Category: Small businesses

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POS Restaurant POS Retail POS Small businesses

Smart POS: The Future of Point-of-Sale Systems

smart pos | LIthosPOS
smart pos | LIthosPOS

To meet your business operations you need to invest in the right smart POS system. Rather than investing your time and human efforts to manually manage your business, you can use modern technologies. Technology is getting more advanced day by day. 85% of small businesses are investing in technologies to get success in their business. Now you have technologies that can reduce and simplify various business operations. It automates the most important and complex operations.

Managing inventory, payments, customers and employees can be challenging. And you need more manpower to manage those operations manually. A smart POS system helps you to manage and simplify your business operations. It automates most of your business operations and executes with 100% efficiency.

A smart POS system like LithosPOS can integrate your various business operations together and allows you to manage everything in one software. For getting better insight into a smart POS system let’s dive into deep.

What is LithosPOS?

LithosPOS is a cloud-based smart POS software designed to streamline retail/restaurant operations, providing businesses with the tools they need to manage their operations efficiently. LithosPOS integrates with other systems such as accounting software, marketing tools, inventory management systems, CRM software, and other payment systems.

We integrate with over 50 payment providers and have analytical account integration with SAP, Oracle Cloud, and Zoho Book. It’s used by 6,000+ businesses across 70+ countries and supports 5 languages. We also provide aggregator integrations with Uber Eats, DoorDash, Deliveroo, GrubHub, and more. Registered in the US as LithosPOS, Inc.

Key Features of LithosPOS Smart POS

Inventory management

Inventory management is one of the key features of LithosPOS. It helps you to automate complex inventory operations. It includes generating stock and notifying you when inventory goes out of stock and preventing the possibility of losses.

LithosPOS is a point-of-sale system that offers a range of features to help small and medium-sized businesses manage their sales and inventory. With LithosPOS, you can track inventory levels, manage customer data, generate sales reports, and more.

Tracking Inventory

With LithosPOS, you can track your inventory levels in real time. That means that you always know how much stock is available in your inventory, and you can easily generate stocks when stocks go down. You can also set up automatic alerts to notify you when inventory levels fall below your preset level.

Automated Inventory

It helps you to automate your inventory ordering process. When stock levels go below a certain inventory level, the software automatically generates purchase orders and sends them to your suppliers. This helps you save time and ensures that you always have enough stock in your inventory to meet customer demand.

Barcode Scanning

Barcode scanning makes it easier to manage your inventory. With barcode scanning, you can quickly and accurately scan products and update inventory levels in real-time. This helps prevent stockouts and ensures that you always have the products your customers expect.

Stock Keeping Unit

SKU(Stock Keeping Unit) is a unique identifier that gives every product in your inventory. It allows you to quickly identify the items in your stock and their placement. When a customer asks for a specific item you can check the availability and identify its placement. It helps you to speed up your service and provide a better customer experience.

Customer Relationship Management

Customer relationship management (CRM) features to help you manage your customer and improve customer experience. You can also use your existing CRM software by integrating with LithosPOS. and it makes more simple to manage your customers.

Managing Customer Data

Managing your customers can be simplified using LithosPOS. You can store customer contact information, purchase history, and other relevant data in the system. By analyzing the data you understand your loyal customers and provide personalized offers and services.

Customer Loyalty Programs

LithosPOS allows you to create customer loyalty programs to boost customer retention. You can use the customer data and set up different types of loyalty programs such as point and tier-based. It will encourage customers to make more purchases to earn rewards. This leads to increase customer retention and drive more sales.

Email Marketing

Email marketing is one of the best marketing approaches to increase your customer retention strategy. LithosPOS smart POS allows you to create and send email campaigns to your customers. You can use this feature to promote sales, announce new products, or send personalized offers to your customers. This can help improve customer engagement and drive more sales. You can use the customer’s data that POS collects and directly send them personalized promotions and emails.

Sales Reporting

Sales reporting is one of the features that can help you analyze your sales data and take appropriate business decisions.

Real-Time Sales Data

The smart POS system allows you to access real-time sales data. This means that you can analyze your business performance at any time, and you can quickly identify trends or issues that may require your attention. Because the software is cloud-based you can access the data from anywhere with the help of the internet.

Custom Reports

The smart POS allows you to generate custom reports based on your specific business needs. You can generate reports that show sales by product, sales by employee, and performance reports of each of your businesses. This can help you gain deeper insights into your business and make appropriate decisions.

Sales Analytics

Sales and analytics features that can help you analyze your sales data and identify trends or opportunities. By analyzing the report you can identify your top-selling and worst products. It ensures that your business is running profitably. This allows you to take data-driven decisions to improve your business performance.

Employee Management

Managing employees can be really challenging. By automating using LithosPOS you can simplify those tasks.

Employee Time Clock

It allows you to track your employees’ time and attendance. You can identify their efficiency and inefficiency. This can help you ensure that your employees are arriving on time and working the hours they are scheduled to work.

You can also use this feature to calculate employee payroll and manage employee benefits.

Performance Tracking

Analyzing your employee’s performance is really important. You can set up performance metrics and goals for each employee, and analyze the performance of each of them. This can help you identify areas where your employees need additional training, and it can help you improve your overall business performance.

Multi-Store Management

Automating your business operations will help you to simply manage multi-location businesses. It allows you to access data and analyze the performance of each location and manage the business.

Centralized Management

LithosPOS allows you to manage all of your store locations from a central dashboard. This allows you to view sales data, inventory levels, and employee performance across all of your locations.

You can also make sure the store is running profitably and make updates on products or pricing, which will be reflected in all of your stores.

Stock transferring

LithosPOS allows you to share inventory between your store locations. This means that if one location runs out of stock, you can quickly transfer inventory from one location to another to meet customer demand. This is helpful prevent stockouts and enhance your service quality. It also protects you from overstocking.

Employee Access Control

LithosPOS smart POS offers an employee access controlling option, which allows you to restrict access to certain features or data based on employee roles. This can help you ensure that your employees only have access to the data and features that are necessary for their job functions. It helps you to protect business data by only giving access to specific employees.

The smart POS system is a modern solution for the restaurant and retail industry. To get succeed in this competitive market the POS is your friend. By automating all your business operations you will get more time to focus on other business functions. LithosPOS the leading smartest POS provides 14 day free trial. It allows you to experience the future of your business. SignUp Now.

