from The Wizard of POS

Jennifer Moehlmann and Angela Votta of Card Marketing Services offer advice on effective advertising for small retail merchants in this four part video series.

UC 2010: Moehlmann and Votta / Effective Advertising 1 of 4

UC 2010: Moehlmann and Votta / Effective Advertising 2 of 4

UC 2010: Moehlmann and Votta / Effective Advertising 3 of 4

UC 2010: Moehlmann and Votta / Effective Advertising 4 of 4

This weeks roundup features five articles form the past week that will help small retailers with point of sale advertising customer service. The first article in the roundup consists of ten ways small business owners can increase sales of displays at their POS. We then move on to the announcement that will have an effect on small retail establishment in California due to a new plastic bag law. The third article this week gives tips for small businesses to start going green, this will reduce energy costs and could even bring tax credits your way. We feature many articles on listening to your customers and this week is no exception. Our fourth feature this week focuses on 8 ways you can use to listen to what your customers which will help in various parts of your small retail business. We end the roundup this week with an extensive article on how small retailers can increase their chances of survival.

1. Ten Steps for Lucrative Point of Sale Displays – The techniques outlined in this article will help you bring in more money at your POS displays. This is now longer limited to large brand stores, small retail shops across the country are adopting this form of advertising. Read on to learn ten short ways to make your profits rise using point of sale display advertising.

2. Calif. Assembly passes ban on single-use bags: Senate vote is next – Although this will not have an effect on California small retailers until June of 2013, it will play a major role in changing the way businesses pack the customers goods for carry-out. The California Assembly has voted to ban all single-use disposable bags and also any paper bag that is not at least 40% recycled content. This ban will start at the beginning of the 2012 year for larger chains such as supermarkets and then roll into the small retail sector starting in June of 2013.

3. A Green Approach to Office Technology – Going green seems to be the new trend that many retailers are adopting. This article outlines a few simple steps small retailers can use to reduce energy costs and their carbon footprint. One answer is to start purchasing energy star compliant computers, point of sale equipment and peripherals. Taking this initiative could also bring tax credits to your business while providing you with a cheaper energy bill.

4. 8 Ways To Listen To Your Customers – this is informative and laid out very nice for you to learn 8 different ways to listen to your customers. The author points out that for every one person that complains there are 26 customers who do not but listening to them in various ways can give your retail establishments a step up and avoid customers who are unhappy.

“Whether your customers are filling out a standardized form or having a one-on-one conversation with you, asking them for feedback allows you to get deeper insight into how they feel about your business, and what you can do to make it better.”

5. The Small Retailer’s Survival Guide Part 9 Range Changes and Range Extensions – A very uplifting article that encourages the small retail industry that they can rise above and beyond large chain stores with the advantage of one little thing, stock. This is one area that large chains seem to fall into a trap of not knowing, long wait times and too much research. Small retailers have the speed and flexibility to order stock on the fly and also know right away what is selling and what’s not selling.

This weeks roundup features two announcements regarding the point of sale industry that will be affecting many small retailers. Heartland Payment Systems has launched a new security option for POS stations that will help retailers comply with the new PCI compliance. The second announcement stating the sale of CAM Commerce to Accelerated Payment Technologies will enhance small businesses using this point of sale software. Our third article this week will shed some light on using mystery shoppers to collect data in your small retail establishment. Then we move onto a way to bring new customers in and retain the old by offering coupons that are easy to find. The weekly roundup ends this week with a tip about a website that will assist small businesses in their daily duties as well as provide some online advice.

1. Heartland Payment Systems(R) Commercially Launches State-of-the-Art Payment Card Security Technology – Heartland Payment Systems is now offering a way small and large businesses to assure their customer data is safe across all payment options without any increased fees.

2. Accelerated Payment Technologies Introduced Following Sale Of CAM Commerce Point-Of-Sale Software Division – I was surprised at the sale of Cam Commerce this week but the good news is that this will help customers of the company’s point of sale software with a higher quality. Accelerated Payment Technologies is the company that will take over and provide POS customers with a 100% focused integrated payment system with new innovative technologies.

