How retail pos software can improve your business:

How Retail Pos Software Can Improve Your Business:

If controlling and managing your retail business is driving you to the point of despair then you need to think about installing a pos software solution to help you keep control of your business and keep your overheads to a minimum.

From the simple things such as a barcode system that can speed up the checkout process to powerful administrative tools for reporting and stock control. There are plenty of ways that can help your business achieve its goals without creating more work for you.

The ultimate solution for your business is one that provides helpful assistance and answers without increasing overheads. The solutions that you seek should make your job much easier, and enable you to get tasks done faster and effortlessly.

A professional retail POS software package will allow you to quickly and effectively take control of your business.

Pos software has many benefits and can greatly speed up the process of enter new items into your stock files, set ordering levels, set price levels for product items. Additionally it will also be much easier to change pricing on an item by item or by group sale prices, set item discounts, provide discount loyalty cards and even coupons all controlled from your retail POS software.

If you have a need to continuously update prices when you are running special promotions you have a lot of problems to deal with, typically looking at all of your options, you could either relabel all of the items, or you could just make signs and hope that your staff follow the new pricing, but this is often risky.

Retail POS software is much better since it removes all of the mistakes and guesswork that is involved in a special pricing promotion. By monitoring your sales using pos software full reporting module will give you a better understanding of your customers preferences and allow a better understanding of stock requirements.

One of the biggest areas where businesses are always looking for improvement is in stock control and record keeping. Using a good pos management software for your business can keep track of how many items you are selling, which are most the popular, including breaking down the results by color and size and even determining precisely when your business is getting the most business from customers.

All of this information makes it a lot easier to appropriately stock your store, as well as ensure you have the staff on hand to handle the business. Using a computer system with retail POS software ensures that you have everything you need right at your fingertips.

Overall benefits that retail software will bring are 10 fold.

There is no reason to feel as if your business is controlling you, a good set of business software will help you to regain complete control over your entire business and will be very instrumental in making sure you know exactly what is going on with your business in terms of stock levels, sales levels and even how successful a promotion is immediately.

This control is a vital asset that no retail store should be without and makes absolute sense to any business wishing to succeed that you will absolutely love for your business.

How to locate excess inventory products for profit

How to Locate Excess Inventory Products For Profit

These days, technology is developing at such an extremely rapid pace that it is next to impossible for most people to keep up with all of the latest advancements. Advanced versions of all types of electronic devices are being put out on the market almost as quickly as consumers can purchase the previous models. As a result, many small products and components are becoming considered obsolete because they are being replaced by better, smaller, faster and more efficient models.

Electronics manufacturers are continually working on new models for various devices. However, consumers typically tend to stick with one model for at least a few years (depending, of course, on the particular electronic device) before upgrading or switching to a different model or version. Yet manufacturers cannot afford to keep an inventory of every electronic component for every electronic device they have ever manufactured on hand for their customers. Although that would be in the best interests of their customers, it would simply be far too costly to keep a large enough storage facility to hold these parts.

What happens to the excess inventory?

The excess inventory becomes regarded as surplus electronic parts, and most manufacturers have no interest in keeping them around unnecessarily unless there is still a great demand for them. These are parts for the earlier models and versions of electronic devices that are not currently being manufactured. The excess inventory is typically sold at a surplus electronic parts outlet.

Surplus electronic parts outlets are distributors that specialize in offering electronic parts in large lots or at discounted prices. They sell all types of electronic components for all types of electronic devices.

Manufacturers contact one of these large scale surplus distributors, either by phone or online. A representative visits the manufacturer and does an on-site inventory of the electronic components that are available for sale. Then, an offer is made. If the manufacturer accepts, the distributor arranges for the electronic components to be transported from the manufacturer’s facility to the surplus outlet where the parts are sold. Usually, the surplus electronic parts are sold online as well.

Surplus Electronic Parts Distributors

Surplus electronic parts are electronic parts in large quantities that are offered at discounted rates at distributor outlets. These surplus distributors exist specifically to offer electronic parts in large lots for cheaper prices and to bring hard-to-find or obsolete electronic components to companies that need them.

