12- Must-Have Features for Your POS Billing Software

Are you a business owner looking forward to purchasing POS billing software? Well, from restaurants to small businesses, online billing software for the retail industry plays an essential role in the sales process. Given the number of transactions that take place on a daily basis, you must make it a point to invest in smart software for retail shops.

With so many options to choose from, small business owners can get overwhelmed. Besides, if you do not have a clear idea of what features a good POS billing software should have, it can be detrimental for your business. So, before we have a look at the features your online billing software for the retail industry should have, let us know more about it.

Role of POS billing software in customer service

All said and done, providing stellar customer service is the main goal for all retailers. You might be selling excellent products and services at a super affordable price. But, if you don’t have the right mechanisms for customer service, your brand reputation is likely to suffer.

Did you know unhappy customers are likely to share their experience with 10–15 other people? Without good POS billing software, you are likely to share these issues on a recurring basis.

Wait, there is more to it!

90% of customers would not return to a store if they had a bad experience. So while losing customers is a terrible thing, it can be 6–7 times more costly to acquire new customers.

Customer churn and poor pricing can be attributed to poor pricing. Some of the common problems faced by businesses who don’t have POS billing software include:

• Employees having lack of mobility and not having access to a sales floor.
• Little to no insight on stock and inventory can make it difficult to track items and have no idea of items that are out of stock.
• No automation of manual tasks leading to extra time being spent on sales, operations and services. Customer service is also a reflection of operations and how you deal with business issues.
• Not having multiple payment options is an invitation for customers to move out of your store.
• No provision for automated accounting will lead to errors in accounts, losses in business, and larger issues if an audit is done.
• Lack of time tracking abilities and accountability among employees.

Most retailers notice a positive shift in productivity and customer retention when they implement online billing software for the retail industry. Not only do you give your employees and managers the ability to manage both front and back-office operations, but they can focus on providing exceptional customer service.

Must-have features for your POS billing software

Here is what you must look into when purchasing online billing software for the retail industry.

1. Offers multiple payment modes

Cash and credit have become old as modes of payments. However, depending on the transaction volume of your business and your customer preferences, your ideal POS billing software can help you manage multiple modes of payment. Besides, you can print bills like pro and share them with your customers and account teams. Moreover, customers will also have the option to split their payments across various modes.

2. Mobile accessibility

The world is becoming increasingly mobile and advanced every second. If your online billing software for the retail industry is not mobile, you will have issues in managing sales and generating reports. With POS billing software, your executives need not be present at all times at the sales counter. A mobile retail POS software will let you exercise more flexibility and also reduce costs in terms of hardware and other costs incurred by the outlet.

3. Digital receipts

When was the last time you received a paper receipt, and you could do anything useful out of it? Well, probably never! Not only are they bad for the environment, but they add nothing to the retail experience as well.

Your online billing software for the retail industry can simply send copies of the digital receipts to the buyer. By doing so, it will function as a CRM tool and will save the customer’s name, contact, and other relevant details. This can become the starting point of establishing a successful customer relationship and enhance the customer experience.

4. Defined permissions and user accounts

Your retail outlet has few people who are not directly connected to sales. But, they do not need access to all your data. POS billing software lets you create multiple user IDs and have separate passwords. This will help you track sales made by your reps and keep a tab on their productivity. You will have a 360-degree view of their performance and will be able to support them better. In addition, you will be able to decide if they need additional training or even a change in their job role.

5. Inventory management

Inventory is the most important aspect of retail. No system is worth your time and money if it doesn’t offer top-notch inventory capabilities.

Your POS system must have basic inventory systems. These include auto-ordering, stock visibility, product variants, and integraroper compliance with tax laws and government policies help your business stay in the market for years. Besides, it also makes auditing more efficient and easier. For businesses that have stores in multiple states, POS billing software can help you manage tax regulated accounts and more. For larger outlets with multiple stores, stock transfer, barcode scanning, and printing will be needed. All in all, your online billing software for the retail industry should ideally have inventory capabilities in line with your business needs.

6. Tax compliance

Plations in different states. Be it sales tax or other taxes, all the aspects will be taken care of in a systematic manner with POS billing solutions.

7. Reporting and analytics

Reporting is one of the most crucial components of retail. It helps businesses track performance across all departments. These include marketing, sales, operations, or finance. A good retail POS software also provides customer reports, product reports, employee reports, and any other kind of custom reports. They are required to get a 360- degree view of the organization’s performance.

8. CRM integration

If your POS billing software doesn’t offer integration facilities with a CRM, you should reconsider purchasing it. This way, the managers can organize customer data better anytime and anywhere.

Besides, you will be able to take care of customer preferences in a better manner. When you remember the little details about your customers, they are more likely to come back to your store. Thus, POS billing software can help you manage your store and customer satisfaction too.

9. Discounts, coupons, and gift cards

Discount schemes, coupons, and gift cards are excellent ways to promote customer loyalty. Your online billing software for the retail industry should provide easy-to-use functionalities for the same. The system must store the price changes and then calculate discounts seamlessly, so customers don’t have to wait in line for hours. Similarly, coupon generation and scanning should be smooth.

It will make the checkout process faster and be of benefit for both customer and the cashier. Besides, if your POS software can generate gift cards, you will be able to reach customers you have not been able to convert before.

10. Offline mode

Sure, your retail store is not open 24/7, but for hours it is operational; it has to run without any hindrances. The interruptions can be bad for your operations, but you can take effective measures to combat the same.

Suppose there is a long queue of customers waiting to get checked out. But you are facing an internet outage. In such a situation, your POS billing software must be able to process payments and generate receipts too.

The absence of these features will cause inconvenience to customers and put your brand in a bad light. To avoid such a scenario, invest in software that offers robust offline capabilities.

11. Time tracking

Well, with multiple organizations using time tracking tools, it would be great if your online billing software for the retail industry could be integrated with the same. When you know the time it takes to complete transactions and other processes in the sale, you can discuss the anomalies and take measures to solve them. This way, you will be able to cut down time spent on operations and use this time to make new strategies and bring in more benefits for customers. Some of the industries that can benefit immensely from this integration include.

• Cloud-Kitchens
• Bakery
• Food Trucks
• Supermarkets
• Spa and Saloon
• Cafe
• Retail stores

12. Security

Well, your POS system offers data access controls but is it really secure? Having low or no security standards for your POS is an invitation for data leaks, and no customer will want that. Thus, you should invest in software that offers high-level data encryption and follows security protocols.

Wrapping up

The retail industry thrives on fulfilling customer demands. However, with the rise in technology, customer expectations have also increased. So to manage these and deliver only the best to your customers, you must make it a point to invest in the right online billing software for the retail industry. Make sure you keep these points in mind when you are searching for POS billing software. A solution that aligns with your requirements and can help you serve customers is no less than a boon for your store!