Smart POS frequently asked questions (FAQs)

What is a Smart POS system?

A Smart POS system is a technology solution that combines traditional point of sale functionalities with advanced features like cloud-based system. It is designed to streamline and enhance various business operations, including sales, payments, reporting, and customer interactions.

How does a Smart POS system work?

A Smart POS system typically consists of hardware (such as a touchscreen terminal or tablet) and software that work together to facilitate sales transactions. The software manages inventory, payment processing, and report generation, and may offer additional features like loyalty programs, employee management, and integration with other business tools.

Can a Smart POS system work offline?

Some Smart POS systems offer offline capabilities, allowing businesses to continue processing transactions even when an internet connection is temporarily unavailable. Offline mode typically allows for storing sales data locally and synchronizing it with the cloud once the connection is restored.

What types of businesses can benefit from a Smart POS system?

Smart POS systems can be beneficial for all types of small and medium-sized retail stores, restaurants, and more.

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blog Customer experience Restaurant Retail Small businesses

What is Stock Keeping Unit (SKU)

Everything you need to know about SKUs | LithosPOS
Everything you need to know about SKUs | LithosPOS

What Is a Stock Keeping Unit (SKU)? 

SKU stands for a stock-keeping unit. It is a unique identifier business assigned to a specific product for managing and tracking each product on the inventory. SKU is an identification code made up of letters, numbers, or a combination of both. It contains information such as the product’s brand, manufacturer, design, color, size, and other unique characteristics that distinguish it from other products.

It is used not only in retail, wear houses, and logistics but also in e-commerce platforms to enable customers to easily search for and purchase products.

SKU number examples 

SKU number formats can differ based on the inventory management system of a company and the type of products they sell. Here are some SKU number examples:

  • XYZ5678-BLK-32: This SKU represents a pair of black pants in size 32, made by a brand with the code XYZ5678
  • PQR9876-BLU-8.5: This SKU represents a pair of blue shoes in size 8.5, made by a brand with the code PQR9876
  • LMN2345-YLW-12: This SKU represents a yellow notebook with 12 pages, made by a brand with the code LMN2345.

However, the format of SKU numbers may vary depending on the company’s inventory management system and the type of products being sold.

Why is SKUs important? 

SKUs are really important when it comes to managing and tracking products in your inventory. It makes easier for your product categorization. Let’s dive deep and understand why you need to use SKU.

Inventory Management: SKU numbers help businesses to differentiate based on brand, manufacturer, design, color, size, and other unique characteristics. So it is easier to identify each item in your inventory and manage it.

This makes it easy to monitor stock levels, reorder products when necessary, and identify which products are selling well.

Sales Analysis: SKU gives you sales data for each product. that can be used to identify top-selling and worst-selling items in your inventory. It allows you to take pricing, promotions, and marketing strategies.

Operational Efficiency: The SKU allows you to manage and identify where each product is located in your warehouse. It makes operations more efficient and reduces the risk of errors and confusion.

Data Tracking: The SKU allows you to track the data related to each product such as sales volume, profit margin, and customer behavior. This data helps you to take data-driven decisions and improve overall business performance.

How to get an SKU for a product? and how to create

Creating SKU for a product means assigning an identifier code to a product. You can simply manage your inventory and sales by assigning this unique code to each product.

You can add there your product SKU number.

So, let’s see how you can create SKU numbers for your products

Determine what information you want to include in your SKU: SKU numbers include a variety of information such as product type, color, size, style, and season. Determine what information you are going to give on SKU. Give information that can easily identify the product.

Choose a format for your SKU: SKUs are a combination of letters, numbers, and both. It would help if you considered the combination of the first three letters of the product name, followed by the product size and color.

SKUs can be a combination of letters, numbers, or both. For example, you might use a combination of the first three letters of the product name, followed by the product size and color. Another common format is to use a combination of numbers that correspond to different product attributes

Ensure your SKUs are unique: Make sure you assign a unique SKU to each product. Otherwise, there will be confusion.

Implement your SKU system: after creating SKU then you can implement it on products manually or with the help of software.

Test your system: Ensure that your inventory management system is compatible with your new SKU system. Verify the system by doing inventory audits, monitoring sales, and modifying stock levels based on sales information.

Why you should want an SKU code on a product?

Here is the reason why you need to use the SKU code on a product.

Tracking inventory: By categorizing products with SKU, codes will be easier to find them from your warehouse. Monitor stock levels and identify when a product needs to be reordered.

However, it eliminates the errors that may occur in inventory and keep your inventory efficient and profitable.

Identifying products: By giving SKU codes to each product will help you to easily identify products from your inventory. Especially if you have the same product in different sizes or colors. So you don’t want to spend your valuable time finding products in your inventory.

Organizing inventory: Organizing your inventory is challenging. but giving SKU codes to your products it is easier to organize products. It helps your inventory efficient and organized.

Analyzing sales data: The SKU allows you to identify your top-selling and worst-selling items with the help of sales data. It allows you to plan marketing strategies and save you from financial losses.

Improving customer service: You can provide a premium customer experience by giving SKU codes for your products. As discussed above, SKU codes allow you to quickly find your product and its details from your inventory.

If you got an inquiry from a customer about specific product details such as its price availability then you can quickly find your product and give answers.

SKUs vs. UPC codes

UPC Codes (Universal product code): UPC is a code that is a standardized barcode system used to identify products at the point of sale. it is a 12-digit number code that is encoded into a barcode and scanned by the point of sale system. It can be used to track sales and inventory. it ensures the correct product is selling at the right price.

UPC codes are issued by the Uniform Code Council (UCC) and are unique to each product

SKU vs. barcode 

Barcodes are used in retail operations to speed up the checkout process, reduce errors, and improve overall efficiency. SKUs are unique identifiers used internally by retailers to manage their inventory, while barcodes are machine-readable codes that contain product information and are used for efficient retail operations

Manual SKU management and Automated SKU management

Manual SKU management and automated SKU management are two different methods of managing inventory using Stock Keeping Units (SKUs).

managing SKUs manually is the process of assigning and tracking SKUs manually. This manual operation is done by employees who physically handle the product. They are using electronic records to keep track of inventory levels and sales. This method is mostly used by small businesses, which have small inventory to manage.

