According to a study on over 1,500 small businesses about their most critical problem, more than 30% said inflation, compared to about 20% who chose labor quality and around 15% who chose taxes.
If you are wondering what are the best survival strategies in times of inflation, owning the best POS system for small businesses is one of the best suggestions from experts. It helps decrease the effects of inflation on your retail business.
How Does Inflation Affect Retailers?
Two elements that play into the effects of inflation are the cost of raw materials and manufacturing and the quantity of money your consumers have available to spend.
Your profits will reduce when you have to pay more to purchase the flour and eggs. Usually, raw materials get hard to find and more costly to have shipped. When it comes to the purchasing power of your shoppers, it decreases too.
Assuming that they are paying more for electric bills and groceries, there is a reduction in the amount of money left over for products/ services you mean to sell to them.
Benefits Of Owning a POS System in a Retail Business During This 2022 Inflation Period
We consulted finance and business experts on how to survive inflation. Getting a POS system (in full point of sale) is among what they had to say.
The best POS system for small businesses such as Magestore aids in higher operational efficiency, better sales, and improved customer satisfaction. It can keep a close watch on cash flow plus product lifecycle to minimize your business loss.
1. Cut down on managerial time
More than a tool for payment processing, POS solutions are the hub that links every one of your business pieces of software, from payroll and staff management to stock control.
For example, each employee is connected to a particular transaction. That is why POS helps you recognize anyone with strong and weak sales figures. In this way, you can encourage fair competition in your company in a breeze.
2. Boost speed of service
Around 50% of consumers like shopping in person and more than 50% have big complaints about long wait lines. This is where POS features prove to be helpful. They simplify and speed up the checkout.
For instance, this system accommodates multiple payment methods from contactless to PayPal, decreasing the time your shoppers take to complete transactions.
3. Provide customer insights & Increase marketing effectiveness
The POS data allows you to run targeted campaigns with a personal touch to reach your target audience.
For example, a loyalty program is a robust tool for retaining customers, increasing repeat purchase rate and higher purchasing power, and more WOM (word-of-mouth) marketing.
According to studies, your sales can increase by more than 24% just through a 5% growth in your loyal customers. POS systems make it a walk in the park to add shoppers to your loyalty program and redeem points as they buy.
4. Grows aligned with business trends
A best POS system for small businesses will bring you up to speed on changing customer preferences. It works to accept new types of payments such as contactless payments, online payments, and mobile wallet payments (say Google Wallet).
5. Give support when needed
Some POS solutions provide technological and technical support. For instance, a few providers provide custom development and offer services to keep the POS software of their customers operating at peak performance levels.
6. Ensure secured information
Along with the ongoing advancement of technology and data management. There is a growing threat of cyber-attacks.
Trusted point-of-sale brands see to it that their stored data are encrypted, keeping your customers from crimes carried out for financial gain and saving your company from data leaks.
For example, seeing that employees are reportedly the top cause of data violation, you can rely on a solid POS system to set user accounts with various permission levels to minimize the risks.
7. Boost your business efficiency with task automation
Automation is a proven way to improve your business efficiency. Assuming that you pick the right point of sale, you will boast the ability to automate tasks (think stock control and staff scheduling) with ease.
By customizing your system, you can have it keep you updated about low inventory or staff close to hitting overtime soon. These tasks otherwise require the preoccupied work from your employees.
8. Offer accurate data in real-time
On the one hand, you can monitor KPIs (key performance indicators) manually with shared drives. But on the other hand, it can in no time get tedious and cumbersome, keeping you from attending to more impactful tasks.
What is worth celebrating is that the best POS system for small business have just about any of that tracking done automatically, which allows you to pay attention to supporting customers, developing new products, and increasing your sales, among others.
9. Provide centralized operations
A report shows that consumers of all ages have a tendency to purchase from various sales channels.
A point of sale solution routes information from multiple data outlets to present every one of your business information in a unified place.
For instance, instead of single-channel commerce, American consumers buy from retail establishments, online stores, Facebook, Snapchat, Amazon, and many more.
Even traditional brick-and-mortar businesses are proactive in using these channels. Though expansion raises new logistical challenges, a solid POS can assist in handling these.
It is the command center for your business operation, linking your sales data to the ones of other systems like incoming vendor orders, sales, and built-in 3rd-party apps.
10. Increase revenue
There are many ways that point of sale software enhances your revenue, for example, ensuring frictionless customer shopping journey and growing as technology advances.
Yet, even without those advanced attributes, this system increases your sales by improving the number of revenue streams able to be handled by small businesses.
Let’s say your salon focusing on color services may sell your recommended collection of hair care items by creating an online store.
A point of sale will assist you in categorizing your sales, enabling you to keep an eye on your costs accurately.
You will understand better in real-time whether your new store plan is worth your time or effort or whether you should recruit more employees to support the operation.
The Bottom Line:
Is the Best POS System for Small Business Worth It in Times of Inflation?
Yes. Should your establishment have not felt the effects of inflation yet, you may be soon. A host of factors such as the supply chain disruptions are making inflation surge. By taking advantage of a POS system, you can survive inflation.
