A Few Changes

Since starting this blog site and via my YouTube channel, I've been contacted by over 600 businesses searching for point of sale advice, technical information, and general advice. Due to a schedule change, and based on feedback, I am currently only offering on site paid consulting services for businesses located in the United States.

I've found that these are the businesses most in need of the type of services that I can provide. It has also become a bit of a gamble recommending any of the tablet and cloud based point of sale systems designed for smaller single location businesses as these tablet and cloud based point of sale systems having been going through various growing pains and just about all of them have various user complaints.

So, if your organization has between 5 and 300 stores in the US (or a single location with more than $1M in annual gross sales) and is in need of unbiased paid point of sale consulting, be sure to get in touch with me by visiting my contact page for information in how to reach me.

New Videos: Options for RMS/HQ Users and Consulting Process Overview

A couple of new videos that may be of interest to you.  First up is some updated honest advice for stores using the Microsoft Dynamics RMS (and HQ) point of sale software programs.  General advice related to the end of life status with RMS and HQ and how the new Retail Management Hero plays in to your various options:

By request, I have also created a video that highlights in a bit more detail the process that I use when offering unbiased paid point of sale consulting work for larger organizations with between 5 and 300 locations:

Information on how to reach me for more information can be found on my contact page.

Using Me and My Sites as a Resource for Your Chain, Franchise, Association, or Organization

Just a quick note that you are more than welcomed to use myself and my sites as a source of unbiased point of sale information as needed. This works well for the following:

• Franchises
• Chain Stores
• Organizations (non-profit and government)
• Retail Associations
• Retail Conferences
• Retail Trade Shows

I'm actually already a point of sale contact for multiple businesses and organizations (representing well over 5,000 retail stores in the US) whose members/stores/leadership need any or all of the following:

• Free and unbiased point of sale advice
• Unbiased in-depth onsite point of sale consultation
• Speaker for events
• General point of sale advice

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.

Advantages of Using an Unbiased Point of Sale Consultant

A brief video highlighting the advantages of using a unbiased point of sale consultant for point of sale consulting services.

Visit my contact page for information on how to reach me.

National Retail Point of Sale Solution Provider Expanding to Utah, Idaho, and Surrounding Areas

Update April 10th, 2016: this is still a work in progress but I am doing some ground work for the rest of April to see if this can be finalized by the end of May, 2016.  I've tallied around 600 businesses in the areas mentioned below that would benefit from having a local company for point of sale software, hardware, installation, training, and on-going support.

While Idaho and many of states surrounding Idaho contain multiple local companies that specialize in Restaurant point of sale systems, no one has stepped up to replace the local sales and service void left by the closure of DirectPOS and RVP Businesses Systems when it comes to a local company providing point of sale systems for retail stores and museums.  There are a few local companies in these areas that offer some retail point of sale solutions but it is not a primary part of their business.

To early to say for sure but it appears that a well respected  national retail point of sale solution provider is considering some level of expansion to offer sales and support to retail stores and museums located in Idaho, Utah, Montana, Wyoming, Northern Nevada, Eastern Oregon, and Eastern Washington State.

I will pass along further details as they become available as this would be welcomed news to retail stores and museums located in these areas!

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

Thank-You for Your Patience!

Just a quick note to say thanks to everyone for your patience in waiting for me to call or email you back with information and advice related to point of sale systems. In June 2015 I had over 40 businesses and organizations contact me for unbiased point of sale advice and information.

Between this blog site and my YouTube Channel, the sites are averaging over 150 unique visitors a day (not counting people from obscure countries raiding content).

As a reminder, I do my best to respond within 4 business hours to all requests unless I am traveling. Best times to reach me via phone are 9am-3pm Mountain Time. Otherwise, texts, emails, and using the contact form to the right can be done at anytime.  You can always visit my contact page for information on how to reach me.

Budget for a POS System but Don't Focus on Price

One thing that irks me is when someone focuses solely on price and ignores value. While it is important to budget for a POS system, ignoring value and focusing solely on price is the wrong way to approach investing in a POS system for your business or organization.  Things to avoid:

• Attempting to save $100 by finding the lowest hardware price from different vendors. For the sake of setup and ongoing support, it is much better to purchase everything from one source.
• Comparing costs of completely different systems. POS programs have different features and functions - a nominal difference in upfront or monthly costs is minor when compared to finding a POS program that does what you need it to do for your business or organization.