The automated SKUs are different from manual SKUs. Automated SKUs are using software and technology to assign and track. This can include barcode scanners, inventory management software, and point-of-sale (POS) systems.

Manual SKU management involves assigning and tracking SKUs manually, However, automated SKUs help you to keep your business efficient, improve accuracy and improve inventory operations.

SKU Number Tips

Here are some tips for creating and using SKU numbers effectively:

  • Keep them simple
  • Be consistent
  • Use a mix of letters and numbers
  • Make them unique
  • Consider variations
  • Use software to manage your SKUs
  • Regularly review and update your SKUs

What is SKU in e-commerce

You can assign a unique code identifier, known as SKU, to each of your products, as we discussed above. It helps you to track stocks, sales, and inventory. By using SKU e-commerce business management will be simple and efficient and helps to provide a premium customer experience.

How to use SKUs to grow your retail business

  • Track inventory accurately: Use SKUs for each product to keep your inventory efficient. It allows you to gain better insight into each product. By checking your inventory you can simply identify which product is selling higher and which is not.
  •  Forecast sales: The SKUs are allows retailers to track their sales and offer a detailed report of your sales. It is useful to identify your sales performance and forecast future sales as well.
  •  Amplify your biggest profit generators: By identifying your biggest profit-generating product you can increase the stock of those items and generate more profit.
  •  Boost customer loyalty and satisfaction: The SKUs help to organize your product and quickly identify where it is located. It allows you to easily identify products and their details when customers ask. This will help you to enhance customer loyalty and satisfaction
  •  Offer customers new suggestions—and increase sales: By using SKUs you can suggest similar products to your customers. by categorizing the similar types of products it will be easier to introduce your similar products.

How to automate SKU process using POS

Automating SKU processes using a Point of Sale (POS) system can help your retail business streamline its inventory management and improve the overall efficiency of the business. Here are some steps to follow to automate the SKU process using a POS system:

Choosing a POS system that supports SKU management: Choosing the right POS system is really important. You have to make sure the system has the capability to manage inventory and opinions to use SKU. Also, make sure the system can automate the operations such as generating SKUs and assigning them to the products.

Assigning: After choosing the POS system you can assign SKUs to your products. You can choose to assign SKUs manually or use the system’s automation features to generate SKUs automatically.

Develop a unified product database: To ensure that all your sales channels are using the same SKUs, create a centralized product database that is linked to your POS system. This will ensure that your inventory and sales data are accurate and up-to-date across all your channels.

Set up automatic stock tracking: After assigning all your SKUs to your products you can track products through the Point of sale system. This will allow the system to automatically update your inventory levels as products are sold or restocked, helping you avoid stockouts or overstocking.

Analyze sales data: You will get a detailed report from POS. This will help you to prepare a better pricing and sales strategy.

However, The SKUs are really important and beneficial to retail business owners to manage and keep their inventory as well as business.

FAQ

Can multiple products have the same SKU?

No, each product should have a unique SKU. It ensures proper tracking and differentiation of products.

How do SKUs differ across different industries?

SKUs can differ based on business industries. They may have changes in format, length, or the information included in the code.

How can SKUs assist in tracking sales and identifying popular products?

By associating sales data with SKUs, businesses can analyze and track the products and identify which item is selling(performing) best, and it helps to take exact decisions about inventory and promotions.

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blog POS Restaurant Retail Small businesses

Simplify your business by integrating your business operations with POS system

Integrate your business operations with the POS system | LithosPOS
Integrate your business operations with the POS system | LithosPOS

By integrating your various business operations with a point of sale system (POS) the business can be more simple and powerful. Managing different functions of your business with 100% efficiency can be challenging. It is really hard to manage and keep your business operations efficient. integrated POS system is the solution for that. 

In this blog, we aim to let you know how a point of sale integration can be used to simplify your business.

We are discussing in this blog

  • What is an integrated POS system?
  • The Benefits of Integrating Your POS System with Other Business Tools
  • What business operations can you integrate with the pos system
  • What business software can be integrated with POS
  • Best integrated POS

What is POS and what is meant by integration?

POS system is a system that is used to manage sales, track inventory, customer and employee management, simplify payment transactions, and more. Some common POS systems include the following functions.

Sales transactions: Sales transactions can be managed such as cash, credit card, and other payment transactions.

Inventory management: Simplifies inventory operations by tracking them.

Customer management: Managing customers can be simplified, identify your loyal customers and their buying behavior. 

Employee management: Identify your employee’s efficiency and inefficiency, and manage them

Payment processing: By integrating payment processing, it allows you secure and efficient payment transactions.

Reporting and analytics: Get real-time insight into your business, and generate tax reports, purchase reports and sales reports, and more.

Integrated POS

POS can be integrated with different business operations and software to simplify business tasks. Integrating different business functions will allow you to run an efficient business. You know how hard it is to manage a business. It is challenging to keep all your business functions efficiently. the integrated POS system can be the solution for all your business challenges. 

Let’s dive deep and know what type of business operations can be integrated with POS 

Inventory management

The inventory can be integrated with POS and it allows you to track and keep your inventory efficient and powerful. It is really beneficial to gain a real-time report of your inventory. This allows you to gain an accurate view of what is happening in your inventory.

Based on inventory data you can take proper business decisions. Identify which items make more profit and which do not. It will give you a better understanding of your inventory and keep inventory profitable.

By automating your inventory you can reduce manual operations, save time and eliminate mistakes. However, all of your inventory operations can be kept efficient and profitable by integrating POS. 

You can also integrate POS with your existing inventory management system. This allows you to manage your inventory from POS. 

Various financial operations can be automated by integrating your inventory management with POS.

Real-time inventory tracking – The integration helps you to track your inventory in real-time by recording SKU, product description, stock quantity, and other relevant data. This is really helpful to control your inventory and eliminate overstocking and out-of-stock issues.

Purchase order automation – Purchase order operations can be automated with the help of the integration of inventory management and POS based on inventory levels, reorder points, and lead times. This is helpful to inventory levels are always optimal, improves vendor relationships, and reduces stockouts.

Order fulfillment – order fulfillment can be automated by integrating inventory management and your POS by tracking orders as they are received and processed, preparing order invoices, and updating inventory quantities accordingly.