3. Opinion: Why mystery shopping isn’t enough for retailers – Although this is an opinion article, it raises some very valid point when considering using mystery shoppers to evaluate your overall customer service. Many small retailers use mystery shoppers to provide insight on satisfaction, spending, loyalty and employee knowledge but the numbers might not be as they seem.

4. Study: 60 percent of customers look for coupons before shopping – Coupons are still a valuable way to retain and gain new customers according to a recent study by The Integer Group. They state that 60% of consumers look for coupon before entering their favorite retail establishment and this could greatly affect their spending. As a small retailer offering coupons at the front of your store could bring the satisfaction and sales you’re looking for.

5. BizSugar Sweetens Your Small Business Social Media Marketing Campaign – As a small business owner you need to be up with the times, fads and new technologies in order to compete with larger brand name stores. This article outlines some of the fascinating things you could be learning at a comprehensive retail website called BizSugar.

Company Name: Lecere Corporation
Product Name: FIRMS Handheld Restaurant POS

FIRMS Handheld Restaurant POS Software Overview

Lecere is a company based in Oregon that is composed of a team of individuals that have many years in the restaurant and technology fields. The FIRMS restaurant POS software solution is designed with future technologies in mind and offers a total restaurant point of sale solution. The software is an integrated set of SaaS modules used to excel any restaurant from a small mom and pop operation to a large well known chain.

FIRMS provides the restaurant owner five individual, on-demand modules:

• Point of sales (POS), with online delivery or takeout accessible via a web browser, PDA, or cell phone
• Networked, multiple-restaurant accounting
• Powerful online reservations capability for restaurants, accessible via a web browser, PDA, or cell phone
• Mapping and geocoding for directions to the restaurant, display of nearby, and optimized delivery
• Data mining, which allows the restaurant to target selected customers for special offers

Lecere states on their website that with as little as an inexpensive handheld device you can purchase modules as your business grows. This will alleviate the high cost of certain business operations and improve customer service. FIRMS is compatible with a variety of handheld computers including the new Apple iPad eliminating the need for larger high cost POS systems.

Video – FIRMS Handheld Restaurant POS iPad Demonstration:

For more information visit the Lecere website.

Company Name: Action Systems Inc. (ASI)
Product Name: Restaurant Manager Write-On Handheld

Write-On Handheld Restaurant POS Software Overview

ASI boasts the Write-on Handheld restaurant point of sale software is a complete solution that can assist hundreds of restaurants through out the country. The software runs on numerous wireless handheld computers including the popular and seemingly inexpensive iPod Touch. You can take orders, process payments and do a variety of other things while never leaving the customer at the table. Using Write-on Handheld in conjunction with Restaurant Manager you can access all business data from numerous locations at the touch of a button on your handheld device.

Restaurant Manager is the true software behind the successful restaurant point of sale solution.  The complete package includes the ability to run for customers to order online, receive real time alerts, the ability to add a touchscreen POS and an extensive backend restaurant manager with one stop reporting.

The company which has over 20 years experience in creating point of sale solutions states:

Our restaurant POS software can provide integrated Online Ordering, inventory management and control, wireless table side ordering and payment, real-time alerts, mobile management capabilities and robust back office management can help increase revenue, cut cost and boost your bottom line.

Video Outlining the Handheld Restaurant Manager POS Software

It’s a little outdated but it gives you the basic idea of the capabilities.

You can find much more valuable information at the company website and explore all the possibilities this could open for your restaurant.

Note: The Weekly Roundup will be moving to Mondays featuring Point of Sale and Small Retail News from the previous week.

It was great to hear this week that small retail businesses are finally gaining ground in the battle of credit card fees at their POS terminal. Although the amendment still has to pass The House, experts are confident this will be a huge win for the small retail industry. This is outlined in the first article in this weeks roundup. We then move on to an article that focuses mainly on mobile POS advancements but the beginning has an encouraging update on Dairy Queen’s success using the technology. The third feature this week lead into much bigger things as excitement and curiosity took over. The article showcases new tools that add incredible functionality to restaurant point of sale handheld devices.

I found another great video demonstrating a new restaurant point of sale system that uses the iPad. I decided to write a review post on both systems that will be featured tomorrow morning…so be sure to check back.

