You have probably had the visit, or you will. An overseas point of sale (POS) company, a friendly pitch, free hardware, payments included, one bill and one contact. When you are already working six days a week, simple sounds wonderful. The offer deserves a fair hearing. It also deserves half an hour with a calculator before you sign anything.
It usually sounds too good to be true, all the free stuff and how easy it is.
Things like this are rarely what they seem.
Ask about the payments arrangement first. Bundled offers usually tie you to one payments provider. That removes your ability to shop around or renegotiate later, and EFTPOS rates are where independents most often find real savings. Ask directly whether you can bring your own provider. If the answer is no, that is a cost, even though it will not appear on the quote.
Then ask about the percentage. A clip of every transaction looks trivial on a quiet Tuesday. Run it across your annual turnover and look at the number. Then run it across the turnover you are hoping for in three years. You are being asked to pay more as you succeed, which is worth thinking about carefully.
Now the part most owners skip. List the five things your business does that a general retailer does not. Repairs and valuations if you are a jeweller. Care information and seasonal stock if you are a garden centre. A workshop running alongside the floor if you sell bikes. Selling by weight, by the cube and off the back of a truck if you are in produce. Take that list to the demonstration and make them show you each one working. Not described. Working.
A retailer who recently ran that comparison function by function and cost by cost found Tower Systems came out cheaper on total cost, and better suited to how their business actually traded. We can show you the numbers and let you see for yourself in your specific business.
Understanding total cost of ownership of POS software is important if not wasting money is important top you.
Your specialisation is why customers choose you rather than a chain. Software that cannot see it will slowly push you toward competing on price, and that is the one contest you cannot win. Make the visiting salesperson prove otherwise before you commit.
Tower Systems writes software for specialty retailers across a wide range of trades, and is happy to be measured against any comparison you care to run. Enquiries are welcome at sales@towersystems.com.au.
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