Multi-location inventory management – The integration of your inventory management and POS system helps you to keep your inventory efficient. It is easier to transfer goods across your locations. Generate reports and analyze the inventory performance of both of your businesses.

Financial management

Integrating financial management operations with POS systems will be more powerful and efficient. An Integrated POS system can provide accurate financial reports. The system automates so many manual tasks, so errors can be minimized.

POS provides real-time data that can be useful to make important and accurate decisions on businesses. This allows you to make better cash flow decisions and helps you to manage cash effectively.

The POS and financial management enables more transparency in your financial operations. So you will have more control over your financial transactions. 

However, your Accounting and financial management software such as SAP, Oracle cloud, QuickBooks, Emaar, ZohoBooks, and Tally can be integrated with the POS system. This will power your business’s financial operations and provide real-time data, better decision-making, and efficiency.

What financial operations can be automated by integrating your financial management with POS?

Payment processing – All the payment transactions can be automatically recorded in accounting and financial reports.

Reporting and Analytics – The integrated POS system helps you to generate reports such as Tax reports, daily sales reports, cash flow statements, and other financial reports within seconds. This helps to avoid errors and saves time.

Budgeting and forecasting – By integrating POS with your financial reports you will get better insight into your sales and other purchase reports. It will help you to manage your cash flow and other financial operations.

Customer relationship management (CRM)

Customer relationship management software should be more powerful. Because the software manages the customer interactions and data through the customer lifecycle. It helps you to gain existing and new customers.

You can automate all your CRM operations by integrating your existing software with POS. or it is also possible to use the CRM feature on POS.

By integrating CRM with POS you can improve customer experience, Better Customer Insight, Increased Sales, Improved Customer Loyalty, and Streamlined Operations. 

The POS tracks customers’ data and their purchase history. It allows you to increase customer experience through personalized communications and offers. This can help you to boost your sales and customer loyalty.

It helps you to identify your loyal customers and better insight into their purchasing behavior. This is also helpful to understand the constantly changing customer purchasing behavior.

Based on customer data you can upsell or cross-sell your products through various marketing platforms. Overall you gain customer data by using POS and use it for better customer retention and new acquisition.

What business operations can be automated by integrating your CRM with POS

Customer data collection – The integration helps you to collect customer data automatically and stored it in your CRM. The data record valuable information such as contact details, purchase history, and other relevant data.

Loyalty programs – The integrated POS system helps to automate loyalty programs, where customers can earn points or rewards for their purchases. You can analyze customer data identify your loyal customers and use the customer data for various loyalty programs.

Marketing automation – By integrating POS with CRM software you can automate your marketing activities.

Customer service – You can provide a premium customer experience by providing personalized service. The integration helps you to automate various business functions such as tracking customer inquiries, orders, or complaints.

Marketing and sales

POS can be integrated with marketing and sales business operations. It helps you to identify customer behavior and allows you to build effective marketing campaigns. 

By integrating your marketing and sales with your POS you can manage customer data, customer loyalty programs, targeted promotions, email marketing, and social media. 

By using customer data you can run effective promotion campaigns. As we discussed above, integration with CRM can help you to gain detailed customer data. It can be used for your marketing activities.

The integration helps you to plan an effective customer loyalty program. The data allows you to identify your loyal customers based on their purchase history and spending. 

You can also use the POS customer data for targeted marketing campaigns. You can use contact information for targeted marketing through social media, email marketing, and SMS marketing.

So, what marketing business operations can be automated

Promotions and discounts – Customer data can use for various promotional activities such as email marketing, SMS marketing, and other social media marketing.

Customer relationship management (CRM) – POS system can collect customer data and contact information. by analyzing your customer reports and buying history you can identify your loyal customers and plan better marketing strategies.

Sales reporting and analytics – Sales reporting and analysis can help you to identify your business performance. It allows you to take appropriate decisions at the right time. You will better understand your customer behavior and market changes, which is more useful data for marketing.

Sales forecasting – The data is useful to identify upcoming trends and market changes. It is also helpful to plan successful marketing strategies.

Sales training and performance management – You can identify your best employees based on performance reports. and who needs proper training. it is really helpful to execute better employee retention and productivity-increasing strategies.

E-commerce

Integrating your E-commerce business with a POS system simplifies business operations. You can integrate with E-commerce platforms like WooCommerce. It is challenging if you are running an online and offline business.

So, what things can be changed? 

By integrating your E-commerce business with POS you can keep efficient inventory, payment, and customer, and get real-time detailed reports and analytics. For example, If one order is placed on your online store the stock should be deducted from your inventory.

Managing those kinds of tasks cannot be managed manually. Especially if you are getting too many orders. It also ensures the availability of stocks and helps you to give premium customer service.

The detailed report and analytics show you the overall performance of your both online and offline business. The data can be used to keep both of your businesses efficient. 

The POS can track your customer and collect their contact details. It can be used to target promotions later on. 

What E-commerce business operations can be automated by integrating with POS?

Inventory management – E-commerce integration with POS can automatically update inventory levels across all channels, preventing overselling or underselling

Order Processing – Order processing can be automatically processed with the help of POS. It helps you to prevent human errors and save time.

Sales reporting – Gain detailed sales reports in real-time and analyze your E-commerce business.

Customer data management – E-commerce integration with POS can synchronize customer data across channels.

Payment processing – Payment processing can be simplified and efficient by integrating your E-commerce business with POS. It enables seamless payment processing across all channels.

Marketing and promotions – It is more convenient and simple to run targeted promotions by using customer data. POS collects customer data that can be used to increase customer retention.

Payment integration

Integration of various payment methods such as card, cash, contactless, cheque, split payments, loyalty, and payment partners will help to provide a premium customer experience. It gives them more freedom to choose the payment method they want. 

Digital payments such as contactless and tap-and-go methods help speed up your checkout process. This reduces the long queues and clears the checkout counter as free. 

Because you can speed up your checkout processing, you can also reduce your checkout counters and cut the labor cost as well.

Various business operations can be automated by using integrated payment

Payment processing – Payments can be automating payment processing and reduce the need for manual input and save time.

Invoicing – Integrated payment can generate and send invoices to customers automatically.

