sell to someone. Indeed, subscriptions can be as long-term valued and appreciated  by your business as they can be by your customers.

Thanks to flexibility, power and that the software we sell is made and maintained by us, we have capacity to serve the subscription need in retail in multiple ways.

If you offer subscriptions in your shop or offer subscription services in one way or another, talk with us as our retail management software may be suited to your needs. For sure we will let you know if our software does not meet your needs.

Tower Systems helps retailers tap into wonderful and current day subscription opportunities.

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How webstore connected POS software helps retailers in a group and independent retailers win more sales

27
June

For several years Tower Systems has been a trailblazer in connecting independently owned stores into single brand websites, thereby enabling hundreds of small business retailers to trade as one big business. It is an approach that has enabled independent small businesses to beat big businesses through the power of many being better than the power of one.

What we pitch here is not new for us. We have had websites achieving this for years, making money for small business retailers for years.

As well as offering POS software designed for your specific type of business, Tower Systems provides websites seamlessly connected to the shop floor, giving you a single management view.

We develop websites for our customers, in Magento, Shopify or WooCommerce.

Our websites are POS software connected, offering 24/7 selling with payments through PayPal, Oxipay (interest free buy now pay later) and credit cards.

Our websites leverage online purchases as well as click and collect. They also drive basket depth with up-sell options and handling coupons for special deals.

If you are in a banner group or a marketing group, we can provide a single website to represent all stores in the group. We do this today for one group, through five websites we created – each easily found through Google thanks to our SEO work.

Each store in a banner or marketing group gets their own page, which they can easily promote. For a single business, the POS connected website promotes their business.

We know from experience that:

  1. In some businesses, around 75% of key in-store purchases have an online search component. POS connected websites are important for winning online sales and even more important for driving in-store purchases.
  2. 45% of purchases in many categories are when retail shops are closed.
  3. 10% of purchases are click and collect in higher-end product categories.
  4. 14% of purchases are done with buy now pay later financing.
  5. Shoppers like certainty that a store will have in stock they want to purchase – stock on hand by item can be viewable for each store.

We can network stores from a banner or marketing group into a single website. Thereby leveraging the power of the group of independently owned small businesses to be stronger and more useful than a big business competitor. This is how small businesses can win online.

Let us show you how together we can do this, how we can bring single stores online as well as whole groups online … through webstore connected POS software.

Not only do we create the website and the POS software, we ensure they can be found. This is key as a website that cannot be easily found through Google is a waste of money.

We would love to show individuals privately or members of your group, if you are in a group, the POS software connected websites we have created. We would take you behind the curtain, showing not only the tech. but explaining the business approach, outlining what we have done to create successful online businesses.

Fulfilment can be a challenge. We can help here too thanks to our integration work with Australia Post, Sendle and others. We can help you reduce friction with fulfilment and see you benefit from incremental online business.

Online is about a race to the cash. By this we mean that an online shopper is more likely to be ready to purchase. The first business to take their cash wins. This is where POS integrated websites can win. We can show you how.

The latest release of our POS software introduces a web dashboard to help in-store online sales fulfilment. This, coupled with inventory integration, accurate stock on hand data, professional image handling and smart SEO work helps you create and run an efficient, integrated physical and online business.

Whether you run a single store or operate as part of a marketing or banner group, Tower Systems has a track record of success you can leverage for your success. Let us show you how.

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Free small business POS software training for July 2018

26
June

Tower Systems continues its commitment for accessible free POS software training for small business retailers with new training opportunities launched for July 2018.

We have been running free training for years and continue to do so because our small business retailer customers love it. They especially love the open ended Q&A available at the end of each session.

These sessions are live, online and fully interactive. There is no cost for participation. We fund the call and the tech at our end to make all this happen for you.