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.

How Popular is Bindo POS? Popular Enough to be Featured on CNBC along with retailer Space Cowboy Boots!

Another point of sale company makes national news. This time it is the very popular Bindo point of sale that many folks I know have recently selected as a point of sale system for their business or organization. The video segment covers Bindo POS as well as why a cowboy boot store in New York City (Space Cowboy Boots) selected Bindo POS for their business.

Here is a link to video of the segment on CNBC: http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000381734&play=1

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

Lower Prices for Mobile POS Hardware

One side benefit to there being so many tablet and smart phone point of sale systems on the market is that the prices for the hardware and peripherals to use these mobile point of sale systems has come way down.

I've seen complete bundles - including the iPad - for just over $1,100. This is all new hardware and makes for a very low price point to get started with a complete point of sale system for your business.

As this blog is not designed to advertise for other companies, please visit my contact page for information on how to reach me if you want to know were I was able to find this hardware (it is a reputable website).

Point of Sale Roadshows - Portland, OR and Seattle, WA

An invite for those of you in the Portland, OR or Seattle, WA area from the folks at BHD Inc. Nice informal way to learn more about retail point of sale systems!

More Good Stuff Added to Bindo Point of Sale

The folks at Bindo Point of Sale (www.bindopos.com) have been busy adding new features and functions to the Bindo Point of Sale system. As you know Bindo is a popular* mobile point of sale system that uses iPads and iPhones for selling while utilizing internet browsers for manager and owner functions like running reports, placing product orders, and making price changes. Here is what has been added to Bindo recently:

1. Scale Support and decimal entry: whether you use a scale that connects directly to Bindo (available in 10 pound and 30 pound models) or use a stand alone scale and enter the weight manually, Bindo now supports calculating price by weight. Very helpful for corner markets, delis, grocery stores, feed stores and pet stores.
2. Modifiers: not just for restaurant use but also very helpful for retail businesses that offer customization or design work (think custom furniture stores or embroidery stores). 

Here is a video showing sales of weighted items and items with modifiers in Bindo:

More reviews on Bindo POS can be found here: https://bindopos.com/reviews

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

*Popular based on the sheer number of folks that contact me to let me know that their business or organization has selected Bindo.

What to do about Change of Service Fees

As you know, I am very much in favor of only using point of sale systems that allow you to pick, choose, and change which company handles your merchant services for debit and credit card processing.  As we all know how competitive merchant services companies can be, the worst thing we can do is lock ourselves in to a long term contract or commitment where our rates can be raised.

That being said, it is likely that changing who handles your merchant services may involve a fee and a service call to change the information in your point of sale software - plus you want to test the new settings to make sure that everything is functioning correctly.

Most point of sale companies charge $250 to $800 to perform a "change of service" related to changing the settings in your point of sale system so you can switch/change merchant services companies. I've found that it never hurts to ask the company that you are switching to for merchant services to cover that fee via a credit or series of monthly credits - just be sure to get in writing!

That way, you can make sure that you are always paying the lowest fees for debit and credit card processing.

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

Malware Attack - A New Reason Not to Choose HarborTouch

As if long term equipment contracts, buyout clauses, and specific merchant service commitments were not reasons enough to avoid HarborTouch, a recent Malware attack recently targeted businesses using HarborTouch and HarborTouch confirmed that some data was breached.

Full article can be found here: http://www.pymnts.com/whats-hot-2/2015/pos-malware-nabs-another-victim/#.VTj_byFVikp 

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.

Businesses Leaving Shopkeep and Revel for Bindo

Interesting - I've had a few stores contact me to let me know that they recently stopped using ShopKeep. LightSpeed or Revel and have switched to Bindo point of sale.  I'm not sure on all the details but obviously something happened which was big enough to make these retail owners stop using their current point of sale systems.

I have had complaints in the past about Revel sometimes locking up when swiping a credit card as payment and past complaints about ShopKeeps tax setup - not sure if that applies in these cases or not. I'll be sure to pass along details if I get a chance to talk to any of these businesses.

I'd say things bode very well for Bindo! More reviews on Bindo POS can be found here: https://bindopos.com/reviews

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.