Payment reports – Payment reports help you to gain better insight into your customer behavior and overall insight into your business

Accounting – Payment data can be integrated with your accounting software, so you can get real-time reporting and streamlined bookkeeping from that.

However, businesses need to make payment systems efficient and convenient for future business success and growth, as digital payments can grow exponentially. An integrated payment system is the best way to do that.

Aggregatory integration

The food aggregators integration helps restaurant businesses to scale and grow their business. Integrating various food aggregators like Zomato, Swiggy, Uber Eats, and Talabat will help you to grow your business online.

You can manage your online offline orders from the POS. The orders can be displayed to the POS and KDS. The chef can prepare the food according to the orders.

The integration helps you to automate the majority of your business operations such as

Order management – Automatically receiving and processing orders and reducing the possibility of human errors.

Inventory management – The system automates inventory operations. So even if the stock goes down the stock will be generated automatically. It can be useful to keep your favorite items available.

Menu updates – You can change the menu anytime, and the change will automatically update in the aggregator’s platforms. However, you can change and update your menu in real time.

Payment processing – It helps you to avoid manual payment operations and keep your payments easy and secure.

Reporting – By getting detailed reports and analytics, you will get a clear picture of your business. The data can be used for a better understanding of the market and your customers.

Integrating your complex business functions with Point of sale software will make your jobs easier. By automating these business operations you can save a lot of time, cut costs like labor and other operational charges, and eliminate errors.

However, it is really important to make sure you are using the right POS system. One of the main problems of most POS systems cannot be integrated with multiple payment partners and other accounting, CRM, and inventory management software.

Most POS systems have their own features like inventory management, CRM, and accounting. But if you want to manage your business operations with external software and at the same time want to automate the operations, you have to integrate with the POS system.

Make sure you are investing in an integrated POS system with different payment partners on your country’s basis. It allows you to offer the right payment options to your customers.

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blog POS Restaurant Restaurant POS Retail Retail POS Small businesses

How to find the best Point Of Sale (POS) system for your retail business in 10 steps?

ways to choose right POS | LithosPOS
ways to choose right POS | LithosPOS

It’s proven that a dynamic point-of-sale platform has become essential for running a successful business. Whether it is a retail store or restaurant, it automates POS terminals and billing counters with integrated flexible payment options, streamlined inventory management, and integrated customer loyalty programs.

A recent study states that more than 67% of businesses have adopted a Point-of-sale system (POS). Moreover, these businesses achieved substantial growth in their customers’ shopping experiences and improved their overall performance.

10 Factors should be considered while choosing POS for your retail business

However, with thousands of POS solutions available in the market, choosing the best one can’t be an easy task. When choosing the best Point of Sale (POS) system for your business, several factors should be considered.

  1. Identify your business needs.
  2. Features and functionality.
  3. Easy to use interface.
  4. payment Integrations.
  5. Aggregator Integrations.
  6. Account book integrations.
  7. Consider business Scalability.
  8. Device Compatibility.
  9. Check customer support.
  10. Consider the cost.

1. Identify your business needs:

The first step is to assess the current processes and operations of your retail business and identify areas where a POS system can improve efficiency and effectiveness.

Determine the specific features and functionality your business requires in a Point-Of-Sale system to streamline your business, such as online and offline order management, payment flexibility, inventory management, loyalty management, customer management, employee management, and reporting capabilities.

It depends on the type of business in which you operate. If you have a multi-location store you will need features to manage the store remotely.

If you are doing more online orders you may require a delivery app or integrations with aggregators to manage online orders. Talk with the POS sales team and explain the existing pain points and ask if their POS can provide a solution.

2. Features and Functionalities:

Consider the features and functionalities of the POS you are looking for. If you need the POS system to integrate with other software, such as accounting systems and aggregator applications. Make sure the POS you choose supports the integrations you need.

It is also important to consider future scaling and expansion plans, as the chosen POS system should be able to accommodate changes in the business like adding new stores, managing multiple stores, transferring stocks between stores, etc.

By taking the time to deeply understand the business requirements, a retail business owner can make an informed decision and choose the best POS system that will help them grow fast.

3. Easy-to-use interfaces:

An easy-to-use POS software enables you to quickly ring up sales to get customers in and out of your store faster. Take a demo tour and walk through the key features and functionalities in order to get an idea of what that POS has to offer for your retail business and to see what it looks like.

Then use the trial version and experience the application to make sure it is easy to use and navigate. A POS solution designed with end users in mind can not only reduce the queue at the check-out section but also save time and money for your business.

4. Payment integrations:

It is important for any business to have the capability to accept multiple forms of payment in order to cater to the preferences of different customers.

A Point of Sale (POS) system that only has limited payment options may limit the potential customers and reduce net sales. To attract and retain different customers, it is essential for a retail business to have a POS system that has leading payment integrations, such as credit/debit cards, UPI, and other digital payment methods.

This will allow customers to make purchases with the payment method they prefer, enhancing the shopping experience and building customer loyalty. This will not only help increase sales but also improve customer experience.

5. Aggregator integrations:

Some POS software offers direct integration with order aggregators like Zomato, Swiggy, Uber eats, Deliveroo, Doordash, etc. It helps businesses streamline their ordering and delivery process by allowing customers to place orders directly through the delivery app, reducing the time and effort required to process orders.

Secondly, it increases the reach of the business by providing an additional channel to place orders. Additionally, delivery app integration helps improve order tracking and speedy delivery management, providing real-time insight and reducing the risk of errors.

Moreover, it helps enhance the customer experience, and improve order management for your retail business.

6. Account books integrations:

If you are already using accounting software such as Zoho Books, QuickBooks, or Oracle Cloud in your business it can be integrated directly with some cloud-based Point of Sale (POS) systems that can bring significant benefits to businesses.

Such integration streamlines data entry by eliminating manual data entry, minimizing errors, and saving you valuable time. With this integration, the data from the POS system is automatically transferred to the accounting software and vice versa. It ensures data accuracy and reduces the chance of manual entry errors.

Additionally, this provides a unified view of inventory, sales, and expenditure, enabling you to make perfect decisions based on real-time data. Overall, the integration of accounting software and POS software can greatly enhance your operational efficiency and productivity.

7. Consider scalability:

A scalable Point-of-sale system must be equipped with the features to handle growing transaction volumes. It should be capable of adding new locations as the business expands. Therefore, scalability is a key factor to consider while looking for a Point of Sale (POS) system for your retail business.