Here are the July sessions available for booking now:

  1. Whats new in 2.7.4. Date: Wednesday 4th July. Time: 2pm Description: Find out all the great new features in our latest version of the Tower systems Retailer POs software.
  2. Variants. Take a peek at this new and truly awesome facility in the Tower software. Date: Wednesday 11th July. Time: 2pm. Description: Get a glimpse of this great new feature in 2018 and see if is right for your business. Improve handling of your stock’s colour, size and style.
  3. How discount vouchers work. Date: Wednesday 18th July. Time: 2pm. Description: Come with us on a deep dive into discount vouchers and assess whether this fresh approach to loyalty is right for you. They can help you make more money.
  4. Events. Take a look at this new facility and learn how you can use it to bring shoppers back into your business. Date: Wednesday 25th July. Time: 2pm. Description: Delve into this great new feature in the Tower POS software. Get a glimpse of this great new feature coming in 2018 and see if is right for your business.

Free training is a hallmark of the Tower Systems small business POS software offer. These group sessions are only part of the story. Every Tower Systems customer has access to free one on one training with our customers as and when they want. Booking is easy. This one on one training is on any topic to do with using the Tower POS software.

Tower Systems serves in excess of 3,500 small business retailers in Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and elsewhere. We are grateful to our customers for their support and engagement.

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Our POS software co. encourages optimism in small business retailers

23
June

Every day in our POS software company we see and hear examples of optimism in small business retail from a boost in traffic to an increase in sales revenue to an increase in the overall average gross profit percentage achieved by a business.

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 an optimistic stories help others navigate change and lean into opportunities through which they can themselves find good news, find optimism.

We provide save and private places our customers can share their good stories with other customers of ours. We have done this for years and it works a treat at building optimism.

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.

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Avoid POS software confusion, Tower Systems is not POS Solutions

22
June

When you do a Google search for our company, Tower Systems, POS Solutions comes up high in the results. This is unfortunate as it misrepresents our company.

We have nothing to do with POS Solutions. They are a different company with different owners, thankfully, in our opinion.

Tower Systems has a proud tradition of serving small business retailers in Australia and New Zealand with awesome POS software that we have 100% developed. yes, this is local POS software for local retail business needs.

Our support is local too. The support is provided by humans working in our Melbourne head office, in the inner suburb of Hawthorn. You can come visit us and see for yourself the wonderful team we have here providing human based support for small business retailers.

We are proud of our software and our support and grateful that is is very different to what POS Solutions sells. This is why we say be careful when you do a Google search for us and see POS Solutions in the result. They are not us.

Our POS software serves a bunch of different retail businesses. We have different versions for each type of retail business. We dive deep into the needs of each retail business as we try and make sure that our specialty software is genuinely special for the needs of our customers.

Here are some of the things that matter to us and through which we serve the needs of our customers:

  1. Our software continues to evolve. We release two to three major updates each year. You choose when to load them. Each update is thoroughly tested in a comprehensive beta program.
  2. We own retail businesses. Yes, we walk in your shoes.
  3. No locked-in support fee. Taking up support coverage once the three-year period ends is optional.
  4. Lower support costs. Also, transparent. No mates’ rates for a select few.
  5. Fast support. Most calls are handled when you call. If not, we call back.
  6. Transparency. At any time, you can see live how many help desk calls we are working on and how many we have closed that day.
  7. Support escalation. We have a structured escalation process should you be unhappy with a support call.
  8. Easy management access. The leadership team of Tower Systems is available to you. We take customer service seriously and personally.
  9. Updates when you You are in control of when you load updates.
  10. You are listened to. We offer the only transparent, user driven, software enhancement suggestion service. All our customers are listened to.
  11. Free training. Long after you install our software you have access to free personal training to refresh knowledge or cover new facilities.
  12. More integrations. Our direct links to Xero, Magento, Shopify and more mean you have more direct link options to help you grow your business.
  13. Business management insights. We can look at your business performance data and provide a personal analysis of what we see
  14. Owner access. Call Tower owner, Mark Fletcher, on 0418 321 338 or email mark@towersystems.com.au.

