POS Pondering Ranked #3 for POS Blog Sites!

Honored to have this blog site listed in the # 3 position by the panelists at Feedspot when it comes to the top point of sale technology blog sites. Full list can be found here: https://blog.feedspot.com/pos_blogs/

Final Thoughts on 2018 and Looking Ahead to 2019

Baring any major news, this will be my final post for 2018.  Some reflections on 2018 and thoughts looking at 2019:

• No shortage of POS software programs on the market presently with over 200 to choose from
• 40% of you are looking for on premise solutions and 60% of you are searching for cloud based solutions. You both have options to match what works best for you.
• You have options to choose from that fit your budget and style of payment preferences. Plus, in 90% of the examples that I have run, the costs are nearly the same over a 5 to 7 year period whether you choose subscription style pricing or "buy it and own it" style pricing.
• Don't believe the hype that you need all sorts of apps and tools to predict customer purchase habits, send out texts as customers enter the store, and other related analytical data tools. While these are great tools for the right type of retailer, I've been onsite with the owners of over 400 specialty retail stores in 2018 and having a successful retail business is based on the core fundamentals that we all learned ages ago:
• Know your products
• Know your top customers
• Know your financials
• Know how to use technology but don't let technology use you
• Don't jump on the latest technology trends but do experiment and measure the results at a low investment point
• Scale your business to what makes you happy and comfortable (and what you can handle financially and time-wise). 
• Microsoft Dynamics RMS (and HQ) Users: You only a have another 2-3 years to figure out what to do - whether you invest in upgraded payment processing technology, upgrade to RMH/Cloud Retailer/D365, start from scratch with a new POS system, put in Card Defender, or even do nothing - the clock is ticking. Start making plans now and then have a backup plan in case the original plan falls apart.
• Be prepared for support to end on Windows 7 and whether you can migrate to Windows 10
• Be prepared for more changed in the payment processing industry and what hardware can be used (especially for anyone using those USB mag stripe readers)
• Be prepared for recession in late 2019 or early 2020. All economic indicators are headed that way. Be ready to keep your business right-sized to survive a potential economic downturn. How this effects your investments in retail technology like POS systems, will have to be evaluated on a case by case basis. I've been through many recessions and they have been very busy times for me as retailers make very calculated decisions during economic downturns.  
• Let me know if I can help in person or via phone - I travel all across the US and can also make dedicated trips when all or part of my travel expenses are covered (which 7 retail chains did in 2018).
• And most importantly:

The Birth of Jesus Christ

18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ[a] took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed[b] to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit. 19 And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. 20 But as he considered these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” 22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet:

23 “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
    and they shall call his name Immanuel”

(which means, God with us). 24 When Joseph woke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him: he took his wife, 25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.

How to obtain a 30 day trial license of the Retail Management Hero (RMH) point of sale software

Whether you call it an evaluation copy or trial version, I have a process in place for retailers to receive 30 day trial versions of the Retail Management Hero point of sale software. This is somewhat different from the days of endless evaluation CD's of Dynamics RMS being handed out in the mid 2000's (I still have a stack of them in my office) but the end result is similar - it allows retailers to take RMH for a "test drive".

A few requirements need to be met in order to obtain the 30 trial version of RMH so use the following as a check list (note that this applies to the retailers that I work with or new retailers that contact me and that this has been approved by both Retail Realm and RITE):

1. Your store must be located in the US or Canada as we are not equipped to provide RMH trials outside of these countries plus Retail Realm has set up RMH Partners in most countries across the globe anyway.
2. The trial license of RMH is free and includes a single "lane" license that is valid for 30 days.
3. You must be a past, present, or future RITE customers as RMH can only be provided by trained Partners like RITE - there is a simple form that can be completed to accomplish this if you are not presently assigned to RITE.
4. It has already been determined that RMH is a good fit for your business meaning that you have been shown a RMH demo and had pricing explained to you. You are also aware of any limitations in RMH. No sense spending time evaluating software if it is not a good match for your business!
5. A signed proposal is required which will include the 30 day free trial version of RMH along with 3-5 hours of pre-paid support ($375 - $549). Here is the reasoning for having to purchase the support:
• In my 18 years of working with over 4700 businesses, I've never had even one that required no support at all.
• Comfort in knowing that a RITE tech will perform a basic install of RMH for you.
• Not feeling stuck if you run in to a technical issue - assistance is just a toll free call away.
• Some basic overview or "ad hoc" training is included so you do not miss key features or functions.
• The investment will carry forward should you choose to actually implement RMH - in other words, you are not "out" anything if a full licensed copy of RMH is purchased within 30 days.

To learn more, please contact me at 208-340-5632 or kevinantosh@gmail.com

Support Hours Double Standard?

Having worked in retail and restaurant management, one thing that has bugged me over the years is why companies who support point of sale systems charge extra for support outside of "normal" business hours? After all, a product sold in a retail store sells for the same price whether it is 10am on a Monday or 7pm on a Saturday (sales/promotions aside). So why does support for a point of sale system cost more when that support is needed on weekends or after 5pm on weekdays?

One reasoning is related to labor costs in having a support on stand-by for after hours support. But, some minor scheduling adjustments can keep the labor costs inline.  This also applies to the salespeople who sell point of sale systems - no one should have signed on thinking that they are going to be working an 8-5, Monday-Friday job selling cash registers and point of sale systems. Retailers sometimes only have time to chat before the store opens, once late afternoon/early evening part time help arrives, or after closing. In fact, most of the folks who contact me do so during the 4pm to 7pm hours - which is fine by me (assuming that I'm not traveling or engaged in other activities).

I'm going to be making a push that point of sale companies expand their support hours to at least extend in to the early to mid evening on weekdays but not be charging extra above the normal support rates. It's pretty easy to schedule a tech to work 10am - 7pm one day a week (and no technician supporting point of sale systems should have signed on thinking that they would only be working 8-5, Monday - Friday).

I feel that the companies that offer this added value will see an increase in sales and an increase in customer satisfaction. This should also reduce the need to call-back customers who have support needs but could not be reached (so more effective in reducing voice mail tag and email tag).

Feed back on this concept is welcomed and appreciated - you can comment anonymously below or use the contact form to the right to reach me as well.

Managed Services and What it Means to You

Retailer store owners like to focus on running their business and not playing IT managers (in general). One retail point of sale trend over the last 1-2 years is to "off-load" some typical IT related tasks to your point of sale solution provider. This is known as Managed Services.

For a monthly or annual fee, the place were you purchased the point of sale system from can then take of daily tasks like backing up the data and virus scans. They can also monitor your computer equipment to watch for potential problems using remote monitoring software. Finally, help desk support is usually included to take care of everything from simple questions to system failures.

Since everyone has different levels of comfort when dealing with computer equipment, a good question to ask your potential point of sale system provider is what level of managed services they offer (and make sure that support is included on evenings and weekends as well). Their level of service should take care of what you are not comfortable or do not have the time to deal with.

May sound simple but this is something that could save hours of your time each year.

Speaking of Workshops...

Link to information about an upcoming FREE (yes FREE) workshop at the Idaho Small Business Development Center that focuses on retail point of sale technology and how to budget for a point of sale system: http://www.idahosbdc.org/workshop.aspx?ekey=40320076

Note that this workshop can also be conducted online or at a location near you (in the past year these workshops have been held from Helena, MT down to Reno, NV (and points in between).

DirectPOS - Boise, ID and Spokane, WA

Idaho Small Business Development Center