The liquor store industry is a profitable business to be in, however, the success of a liquor store can vary. Some storefront locations seem to boom immediately while others have to close their doors within a matter of months. Let’s compare two stores. They are offering the same products, have equally great locations, and yet one is thriving while the other is on its way to closing the doors. So where do these liquor stores differ? The POS system.
Store A
Store A has not had a system upgraded in over a decade. While many business owners have the motto “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, it cannot be applied to your sales terminal. While your point-of-sales system might be running the same way you’ve always known it to operate, it doesn’t mean that it is operating at its highest performance level.
Businesses like Store A might not realize it, but not upgrading an older system they are essentially guaranteeing the system will perform slower and slower. Once POS companies stop making a certain POS model they tend to stop testing the update’s integration with older models. As a result, your device will begin to slow down. Without proper updates, it can not handle the data needed to support the upgrades.
Now you might be thinking, slower speed can happen on any device, and paperwork just takes time, and that is true, but consider these scenarios.
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Store A is the middle of a busy day when suddenly the device completely freezes. The employee at the register tries a few tricks but eventually has to unplug the device to restart it. Now, Store A isn’t too concerned with this because it only happens once and a while. But what they fail to consider is the customer experience. While Store A’s employee is trying to get the system to work again the customer is left waiting and building in frustration.
Or consider this, Store A’s slower system does not have the capability to help them refine their buying process. Each month Store A’s owner has to go through dozens of paper invoices to figure out what the store needs. While this is a process that has worked for many owners, it is no longer efficient for the industry. The hours of time spent merely trying to figure out what the store has to buy could be used to properly analyze customer buying habits to boost store profits and customer satisfaction.
In both of these situations, what some merchants fail to sometimes remember is that their customers are left waiting. Consumers today, no matter the industry, are looking for instant gratification. If checking out takes a little too long or products are never in stock, they could write off your store as difficult and avoid your business in the future.
Store B
Store B reviews their POS every few years to ensure that their system is meeting their business needs. As a result, they have been able to integrate new devices and protocols into their system. This has increased the efficiency of their day-to-day operations. The employees have been able to streamline store discounts and promotions all in one place. Check-out time has also been able to decrease because when there is an issue at the register, like a barcode not scanning. Their system has the capability to pull up the product in other ways to ensure that transactions are able to run as smoothly as possible.
With day-to-day operations running so smoothly Store B has been able to integrate new features into their business. Not only have they been able to create promotions around their best-selling products, but they have had the time to invest in an eCommerce site.
With an updated system Store B has been able to increase the efficiency in their store and customer satisfaction. They have also been able to expand their reach with advertisements to possible customers in their area. Strong customer service and new business practices can only improve a business’s bottom line.
The Solution
All of Store B’s innovations are made possible with the joint power of CobaltConnect and Clover. The two combined make the perfect POS system. Merchants can keep active track of their transactions and allows them to easily identify where their business could make improvements. Imagine how much time you can save when you can digitize your purchase orders and accept stock with just a few clicks.
Finding the right system for your liquor store can be challenging. But you are not doing your business any favors by holding onto an old system because it is familiar. If it has been a few years since you have upgraded, the time had come. Reach out to a member of the Cobalt Team. We are more than prepared to help you find the register system that is customized to your business needs.
