How to help clients choose the best till system for their business
@TheGoodTillco
Oliver Rowbory, Co-Founder, The Good Till Co. The Good Till Co. is a cloudbased POS system that gives independent retailers, bars and cafes access to powerful data intelligence.
When it comes to setting up or running a business, the number of decisions and choices your clients will make on a daily basis can be overwhelming. They will no doubt be talking to suppliers, selecting and sampling products and working with staff while juggling a hundred and one other tasks. The till system they will use probably feels like a minor concern to them, one that sits somewhere towards the bottom of their priority list as long as it is working...
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he reality is, however, that the technology behind till systems has moved on hugely in recent years. The amount and variety of choice for EPOS systems can be quite daunting, but it is a vital decision for both their business and how they work with their accountants. So how can you help your clients to decide what will really be the best fit for their business? Here are a few things to think about when helping them make their choice. Consider the clients’ long-term needs For many years, a ‘till’ was little more than a cash drawer and a calculator. However, in today’s digital world, an EPOS system can become the beating heart of a business. A till system can now pull in and use data in a way that allows users to manage stock and staff, understand and engage customers better, manage tables and food orders, make smarter business decisions and even integrate with accountancy platforms like Xero to improve efficiency and accuracy. Choosing an EPOS should be about more than just taking payments 102 / Issue 12
from customers, so it is important to think about the needs of the business both today and in the future. Choose a merchant service partner From the wide range available, choose the option and cost level that best suits the business. A major bespoke system will be a significant investment; an offthe-shelf till might cost a couple of thousand pounds as a one-off payment; or your client might prefer to spread the cost, choosing from the new breed of cloud-based systems that are more flexible and work on a monthly subscription model. The ability to choose payment types Since the rise of digital technology, convenience has become the new loyalty. The key thing an EPOS should do is remove any barriers from the customer journey, making buying as simple and convenient as possible. The more contactless and mobile payments are promoted by major retailers like supermarkets and high street giants, the more customer expectations shift. Being able to take payments in this way
will quickly become the expected standard, so don’t allow your clients’ business to get left behind. Consider connectivity The ‘cloud’ has revolutionised the way lots of businesses work, providing a platform to collect, analyse and use huge amounts of business data quickly and securely. Businesses in rural areas may hesitate to use new cloud technologies because of unreliable or slow broadband connection, but don’t be discouraged – there are solutions that allow companies to work offline and then sync to the cloud once there is a stable internet connection available. Think about the staff In today’s increasingly anonymous digital world, genuine human interaction is scarcer than ever before. This only makes a human connection more valuable, so it pays to use the technology and data behind the till system to automate data-driven tasks, and free up the amount of people in the team to add value through their human emotion and creativity. Bearing in mind that people are
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