Point of Sale Buying Tip: Vendor Selection

I've had the pleasure of conducting dozens of point of sale workshops at various trade shows, expos, and small business development centers over the years so I though that I would share some of what I cover at the workshops on a weekly basis.

Point of Sale Buying Tip: Vendor Selection

Some things to keep in mind as you start looking at who will provide your point of sale solution.

• Has References for businesses using their solutions in your area
• Has multiple solutions to choose from (not just one ‘canned’ solution)
• Provides a complete solution (everything that you need) to prevent the ‘blame game’ (one vendor blaming the other for problems)
• Provides what you need for training, installation and on-going support
• Provides what you need for IT services (backing up the software, anti-virus scans, etc)
• Has extended hours of support (especially support on evenings and weekends)
• Offers on-site support as required
• Offers managed services agreements so that one annual or monthly fee covers all software updates/upgrade
• Has positive reviews and/or BBB 'rating'

As a reminder, I am not currently affiliated with any point of sale companies or manufactures but have 14 years of experience working with retail, restaurant, and museum point of sale solutions. You can reach me at 208-340-5632 (business hours - mountain time) or kevinantosh@gmail.com if you have any point of sale related questions.

Does Your Point of Sale Provider Have 'Real World' Experience?

On a fairly regular basis, I travel to speak at specialty retail related conferences and expos. One thing I like to do is compare notes with other point of sale vendors and suppliers who are also at the conference or expo. Usually, I find out that the other companies have very qualified technicians and skilled salespeople but they don't have staff that has actual retail, restaurant or bar experience.

I feel strongly that anyone who provides cash registers or computer-based point of sale systems needs to have 'real world' experience. If they have never "walked in your shoes', how can they understand what you solution you need. It also shows when working with support/technical staff - they have a vested interest in helping make your business more successful.

End point: When searching for a point of sale system for your business, ask the vendors how much experience their staff has working in actual retail and hospitality environments.

Avoiding the "Blame Game"

No matter what the economic conditions are, it seems some retailers look for any way possible to save some money when investing in a retail point of sale system.  Many times they end up purchasing the point of sale software from one vendor, the computers from a different vendor, and the peripherals (cash drawer, barcode scanner, receipt printer, etc.) from yet another vendor.  In the end, they save a few bucks but also set themselves up for what is know as the "blame game".

Loosely defined, the blame game is when one vendor blames problems on the other vendor and the retailer is stuck in the middle (all while still trying to run a business).  Say that the receipt printer stops working - the vendor that provided the receipt printer will blame the software vendor and vice versa.  Not fun to deal with when your system is down.

Best advice is to always purchase everything (computers, software, peripherals, training, installation and on-going support) from one vendor. While it may appear to cost more initially, you will have one vendor to call for everything related to your point of sale system - no blame game!