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Repairs management and tracking software for small business retailers

21
June

Small business retailers using the repairs management software from Tower Systems can rely on the software to streamline operations, reduce paperwork, improve customer service and deliver outcomes that help the businesses grow repairs revenue.

The repairs facilities in our software have been developed in close consultation with customers across a variety of retail channels. Plus, the repairs software is regularly enhanced – too deliver evolving solutions to meet evolving needs.

Some of the functions our specialist retail software’s repair features are being used for include:

  1. In Jewellers: Jewellery and watch workshop repairs, dated manufacturing.
  2. In Bike Shops: Bicycle and tricycle repairs, warranty returns.
  3. In Garden Centres: Landscaping services management.
  4. In Firearms Stores: Gunsmithy and equipment repairs, warranty returns.
  5. In Pet Shops: Aquarium installations.

Repairs management software is flexible, serving a range of needs outside managing the actual repairs themselves. The flexibility in the software enables it to be used in different businesses for different purposes – from job management, to workshop management and traditional repairs management.

The software tracks the labour and resources used from a billing and inventory management perspective. It also handles allocation of repairs or parts of a repair to venues outside the business (for contracting and supplier exchanges or repairs for warranty issues, for example) and tracks repair staff and couriers used in shipping repairs. Once the repair is ready for pick-up by the customer, the software finalises the billing and advises the customer by SMS or another preferred method. Payments are processed with the usual depth of our retail software’s point of sale functionality – customers can make multiple payments against a repair or a specialist manufacturing, pay through cash, EFTPOS, PayPal or other methods.

Tower Systems streamlines the repairs process, facilitates good communication and helps bring management certainty to the overall repairs process in your business. It helps local independent businesses provide the kind of professional, personal and efficient repairs services that major corporate stores and online-only offerings can only dream of.

Serving a number of specialist retail channels gives Tower Systems the opportunity to provide more comprehensive and flexible repairs/job/manufacturing management software. Our customers continue to provide feedback and influence the development and support of this software feature, from firearms stores to bike shops and more.

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How our POS software compares to Retail Express.

20
June

We love opportunities of demonstrating our POS software in a head to head comparison with the Retail Express POS software.

We are happy to visit businesses to show our software on the table next to Retail Express. Function by function this type of comparison is really valuable as it lets the software speak for itself. Comparison is useful as there you are in control from a user perspective.

Our service is personal. If you are interested in our software our if you purchaser our software, we visit your business. This personal approach is ideal for comparing our Tower Systems POS software with retail Express. We are happy to be there the same time as Retail Express. This approach puts the customer, you, at the heart of decision making. It allows you to make a decision based on the facts.

We have not used Retail Express just as Retail Express has not used our software. We cannot, therefore, speak to comparison knowledge. This is why we suggest a head to head in-store comparison. You pick a function and we will show you how our software works and you compare the exact same function with Retail Express. This is a perfect opportunity for you, to be sure that you are choosing the software that is right for your business.

Tower Systems today serves in excess of 3,500 customers. These are all small business retailers in selected retail channel niches. Our software is socialist for each of these retail channels. We continue to tailor it deeply to the needs of each of these retail channels. This provides a better and more personal outcome for the retailers in these channels. This is also a reason we are happy for a head fro head comparison with Retail Express.

To book in an obligation-free in-store head to head POS software comparison with Retail Express call us, email us or visit one of our local offices. We;d love an opportunity to personally show you what we do and help you compare our POS software with POS software from Retail Express.

CALL A TOWER NEWSAGENCY EXPERT TODAY:  VIC/SA/WA – Tim Batt 0401 833 917; NSW/ACT/TAS  – Nathan Morrison 0417 568 148;  QLD /NT– Justin Randall 0434 365 789.

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Local POS software support important for small business retailers

19
June

I am amazed that I can call and speak to someone in Australia, someone who understands me and my type of business. You have no idea how relieved I feel.

This is a note from a customer who switched to our small business POS software from a cloud based POS program that was not supported in Australia. Their business is in Australia. It is a business in one of the specialty retail channels we serve.