The system should be capable of accommodating future expansion and changes in your business and provide the ability to customize the application based on the market needs.

Additionally, the system should be able to integrate with your other systems, like accounting book applications, inventory management, delivery applications, or e-commerce platforms.

Choosing a dynamic and scalable POS system is vital for businesses looking to grow and expand in the long run. Considering these facts it’s wiser to invest in a scalable POS system if you are genuinely planning to expand your business in the future.

8. Consider device compatibility:

A POS system with an integrated loyalty feature offers a comprehensive solution that can help businesses increase customer loyalty, drive repeat purchases, and gather valuable customer data, ultimately leading to increased sales and growth.

Loyalty programs like loyalty cards, virtual loyalty options, and loyalty points can help to increase customer satisfaction and retention by providing rewards and incentives to customers for their repeat business.

The integration of a loyalty program with the Point-of-sale system helps streamline the redemption process, making it easier for customers to redeem their loyalty points. and it helps the business to easily track and manage the loyalty program.

Moreover, the loyalty program data collected through the POS system can provide valuable insights into customer buying behavior, enabling businesses to make calculated decisions and design their offerings to meet the need of their customers.

9. Ensure 24×7 customer support:

Imagine your POS system faced downtime during busy business hours, it can result in a significant loss of customers and sales. This is where the importance of 24×7 customer support comes into play. With support available 24×7, businesses can quickly resolve any issues that may arise with their POS system, ensuring that it continues to run smoothly and efficiently.

Choosing a POS system that offers 24×7 customer support offers numerous benefits, including increased uptime, improved efficiency, resolving issues quickly, provides peace of mind, and increased productivity, which can help support the growth and success of your retail business in the long run.

It can greatly benefit a business by enabling the seamless operation of the system and minimizing downtime. This can greatly enhance the customer experience and improve your productivity and save time.

10. consider the cost vs benefit.

When choosing Point of Sale systems for your business, the price can often be a key determining factor. However, you should remember that the cheapest POS system may not always be the best for your business. You should consider multiple factors beyond just the cost.

Features such as inventory management, multiple reports, and loyalty capabilities are critical to running a successful retail business. Keep in mind that investing in a dynamic, high-quality POS system can provide long-term benefits for your business, saving you time energy, and money.

Additionally, rather than choosing a cheap one, It’s important to choose a Point-of-sale system that meets your specific needs, even if it costs a bit more.

Understand different POS systems.

Traditional POS systems–

These have mainly been used for two purposes, first, to manage inventory, two customer management. Traditional POS systems commonly found in retail sectors are not capable of managing new features like data collection, loyalty management, payment integration, etc.

Cloud-based POS systems- 

A cloud-based POS system is hosted on a cloud server. Hence you can access your business from any device with an internet connection. It is very cost-effective as it is available for yearly and monthly subscriptions.

Nowadays businesses are rapidly shifting from traditional POS systems to cloud-based POS systems and it is estimated that more than 65% of purchases are facilitated through cloud-based POS platforms.

This clearly proves that more and more companies are finding value in cloud technology to streamline their business. Furthermore, it works perfectly on android tablets android POS terminals, IPads, and Windows tablets.

Categories
blog Restaurant Restaurant POS Retail Retail POS Small businesses

Point Of Sale Software for Small Business to Thrive in 2023 & Beyond

point of sale software for small business | LithosPOS
point of sale software for small business | LithosPOS

A point-of-sale (POS) system is essential to improve day-to-day operations. The system helps in core functions of the business like employee scheduling, customer loyalty programs, and inventory tracking. So, your overall business functions are integrated with the system, and simply manage it.

restaurant pos software for coffee shop, food businesses | LithosPOS

In this guide we’ll cover:

  • How does a point of sale software work at a small business
  • Why do you need to consider a point of sale software for small businesses?
  • LithosPOS smart point of sale software
  • Type of small businesses and suitable point of sale software
  • Tips for choosing the best Point of sale software for small businesses
  • Types of point of sale software are commonly used
  • Frequently asked questions about a point of sale software for small businesses

How does a point of sale software work at a small business?

Point of sale software keeps your business efficient. It tracks sales and accepts payments from customers when a purchase is made. Most of the point of sale software is integrated and includes features that help you streamline your business, such as inventory management, report and analytics, payment integration, and a customer loyalty program. 

However, let’s dive deep and learn how point of sale software works in a small business, 

To get a clear picture, we can take a real-life scenario. 

  1. A customer comes to your instore and asks for one product they want
  2. You are offering multiple payment methods and payment partners. The customer chooses one option and makes a payment
  3. Point of sale tracks and records sales and automates printed or email receipts – customer satisfied.
  4. You are using customer data for your customer retention strategy.

As I said earlier point of sale software features help to streamline all your business operations.

1. The customer comes to your instore and asks for one product they want: studies show that when you are running out of stock more than 75% of customers rely on your competitor. So you need to make sure of the product availability.

So how will you do that? well, the software tracks every item in your inventory. When an item runs low on stock, you will be notified. Or you can preset a level and the stock will automatically add to the inventory.

2. You are offering multiple payment methods and payment partners Customers choose one option and make payment: “80% of retailers are suggesting contactless payments. It helps them to keep checkout counter clean and safer for employees and customers”. 

However, you can enable a premium customer experience with integrated payments. It will boost your checkout process. Offering various payment methods and payment partners based on your country. The customer feels secure and flexible

3. Point of sale tracks and records sales and automates printed or email receipts – customer satisfied: the software records each transaction. You can check the sales data anytime. By automating the receipt option you can save a lot of time. and it will also help enhance the customer experience. If the customer prefers digital receipts you can send them to their email.

4. You are using customer data for your customer retention strategy: every time a purchase is made by the customer it will record in the CRM. based on their buying history it’s easy to find your loyal customers. 

Use the data for marketing purposes (email marketing, WhatsApp marketing, SMS marketing, google ads, Facebook ads, etc) by targeting your loyal customers. As you know customer retention cost is cheaper than acquiring a new customer. 

The Point sale software for small businesses is integrated and has multiple features. You can see here that everything is connected. So it keeps all the operations efficient. 