Our fourth article this week was an interesting point of view that small retailers should be seeking small suppliers to do business with. Then the last feature is a few marketing tips that will help your small business grow profits even when tines are hard.

1. Swipe This: Small Businesses Smile About Card Fee Controls – On Thursday the US Senate passed an amendment that small retailers across the country are excited about. Although it has yet to pass The House, it could essentially limit the fees that retailers pay for debit and credit card sales. Assistant Senate Majority Leader Dick Durbin, D-Ill., who proposed the amendment said:

“Making sure small businesses can grow and prosper is vital to putting our country back on solid economic footing.”

2. Shoppers Check Out of Stores Via Cell Phone – There has been much talk about mobile point of sale technology and it is growing by the day. The retail industry needs to start embracing and preparing for the types of mobile POS options on the market. We featured an article last summer announcing Dairy Queens plan to implement a mobile loyalty program for cellar customers with a “certain” chip attached to their phone. Well according to this article co-owner Dave Reasner says its working and customers are returning at a 3% increase.

3. New Tools Push the Boundaries of POS – The announcement of ASI’s Restaurant Manager POS software being available for the iPod Touch was amazing to me. The new tools that add profitable benefits for restaurant owners’ especially small ones who are looking for a way to compete with large chain restaurants. For a low cost a small business owner could have a handled system that increases customer satisfaction tenfold. That’s the reason for tomorrows review on two “new” restaurant point of sale handheld options.

4. Small Retailers Should Foster Big Relationship With Small Suppliers – This article is slightly hard to read but the information contained is valuable. It focuses on the reasons small retailers should consider partnering with small local suppliers versus larger wholesale suppliers. The overall benefits could easily outweigh any additional cost you would be saving dealing with a big brand company.

5. How retailers can market their way out of tough times – I agreed with these authors when they said

“In an economy like this, cutting back on marketing is flirting with business suicide.”

This article gives five great tips on how to bring marketing back into your small retail business plan without emptying your bank account.

This edition of the roundup focuses completely on the small retailer with advice, tips and suggestions for keeping you’re business on top of the competition. We start this week with wireless retail trends, an informative article of why and how wireless is affecting the small retail industry. Our next feature in the roundup is a concept that many store owners have not yet grasped, the after-sale. Then we go into a very interesting and visual post about Google rules for retailers with industry examples (grab your pen and paper for this one). The fourth article in this weeks roundup focuses on a website that is helping small businesses survive by letting them post their products on the web. The last feature in this weeks roundup talks about Foursquare and the impact it could be having on your brick and mortar business.

1. Reality Check: Retail wireless trends – Marcelo Claure, Chairman, President and CEO, Brightstar Corp. gives some great insight on how evolution in wireless technology has changed the way consumers make buying decisions. The article touches on the consumer experience, the muti-channel market, as well as store design and merchandising.

2. Dirks on Strategy: Never say goodbye to a customer – This great article focuses on what to do AFTER you sell a product or service to a customer. Let’s just say it doesn’t end with the sale. If small retailers pay attention to the needs and wants of the customer while following through after the sale, profits as well as customer retention will improve.

3. Google Rules for Retail – These rules were taken out of the book What Would Google Do by Jeff Davis. The rules make sense and put attention on the consumer. The article is graphically easy on the eyes and outlines the rule, industry examples and what retailers should take form the information and implement on their own.

4. Etsy, Craft Sites Help Small Businesses Survive – Many small specialty retailers have had no choice but to close their storefront shops due to rising costs and a troubled economy. Websites such as Etsy, ArtFire and the Handmade Market have given these small retailers a different option to continue to sell their product without the frustration and overhead cost of a business website. They offer a “space” on the web for small retail business to sell their products with a nominal commission fee.

5. Foursquare: Are You Checking Out the Hottest Social Media App? – We’ve mentioned Foursquare before on the weekly roundup but this article is much easier to understand for retailers that are not familiar with the service. This website is simply a geo-location app that allows users to find and interact with their local retailers. If you’re not listed there yet, you could be missing out on many potential customers.