One of the most experienced and most well-known excess inventory and surplus distributors is Freelance Electronics. The company has been in business since 1986. Located in Southern California, Freelance Electronics has worked with some of the biggest electronic manufacturing companies in the world. Some clients include Motorola, Lockheed Martin, and Raytheon.

Many manufacturers prefer to work with larger, more known companies like Freelance Electronics because they provide the manufacturer with more exposure. When the manufacturer’s excess inventory is available at an electronic component distribution company like Freelance Electronics rather than one of the lesser-known companies the manufacturer knows that its customers will have easy access to any and all necessary electronic parts needed for any of their devices. Inexperienced companies may not be as easy to find or as easy to deal with. It is important to treat customers right so that customer loyalty is kept strong.

Keeping the cash flowing

Keeping the Cash Flowing

IT’S TOUGH OUT THERE in retailing You read the papers, you walk through the shopping malls, and retailers are closing up or being bought out. It’s been a long time since retailing was so tough. Having personally gone through the extreme highs and the lows in retail, I can now comment on why I feel a lot of retailers are going through hard times.

Whether you are a start-up, small business or a multi-national, cash flow is imperative to business survival. Retailers have gone through a stop-start love affair with cash flow management, by putting out fires when they arise, rather than implementing some simple management tools.

To understand how to manage cash flow, you must fully understand what its components are:

Pay accounts slower — Your suppliers that you have good relationships with should give you some leeway with time frames to pay your accounts. Sometimes we chase the discount that is given for early payments on accounts, but should ask ourselves if that discount will make a major impact to the bottom line.

Remember — don’t mistake profit (the money that you make after you have paid for everything) with cash flow (the money that pays the running and growth of the business).

Reduce inventory — Retailers are generally very good at doing this. But rather than slashing prices, have a look at some other alternatives such as: setting open-to-buy budgets; standardising layouts across stores that maximise sales in core departments; reviewing/implementing a replenishment program; concession arrangements with suppliers; and returning stock that has not sold and replacing it with faster moving lines.

Collect accounts receivable — Because most retailers don’t have large accounts outstanding, this really applies to those who have a corporate section of their business. If you are a retailer that has account systems in place, look at ways to reduce the terms of the account from 30 days down to 14 days, or take deposits.

Reduce costs of goods — Internally this would be your processing in which you receive, store, and distribute stock. When dealing with suppliers, organise strong trading terms, which gives you more margin in the backend for rebates, co-op advertising and return-to-supplier programs.

Increase prices — «You’re insane, you can’t increase prices, we’ll get murdered out there.» Yes, retail is competitive, and the majors have pushed everyone into discounting mode to increase sales. But without freaking you out, have a look at the stock on the floor, and determine which items you have that experience high levels of competition (and keep these prices competitive), and review the items which have little or no competition (and increase the prices of these products).

Stopping the leaks

In understanding what makes up cash flow, retailers should put in strategies to ensure that they maximise their cash position at all times. Here are some simple strategies that can be implemented in your retail business.

Measure stock turns — This is the cost of sales times the cost of goods in stock for a 12-month period. So if you had $1 million of total inventory for the year, and sold $1 million at cost, you would have one stock turn a year. The benchmark is to have four stock turns a year, to maintain a healthy cash flow.

Measure wages as a percentage of sales — Setting a benchmark on wages as a percentage of sales is a very basic, but important, strategy. Remember to factor in all of the add-on costs that are associated to wages such as commissions, payroll tax, superannuation, workers compensation, etc. Also when deciding on your wages percentage target, look at what you can afford within your margins, and also adequate floor coverage, so in order not to miss any sales opportunities.

Measure marketing expense as a percentage of sales — It is amazing how many businesses burn cash on useless or over-marketing expenditure. Some of the budgets are plucked out of the air, with no real understanding of how it impacts cash flow. Then when times get tough, retailers rein in advertising, which compounds on the loss of sales. Set yourself a marketing expenditure budget based on a percentage of sales, so that you don’t overspend, or lose traction when business slows down.

Evaluate your rent expenditure — Evaluate your location strategy on a regular basis, if you can rent cheaper premises without hurting the business, then move. We know how hard it is negotiating rents with a major shopping centre, which is why we focus on location strategy rather than negotiating a cheaper rent.