I am surprised at the specialist facilities in the software. They fit what I need well. I should have gone with you guys first.

We love customer feedback and that our specialty software is loved by specialty retailers in the retail channels in which we serve.

  1. Our software is specialist for a range of different retail channels.
  2. Our support is locally based.
  3. Our phones are answered by humans.
  4. Our help is accessible 24/7.
  5. Our assistance goes beyond our software.

We are grateful to the 3,500+ retailers we serve.

What a great way to celebrate Friday, celebrating our customers.

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Data security advice for small business retailers using POS software

18
June

2018 is not even half over and already it has seen considerable attacks on computers and on websites. Each attack reinforces the need for all businesses, including small businesses, to have appropriate security and backup measured in place to protect business data.

Appropriate backup means:

  1. Backup every day, without fail, without having too spend time for we know that time backups can take can make backups be ignored or forgotten.
  2. On-site backup.
  3. Plus, off-site backup.
  4. Easy access for recovery.
  5. Protection in a facility away from the business not only of all data but all software to facilitate swift recovery.
  6. Managed costs.
  7. Secure access to backed up data.
  8. maintaining backup services at the cutting edge.
  9. Appropriate security for backed up data.

Our advice is that you use a cloud backup service, like the Tower Backup service we offer. It works in the background, backing up without you having to do a backup. If your business is attacked, getting back to a clean and safe place is easy. Any reputable backup service should be able to offer similar to you.

Please do not put this off. Get protection for your business and your business data. You don’t want to be the person who does this after you have been attacked.

At the very least, backup every day, onto a USB stick for that day. While this is an old-school approach, it is better than nothing at all.

But let’s be clear, cloud backup is our recommendation. Our service provides you with a local backup and an offsite backup, in the cloud. This gives you two backups, excellent protection. We monitor the backups to ensure they are working. If we find an issue, we proactively call you. This is rare from a cloud backup service provider.

Here at Tower Systems we take data security seriously. We provide best-pracie advice. Our customers are welcome to use our service or another, our recommendation, however, is that they do something – to be protected.

Too often small business retailers think about data security after they have been affected. Hence this advice here and in our weekly emails and elsewhere in our touch points with customers.

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Marketing tip: it’s not about you

17
June

Small business retailers tend to like marketing they can see. Like the ad in the local paper or the catalogue in letterboxes.

You seeing your own marketing is irrelevant. In fact, it is as irrelevant as many catalogues stuffed in letterboxes.

The best marketing today is about entertainment, accurate engagement measurement, faster delivery and more immediate in-store engagement.

Take the old-school catalogue . Artwork, printing and delivery will take three to six weeks and cost you or your marketing group around $1,500, maybe more.

In many locations, that $1,500 could have funded 60 Facebook campaigns reaching 2,000+ people, carefully targeted with accurate data on engagement.

While catalogues play a role, that role today is far less than two years ago.

A retailer told me they liked the catalogue because they could see it whereas they could not see a Facebook post. This is an old-school view.

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POS software for independent small business retailers

15
June

Here at Tower Systems we create and support POS software, Point of Sale software, specifically for small and independent retail businesses in Australia.

We only work with small and independent retail businesses. This keeps us focussed on these types of businesses rather than confusing focus with big businesses.

We develop what we sell. This is our software. Created over many years. Regularly enhanced to keep up to date with technology and capabilities. By selling what we develop we know what we are doing, we know it is current and we know how we can change it if needed.

This is not overseas software made to look local. This is not software backed by an international call centre.

We are local and focussed 100% on local businesses. This is what local small business retailers look for in a business partner. It is a Tower Systems difference that is valuable for our customers. We love the point of difference and focus on it ourselves.

About Tower Systems

Tower Systems International (Aust) Pty Ltd was established in 1981 by Mark Fletcher.

The company was created to develop specialty software for small businesses in selected vertical markets. It remains true to that mission today.

