Opening a retail store is a costly endeavor and not for the faint of heart. Even those on a shoestring budget can spend upwards of $30,000 just to open a basic retail store. There are many costs involved and for a small business owner to be successful they need to trim those costs anywhere they can. Some costs are unavoidable such as rent and electricity. However, it is possible to shop around for better deals on equipment to save some money. One area you can save money is on a point of sale system. A cloud based point of sale system may be a great option for you depending on your business needs.
In today’s post I am looking at 3 very good cloud based point of sale systems (in my opinion). By the way, these are in no particular order.
TouchBistro
Website
TouchBistro is a cloud based point of sale which makes use of iPads. TouchBistro is a very popular solution that is used by over 3000 restaurants worldwide. One of the benefits of using iPads for your POS is that you can bring your register to your customers and possibly speed up the payment process. Of course, you can always use one of many iPad mounts to make them stationary for a more traditional point of sale look and feel. One thing that makes TouchBistro nice is the fact that they have different solutions based on the type of business (Restaurant, Bar, Coffee Shop, Quick Service, Food Truck, Pizza, Stadium, etc) Here are some of the top features for TouchBistro:
- Pay At the Table – the server can bring the iPad to the table for quick service and table clearing
- Easy Bill Splitting – Customers can split the bill any way they like
- Take and Modify Orders – Orders are entered at the table and automatically sent to the kitchen
- Print or Email Receipts – Customers can enter their email address to get their receipt
- Manage Staff and Costs – Keep track of active and seasonal staff and see who is on the clock
- Great Looking Menu – Use the iPad camera or find images online
- Manage Voids and Discounts – Can require a manager code for voids
- Inventory Tracking – Prevents selling items that are out of stock
- End of The Day Reports – Lets each server know how much they need to cash out
- Customize Your Chits and Guest Bills – Many options
- Custom Floor Layout – Lets you add your restaurant layout using easy design tools
Springboard Retail
Website
Springboard Retail is a great cloud based point of sale system ideal for multi-store retailers. Springboard Retail is intuitive and is appropriate for a variety of types of retailers. It is accessible from any web browser on any device. This makes the system very flexible and gives you many choices for how to deploy it. Springboard also features inventory management and custom reporting. The multi-channel features of Springboard are very impressive. See more features below:
- Real Time – Built for the cloud, you can access your data from any type of device with a modern browser
- Dashboards and Reporting – Real time data gives you the ability to make quick decisions.
- Customer Management – Collect and manage customer data
- Multi-Channel Orders – Take order over the phone, web, mobile, or stores and split the order for multi channel fulfillment
- Inventory Management – Multi-store inventory management lets you see exactly what you have on hand
SimpleConsign
Website
SimpleConsign is a web based point of sale which is geared towards consignment and second hand shops. But it is appropriate for resellers, small retailers, and antique malls. SimpleConsign is accessible anytime and anywhere you have internet access. See more features below:
- Full Featured POS – Handle voids, returns, splits, and online credit card processing.
- Inventory Management – Track both store and consignment inventories separately
- Customer Management – Track customer data and easily convert to a consignor
- Layaway – Give your customers the option to pay for items over time
- Consignor Access – Give consignors real time access via the internet
- Credit Card Processing – Integrated credit card processing