It’s that time of year for girls school shoes

It’s that Time of Year for Girls School Shoes

It’s that time of year, folks.  You know what I’m talking about: back to school.  And as every parent knows, possibly the most crucial part of the season is shoe shopping.  This is especially true if you are looking for girls school shoes.  The fact is that you often find yourself purchasing several pairs of shoes, some that coordinate, some that are dressier, and some that are designed to be athletic and functional.  This can make girls school shoe shopping a time consuming and often tedious event.  This can be especially true during back to school time, when the stores are packed with other shoppers.

Of course, if you are in the market for girls school shoes, there are some great ways to avoid the turmoil of hitting crowded malls and big-box retailers.  One of the best ways to get a great deal on your girls school shoes is to do your shopping online.  Of course, if you are planning on shopping for any shoes online, you are going to want to be certain of the shoe size you are looking for as well as the sizing quirks of any brand you may be considering.  Once you have that information, the sky’s really the limit.  You can scoop up multiple pairs of shoes in minutes, often taking advantage of online-only sales and discounted or even free shipping as well.

There are two great ways to get the most out of your girls school shoe shopping experience, whether you opt to shop online or at a local retail location.  First, shop early for the best selection.  Few things are as disappointing as finding the ideal pair of shoes, only to discover that the size you need is out of stock, or that they are not available in the color you need or want.  Secondly, if you are looking to score the best possible prices, shopping at outlet stores (whether online or off) is the way to go.  Sometimes these types of sellers have a more limited selection, but they generally cannot be beat as far as prices go.

This is also the time of year to score great deals on closeout summer footwear, such as boys sandals.  Most of the bigger shoe stores and department stores are desperately trying to unload their remaining warm-weather inventory.  This means that, in you are looking for boys sandals; it is a real buyers market.  Unfortunately, as this is the time of year that sandal inventory moves fast, so it may be a little difficult to find the style and size of boys sandals that you are looking for. 

If you truly want to get the boys sandals that you really want, the best thing to do is to shop early.  Often, summer shoes such as boys sandals are debuted near the end of the winter before, giving parents ample opportunity to decide which designs meet there needs and to determine which brands offer the best value for their apparel dollar.  Often, the earliest deals are available online.

How to negotiate with a used car salesman in 3 easy steps

How To Negotiate With A Used Car Salesman In 3 Easy Steps

Used car salesmen are champions at negotiation. However, you can beat them at their own game if you know what you’re getting into. By learning how to negotiate with a used car salesman, you increase the chances of getting a really good bargain.

I’m going to teach you a few tricks when it comes to situations like this. After reading this article, you’ll hopefully learn how to negotiate with a used car salesman with utmost confidence and bravado.

1) Know your numbers.

Before making an appointment or before you even step foot inside a used car store, make sure you did your research. Find out just how much used cars are worth. By how many percent does a car’s value depreciate after x number of years?

Arming yourself with the right knowledge will definitely help a lot when trying to negotiate with a used car salesman. This way, he can’t hide anything from you.

2) Be ready to walk away.

As pushy as car salesmen can be, that doesn’t mean you have to seal the deal at once. Ignore the seller when he gets a little too forceful and listen to your own thoughts instead.

When learning how to negotiate with a used car salesman, ask yourself these questions: Do you really like the car? How much will additional repairs cost you? If you can’t really afford what the seller is offering, you have to be prepared to look for other deals. It’s not the end of the world. You’ll find a sweeter deal somewhere else.

3) Ask for extras.

Price is not everything. Even if you can’t negotiate with the car salesman to lower the price any more, you can still get yourself a good deal. Ask for freebies or whatever extra services they’re offering.

Ask for free car wash coupons or a discount on car parts. I’ve even heard of a customer getting free dinner coupons upon buying his car from a well-known secondhand auto shop. This way, the seller may be more willing to give in to your requests.

Now that you know how to negotiate with a used car salesman, you can go out and try your luck at the first secondhand shop in your neighborhood. And if you ever find yourself in a situation where negotiation is needed, don’t be afraid to use your effective negotiation skills to close that bargain!