Mark remains the owner and Managing Director.  The company has a strong leadership team across the technical, customer service and creative areas, ensuring it is not reliant on a single person to lead the business.

Tower Systems develops and supports retail management software to over independent 3500 small business retailers across Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific in a limited number of retail niches, channels.

We employ 35 information technology professionals working out our company offices in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Auckland.

We develop and support our own retail management software as well as cloud based e-commerce sites.  We stand by what we offer.

Our development team is made up of qualified and skilled software developers.  They are managed by a committed Software Development Manager with years of experience with our software.

Many Tower clients have been with the company through a variety of retail businesses, choosing Tower again and again.  We value long term relationships and this is reflected in our customer retention rates.

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Advice for small business retailers on how to reduce retail tenancy occupancy cost

13
June

Since we own and run retail businesses where our POS software is in use we have access to a well of experience and knowledge on which we can draw to craft practical advice for our customer community. Here is advice on reducing occupancy costs that we shared recently. We share it here for the broader community to consider.

REDUCING RETAIL OCCUPANCY COST: ADVICE FOR SMALL BUSINESS RETAILERS.

The usual go-to place for any discussion about reducing occupancy costs is the landlord. Retailers tend to blame landlords for high occupancy costs.

The thing is, we all sign our leases. We all agree the terms of our leases. While leases from years ago can be problematic today, the challenges of our channel were obvious ten and more years ago.

Here is a list of things retailers could action to improve the occupancy cost situation where occupancy cost is the ratio of all lease related costs to revenue for products (and commission from any agency lines). You should also assess it as a ratio of GP.

There are many steps one can take to improve the occupancy cost situation:

  1. Negotiate with the landlord. We place this first as it is the usual go-to place for retailers. If you plan to seek a better deal, make sure you have a strong commercial case, a case backed by evidence. However, also know that a rent reduction does not provide long-term, growth like, benefit.
  2. Grow your overall GP%. Do this through broadening your product mix with a focus on sought-after higher than average GP% for your business items. It depends on the suppliers from whom you purchase and the extent of point of difference you leverage in what you sell.
  3. Increase foot traffic. Do this through ranging more diverse products and promoting your business outside the business. Success with this depends on the range of inventory you offer and how this is promoted outside the business. It depends on the reasons why you attract people to your business.
  4. Increase basket depth per transaction. Do this through shop floor engagement, sales counter product placement, key traffic freeway disruption and your business format.
  5. Increase GP for everyday items over which you have pricing control. Plain and simple – increases your prices. Success with this depends on thoughtful adjustment where you know it can be done without reducing unit sales volume.
  6. Broaden the appeal of your business. This idea picks up on some thoughts above but adds more. Here is what I mean – your business up to today attracts shoppers for a set range of reasons / purposes. Note those down. Now, contemplate adding sought-after considerably higher than average GP for your business products and / or services that are genuinely new for your business and that are not satisfied by a nearby business. Each new product / service reason, if successful, improves your occupancy cost situation.

These are items you can action right away, regardless of your occupancy cost situation. Items 2 through 6 and tasks that should be core business activities you pursue relentlessly.

The cost of retail space is Australia is higher than most countries in the world. It needs to reset. However, the level of reset necessary will not happen as long as people keep signing leases that are not viable.

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We’re at IRCE in Chicago, talking best-practice web connected POS software

8
June

We are grateful for the opportunity to attend the IRCE conference in Chicago again this year. We are mixing with best-practice retailers as well as other tech companies serving retailers. While our focus in small business retail, we benefit from insights from all sectors.

Overseas conferences provide us excellent learning opportunities and provide access to data and other assets we leverage for our small business retailer community.

With Australia geographically far away from the world, being here at this event and the other events we get to each year we are able to learn on behalf of our customers. This gives us a competitive advantage.

It is a thrill to learn how advanced we are in several areas of our web connected POS software solutions. Connecting stores and groups of stores as we do for online sales with inventory transparency is inspiring others.

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