This week we’ve split the roundup into two separate posts because the emerging mobile sector of POS is quickly approaching. With summertime upon us small retailers need to consider some type of mobile solution for using their point of sale or collecting important customer information. Whether it be a small farmers market, a local community event or a simple sidewalk sale outside your establishment, mobile point of sale solutions are critical in gaining customer confidence.

Most small retailers immediately think of the iPhone or iPad when mobile POS is mentioned. This can stop some brick and mortar companies in their tracks because they associate those products with high cost solutions. The fact of the matter is there are many products available on the market that can slowly ease a small business into the mobile market.

This week I ran across two low cost solutions that small retail businesses could easily start using to show their customers they are moving ahead with the times and using some new mobile solutions at the point of sale.

Mobilescape Launches InstallmentPay, Enabling Mobile Merchants to Schedule Future Payments at Point of Sale – The market’s leading mobile solution for credit cards sales has announced a new feature that many small retailers selling large ticket item will cherish. The software now features the ability for the merchant to schedule up to three easy payment installments to pay for merchandise. This helps alleviate the financial strain on the customer while retaining sales for the retailer.

Mobilescape offers the following solutions for small retailers.

• Flexible amount and dates.
• AVS (Address Verification System) entry.
• Expired card detection.
• Online scheduled transaction details.
• Online transaction resubmits.

A simple, push button solution for all your marketing and customer data collection needs, period – Sterizon offers brick and mortar retailers a way to collect customer opt-in information and feedback with a small, simple mobile device. You can effectively collect a variety of information from any location within or outside your storefront.

I read about this great service on Twitter and was skeptical UNTIL I reached the website. I have to say that small retail businesses could benefit from this entirely while increasing customer service. Sterizon offers a way for retailers to build Birthday Clubs, E-Clubs, Email Lists, Mailing Lists, Rewards Clubs, Twitter Followers, and Guest Surveys etc.

The handheld device used costs approximately $150 and each club has a subscription price to enable easy delivery of custom messages.

Our first featured article in the roundup this week is the debut of a new and innovative all in one point of sale for salons/spas. Our second article focuses on an automated POS program that helped make a public school cafeteria more efficient benefiting everyone involved. As we move onto our third feature this week, it’s a little different. The website was actually discovered while reading another article about Milo.com but the unveiling of this important tool was enough for us to feature even if it didn’t make the small retail news for the week. The fourth article in the roundup is a quick tip on a great promotional method you should be using for your small retail establishment. We saved the best for last this week, the fifth article is advice on how a failing small retail business can bring itself back to the top. The author even includes a bonus video that details the article.

1. New Salon Touch Point-Of-Sale Solution Makes A Splash at American Beauty Show – The introduction of InfoTouch’s new Salon Touch POS made a great impression among business owners. The company listened to what spa and salon owners needed in a point of sale system and they came up with a low cost, feature rich solution.

“Most owners were shocked that we could offer them a complete all-in-one solution to manage their salon or spa for less than $3 a day,”

Read our Salon Touch POS Software Review

2. Automated Point-of-sale Program Boosts Efficiency in Summit Schools Cafeterias – An exceptional story on how an automated POS program can increase efficiency. The Summit Public School System is a prime example of how a cafeteria should operate. Student use their ID which is pre-loaded with money by parents using their home computer. The students simply swipe their card at the point of sale, enter their PIN and the cafeteria worker can see the balance of their account.

3. Krillion Network Connects Customers with Local Small Retailers – This company didn’t make retail news this week but it was mentioned in an article about Milo.com now accepting small retailers. The Krillion network launched this week with 100 small retailers and they offer the service of showcasing your business to customers searching for products. This is a great way to get your company recognized by local customers using their home PCs to compare prices and products.

4. Is Promotional Items Effective in Bringing more Customers to Your Business? – Some excellent advice about using promotional items with your small business name to real in new customers and retain existing ones. The article tells you what works best and why plus gives you a link to make your purchase and start promoting.

5. 12 Ways to Save a Doomed Small Business – I was quite impressed when reading this article posted at Service with a Purpose. The author gives an example of a failing liquor store and what the owner could do to improve his small business to keep it alive. Grab your notepad and jot down some ideas while you read about twelve things that could keep your small retail establishment above water.