Pro tip: Rather than investing in multiple software such as inventory management, CRM, loyalty programs, and online delivery, you can get everything under one umbrella. So you don’t need to pay for each software. For a small business, the point of sale software is worth it.

Why do you need to consider a point of sale software for small businesses

The image will give you a better understanding. So, you don’t need to visit another 5 blogs to understand this.

LithosPOS point of sale software

Get Free Trial
Best forRestaurants and retailers
PriceVisit pricing
Free trial14 days free trial
eCommerce POS integrationYes
Payment processingYes
Customer loyalty programYes
Accounting integration Yes
Marketing integrationYes
Inventory managementYes
Aggragators integrationYes
Multi-location managementYes
Report and analyticsYes

LithosPOS is one of the leading point of sale software with thousands of restaurant and retail customers from 64+ countries. The industry-leading software has 12+ integrated payment partners with multiple payment methods, online ordering and eCommerce integration, inventory management, accounting integration, and many more.

Intending to help and encourage small business owners, LithosPOS is the most affordable point of sale software for small businesses when compared to other software.

small businesses using pos software | LithosPOS
point of sale software with integrated payment | LithosPOS
LithosPOS Uniqueness
Use the software like any other software on your mobile and pc
Helping small businesses and startups for getting success. Most affordable
Multiple integrated payments based on your country’s
eCommerce integration
Aggregator integration
Inventory management
Report and analytics(real-time, daily, weakly, monthly, and yearly)
Customer loyalty program
Work offline as well as online
Employee management
Manage multi-location business
Works on any devices
Access to reports from anywhere (cloud-based)
24/7 customer support, and more

Simple to use

LithosPOS focuses on user experience. With simple navigation and a better interface, anyone can simply understand the software. The data visualization and analysis are much simpler, you can view and analyze data in one interface. For example, you can see your eCommerce and in-store sales and compare them in one interface.

Most affordable

When compared to other point of sale software LithosPOS is the most affordable with so many benefits. LithosPOS aims to provide affordable software to small businesses and startups and help them grow.

Integrated Payment

Payment integration is one of the main features of LithosPOS.

Customers are now opting for smart devices or cards to make payments. by 2024, contactless payments are projected to triple from $2T to $6T. You can offer a premium customer experience with integrated payment. You can choose your payment partners based on your country.

It helps restaurant retail businesses to provide a premium customer experience to their customers. It helps to facilitate payment transactions and speed up the checkout process.

eCommerce integration

According to NRF retail sales are projected to reach $5.13-$5.23 trillion, with online sales growing 10-12% in 2023. The online business has high potential in the coming years. and online business becomes a necessary platform that helps you to increase sales and reach customers as well.

You can manage your online business and offline business with LithosPOS. Making reports and automating inventory, managing sales, and customers will be easier. Integrate your e-commerce platforms such as WooCommece, Shopify, and more.

Lithospos is a way for businesses to expand their business. Lithospos helps you accept online and offline orders, manage inventory efficiently, and know the performance of your platform.

You can also reduce the increasing labor cost as the business can expand with limited employees.

Aggregator integration

If you are a restaurant owner you can expand your online business with various aggregators. For example, you can choose Uber Eats as your aggregator, sell items, and analyze your business.

Inventory management

LithosPOS keeps your inventory profitable. By preventing out-of-stock and maintaining inventory levels you can save a lot of money. The software will notify you when an item running low on stock. It also helps to generate reports and simplify accounting such as tax reports, sales reports, purchase returns, sales returns, and more.

By automating inventory, your inventory will also change based on the orders received from your online and offline platforms. You can automate all the manual tasks, including headaches.

Report and analytics

Access to the business data in real-time and manage it from anywhere in the world. Analyze your business performance such as most selling items, worst selling items, most and worst sales days, online sales, offline sales, employee efficiency, customer report, and more. 

Customer loyalty program

LithosPOS point of sale software for small businesses tracks every customer. So you can simply find your loyal customers based on their buying behavior. However, you can use the customer contact details for marketing purposes. For example, send offers through emails, or SMS, and you can also add on a custom customer loyalty app.

Work offline as well as online

The software is cloud-based, but you don’t need to worry about it. If the internet is down you can make sales offline mode. After the internet is restored the data will automatically sync.

Employee management

Finding your top-selling and worst-selling employees and analyzing their performance will be easier. By tracking employees you can identify the cash lack at the end of the shift.

Manage multi-location business

Manage your multi-location business with LithosPOS. Transfer the goods across your businesses, simply analyze and generate inventory, sales, customer, tax, and many other reports.

Works on any device

If you are a small business owner with a limited budget, LithosPOS fits you. The software works with any device. You can simply run it on your existing Android, ios, and Windows devices. So you don’t have to buy any special hardware.

Pro tip:

Most of the POS software providers will tell you to invest in expensive hardwares. However investing in POS software like LithosPOS allows you to use any hardware that you have or you can afford. It is a huge advantage for small and medium businesses.

Access to business from anywhere

To manage your business you don’t need to be in your store location. Using LithosPOS cloud-based point of sale keeps your business efficient wherever you go. Access to the business report – analyze and manage, all you need is an internet connection and LithosPOS.

24/7 customer support

LithosPOS is always there to help you. You can contact customer support anytime you want.

Pro tip:

Small businesses need scalable software. In the future, your business will expand. In such a scenario, cloud-based software that can grow with the business is essential. Constantly changing software providers at every stage of your business growth can be difficult and time-consuming. It is also challenging for employees to learn the software if you consistently change. 

However, Invest your money in the right software, not only for today but also for tomorrow.

What type of small business are you? | You need this

Single store business

If you are running a single-store business. Because of the limited budget and manpower, the business needs to invest in cloud POS software. You can reduce manpower by automating business operations. Automate inventory, generate reports, and more.

Pro tip:

You can also invest in a self-service KIOSK to reduce the need for labor. So the customer can checkout themselves. 

LithosPOS-kiosk-software
LithosPOS-kiosk-software

Multilocation chain

To make multi-location businesses profitable you need a proper system. To keep both businesses efficient you need to invest in point of sale software. When you started using the software the inventory process got easy.

For example, if your one store runs out of stock, you can transfer goods from one store to another. The point is it allows you to manage everything in one software. 

