Point of Sale Buying Tip: Using a Weighted Point Sheet to Determine which POS is Best for You

By popular request - a video showing how to create and use a simple weighted point spreadsheet to decide which point of sale system is best for your business or organization. This works out great in the decision making process as it uses what is most important to you when selecting a POS system for your business or organization and this decision making method can be utilized by anyone who is searching for a point of sale system.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

Weighted Factor Method of Selecting the Best Point of Sale System

Due to numerous requests - I am working on getting a video and blog post uploaded that explains how to use a basic spreadsheet and factors/points to compare and choose the best POS solution for your business based on what features and functions are most important to you and your business or organization.

I hope to have this up by Sunday, February 8th, 2015.

The whole process is a lot easier that I make it sound and is not general to one type of business or geared towards any one solution.

Complaints related to Software Advice and Similar Websites

Yikes!  So the complaints having been steadily increasing related to websites like Software Advice. Maybe it seemed obvious to me but, unless you have worked in the point of sale 'world', you may not be aware that websites like Software Advice exist to make money by selling your information as a "lead" to multiple companies. Given the number of complaints that I have received about Software Advice over the last few weeks, you may want to consider other resources.

I realize that even trying to figure out what you need in a point of sale system can be time consuming, but that is why most states have small business development centers to help you out for free or low cost. You can also find impartial point of sale reviews and information on websites like CNET.

Are you  in the US and in need of no cost retail point of sale advice?  I'm happy to help and can be reached on my cell at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time) or via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com. There is also a contact form to the right that can be used to reach me.

What to Look for in a Point of Sale System: Security Settings

One area that many business owners overlook when searching for a point of sale system are the security settings. With nearly half of all retail theft being internal (employee) theft (per NRF surveys and studies), the ability to use security settings is an important aspect of a point of sale system. Some tips and things to look for when searching, selecting, comparing, or choosing a point of sale system for your business.

For those of you who don't want to watch the video, here is what I mention in the video:

The point of sale system that you are considering should have the following:

• At least 3 levels of security if role based (ie: “manager”, “lead”, and "cashier").
• Time clock only access if the system has a time clock function that all employees will be using
• Most common areas for employee theft are:
• Discounts
• No Sales/Voids
• Manual Price Changes

Other good security related setting to have are:

• Most employees should not be able to see cost
• Most employees should not be able to change item cost or quantity on hand

It may sound mean but employee theft accounts for nearly half of all retail theft!

Please visit my contact page for information on how to reach me.

Tablet and SmartPhone 2.0

Update November 9th, 2014. I can confirm that Bindo, Clover, and Silver have now added the following:

Bindo POS: basic invoicing and quoting functions

First Data Clover (still restricted to using First Data for merchant services): Item attributes, modifiers and barcode label printing.

NCR Silver: Barcode label printing and QuickBooks Accounting interface.

Note that some of the added features may require paying an additional fee and/or using third party software.


Not to use recycled terms like "Web 2.0" but I have seen a recent shift in the tablet and smartphone based point of sale systems which I will call "2.0".

While systems like Clover and NCR Silver started the trend of using smartphone and tablet based point of sale systems in retail stores and museums, newer solutions linke Bindo have taken the concept to a more advanced level.

What do I mean?

Initially smartphone and tablet based point of sale systems offered functionality between a cash register and a computer-based point of sale system. Specific missing functions included barcode label printing, item level inventory tracking, and full purchasing/receiving. these are the "1.0" solutions.

"2.0" Solutions like Bindo include these functions while still using the affordable monthy fee payment plan of the the original smartphone and tablet systems.

If you are searching for, or have interest in a smartphone or tablet based point of sale system, please compare the different functions and features of each program (I have a comparison chart available). You may find that a "2.0" solution will accomplish more for about the same price as a "1.0" solution.

Confused/comments/questions?  My advice is completely free and based on 15 years of exerience in selling and support multiple different point of sale solutions. You can reach me via email at kevinantosh@gmail.com or via voice/text at 208-340-5632 (I am on Mountain Time).