Combined brick-and-mortar and Online business

If you are a business owner with both online and brick-and-mortar stores, it can be more challenging to manage. 

For example, 

  1. You sold a product through your eCommerce store
  2. You are manually reducing items in the inventory 
  3. And manually calculating the online and offline sales
  4. You are struggling to calculate your sales, profit, loss, and more in your business(online and offline)

Instead of that, you can invest in point of sale software for small businesses

For example,

  1. You made a sale through your e-commerce platform
  2. It automatically reduces that sold item from the inventory
  3. The software automatically generates reports end of the year, month, week, or in real-time
  4. You can simply analyze all your sales data without any manual calculations.

Managing both online and offline is crucial without technology. By integrating all your business operations together, you can manage your entire business from one place with one software.

Tips for choosing the best Point of sale software for small businesses(How to buy)

  • Your budget: consider your budget before buying software. It will be more expensive when purchasing the hardware. If you choose software that is compatible with any device, it allows you to use the software on your existing or low-cost devices as well.
  • User-friendly: The software should be very user-friendly. It should be easy to use even by a non-technical person. This will help prevent wasting a lot of time on software training. Every newly joining employee can use the software with ease, with no need for special training.
  • Your size: Consider where your business is now and at the same time consider your goal. Forecast your business growth and invest in point of sale software that can scale with you.
  • Your industry: Consider your business industry. If you are a retailer you need retail point of sale software it includes features such as payment integration, eCommerce integration, accounting software integration, CRM, and more

If you are a restaurant owner, you can invest in a restaurant point of sale software that includes payment integration, online ordering, aggregator online ordering, integration, accounting software integration, CRM, and more.

Types of point of sale software are commonly used

Here is the list of commonly used point of sale software for small businesses.

POS TypeDescriptionSuitable Businesses
Online POSOperates over the internet and allows businesses to process transactions from different locations. Offers flexibility and accessibility.E-commerce stores, multi-location retail businesses, service-based businesses with mobile operations
Offline POSBrick-and-mortar retail stores, restaurants, and small businesses with limited internet connectivityOnline stores, pop-up shops, small businesses, and businesses with limited hardware resources
Cloud-based POSPOS system hosted on remote servers, accessible via the internet. Offers scalability, automatic updates, and data backup.Retail stores, restaurants, cafes, small and medium-sized businesses, businesses with multiple locations
Web POSRuns on a web browser, allowing businesses to process transactions through any device with internet access.Retail stores, restaurants, supermarkets, and businesses with dedicated checkout counters
Mobile POSPOS system that operates on mobile devices such as smartphones. Provides mobility and flexibility for accepting payments on the go.Food trucks, mobile vendors, event organizers, delivery services
Tablet POSPOS system designed specifically for tablets, offering a larger screen size and enhanced functionality compared to mobile POS.Restaurants, cafes, bars, quick-service businesses, retail stores
Desktop POSPOS system installed on desktop computers, typically used in fixed locations such as retail stores or restaurants.Boutique stores, high-end retail stores, cafes, and businesses with a focus on aesthetics and customer experience
iPad POSBuilt for Apple’s iPad devices, providing a user-friendly and intuitive interface for processing transactions.Retail businesses, cafes, small and medium-sized businesses, and businesses utilizing Android devices
Android POSSpecifically designed for Android devices, offering compatibility with a wide range of smartphones and tablets running on the Android operating system.Retail businesses, cafes, small and medium-sized businesses, businesses utilizing Android devices
On-premise POSInstalled locally on the business’s own servers or computers, allowing complete control over the system and data.Large retail chains, businesses with specific security and compliance requirements
Multichannel POSIt supports multiple sales channels, such as physical stores, online stores, and marketplaces, enabling seamless integration and management.Retail businesses with an online presence, businesses selling through various channels, businesses aiming for centralized control
Omnichannel POSPOS system that provides a unified and consistent experience across all sales channels, allowing customers to have a seamless shopping experience.Retail businesses with a strong online and offline presence, businesses prioritizing personalized customer experiences

Frequently asked questions about point of sale software for small businesses

Which point of sale software is the most affordable?

LithosPOS is the leading point of sale software for your small business. The price is low when compared to other software. It has a wide variety of payment integrations, inventory management, eCommerce integrations, aggregator integration, online ordering, report and analytics, customer loyalty programs, and more.

Can I use the phone as a point of sale (POS)?

Yes, you can. You can manage your business using your mobile devices as your POS. All you need is an app and a card reader. The software is compatible with Android, iOS, Windows, and more. 

Is the point of sale software expensive?

Investing in cloud-based software is less expensive. You can reduce the high amount of hardware costs by using Android, ios, and Windows devices.

How long does it take to install a Point of sale software?

You can set up the software within 5 minutes. For example, you can quickly add thousands of items using CSV spreadsheets to inventory management. So, it is really fast and you don’t have to invest your time too much time in point of sale software.

Which is the most popular POS system for restaurants?

LithosPOS is the most popular POS system for restaurants, retailers, and small businesses. We are currently present in over 70 countries and our software is being used by over 6,000 independent businesses and 100+ chain stores. We support 5 languages including English, Spanish, French, Chinese, and Arabic. We have registered our company in the US as Lithospos, Inc. and we already have hardware and payment partners in several countries, including the US.

For a restaurant what type of business functions can be integrated with LithosPOS?

You can integrate your various business functions with LithosPOS. You can simplify your inventory, CRM, employees, payments, and online business. It also helps you to integrate with the front office and back office functions like KOT, kitchen display, customer display, Kiosks, and more. Not your business tasks, you can also simply manage your multi-location business through a centralized dashboard.

How do I set up a POS for my small business?

  • Get instructions from the POS provider
  • Set up hardware (computer, printer, scanner) and connect it with POS software
  • Upload products using Excel(bulk upload)
  • Give user permission
  • Configure taxes/payment options
  • Integrate with other software
  • Give training to staff
  • Test thoroughly, then launch and monitor
  • Identify the ways you can grow your small business and use it

Does LithosPOS integrate with QuickBooks?

Yes, LithosPOS integrates with QuickBooks. It allows you to simplify your accounting operations. And you can also integrate many other software as well.

Best POS with credit card processing option

LithosPOS can seamlessly integrate credit card processing into your point-of-sale system, providing you with a secure and efficient payment solution