Fixed Point of Sale for Retail Stores
Mobile Point of Sale & Line Busting App
Dashboard and Analytics Mobile App
Free Inventory Management App
Full Service Inventory Management App
Order Management Solution
House Accounts and Invoicing
Premium Suites Catering & Pre Order Management
Centralized Management Platform
Workforce Empowerment App
Hospitality Point of Sale App
E-Commerce Solution Platform
Table Mangement for Restaurants via Mobile or Tablet
Kitchen Display System
Seamless Sales Across All Channels
Elevating Sports & Entertainment Transactions Effortlessly
Streamlining Retail Transactions for Seamless Shopping
Optimizing Transactions for Vibrant Festival Experiences
Transforming Hospitality & Suite Service Management
Smart Inventory Management with RFID
Building Relationships, Rewarding Loyal Customers
Insights-Driven Decisions for Business Growth
The convenience offered by RFID and Barcode technology within contactless payment frameworks is revolutionizing not just the shopping experience, but also inventory management practices across the retail sector.
Think of a seamless shopping experience where customers walk in, pick up items, and exit without waiting in line. Their accounts are automatically charged through contactless payment. This easiness is getting closer with advanced technologies like RFID and barcodes, which not only streamline the checkout process but also enhance inventory management.
In this blog, we will delve deeper into these technologies to understand their applications, advantages, and why many businesses view RFID as the superior choice for optimizing retail inventory processes.
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a cutting-edge technology that uses radio waves to identify and track objects. It has found widespread application in numerous industries and operates across three main frequencies: low, high, and ultra-high, each tailored for specific uses ranging from inventory management to tracking large assets.
We have seen what is an RFID scanner. It uses electromagnetic fields to identify and track tags attached to objects. The system includes three main components: an RFID reader (or interrogator), an antenna, and RFID tags.
When the reader emits radio waves, the tags respond by transmitting their unique identification numbers. This communication can occur over varying distances, depending on the type of tag used, facilitating real-time tracking and monitoring of inventory.
The main types of RFID tags are:
RFID technology has revolutionized inventory management by offering a variety of powerful applications. Businesses can monitor inventory levels in real-time, cutting down on stockouts and stack overflow. Automated inventory counts do away with manual scanning, saving time, and labor costs. Also, its enhanced security features prevent theft and misplacement. Many have successfully rolled out RFID, demonstrating their effectiveness in improving efficiency and accuracy.
Putting RFID to use helps businesses easily locate specific items within warehouses, zero in on inventory trends, and maintain regulatory compliance. It provides detailed visibility into the supply chain, enabling automated reordering, and streamlined returns. Using these applications, businesses can significantly improve their inventory management processes, resulting in increased efficiency, reduced costs, and better customer experiences.
Furthermore, the integration of RFID with other systems helps retail data analytics and smarter decision-making processes, thus optimizing the overall supply chain operations.
Barcodes have become integral to modern commerce, enabling efficient inventory management, streamlined checkout processes, and better tracking of goods throughout the supply chain. They are visual representations of data, encoded as a series of lines, spaces, and sometimes letters or numbers. These lines can be scanned and read by machines.
A barcode scanner decodes the pattern and translates the information into digital data, which computer systems can use to perform a multitude of tasks. These codes are used in various industries for tracking products, managing inventory, and facilitating transactions at points of sale, making them a crucial component in the efficiency of global trade and logistics.
Barcodes are optical representations of data that consist of parallel lines (1D) or squares (2D). They can be scanned using optical devices such as barcode scanners or smartphones. When scanned, these devices interpret the patterns into readable information about products or items. This system streamlines inventory management and eases the checkout process in stores, making transactions quicker and more efficient.
The most common types of bardines are 1D (one-dimensional) and 2D (two-dimensional).
Popular examples of 1D barcodes include the Universal Product Code (UPC), European Article Number (EAN), Code 128, and Code 39.
They can support up to 7089 characters on a single label and are often used for applications like mobile ticketing. Data Matrix codes and QR codes, which can be scanned by smartphones, are examples of 2D barcodes.
Barcodes have significantly transformed inventory management by enabling automating tracking, improving accuracy, and speeding up processes. They enable real-time updates of stock levels, which helps prevent both overstocking and stockouts. Also, barcodes reduce human error by automating data collection and aid in the tracking of products throughout the supply chain. This results in simplified operations, optimized logistics, and effective coordination within the supply chain.
In the retail sector, barcodes speed up checkout processes and make the handling of returns more efficient. In warehouse settings, they simplify the retrieval of items and the management of storage, notably improving operational efficiency and reducing errors in order fulfillment. The integration of barcodes across inventory management systems underscores their quintessential role in amplifying operational productivity and precision across industries.
Below is a table showing the key differences between RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) and barcodes:
In analyzing RFID vs barcode, both are used to track and identify items, but they operate in distinct ways. RFID utilizes radio waves to communicate between a tag, which contains a microchip and antenna, and a reader. This enables RFID tags to store and retrieve large amounts of data directly. In contrast, barcodes are visual patterns scanned to access information from a separate database.
The choice between RFID and barcodes depends on the application requirements. RFID is ideal for automation and frequent data updates, making it suitable for supply chain management and asset tracking. Barcodes, with their simplicity and lower cost, are better suited for retail, libraries, and ticketing.
RFID technology offers significant advantages over traditional barcodes in inventory management. While barcodes are cost-effective for many businesses, RFID excels in high-volume settings due to its ability to simultaneously scan multiple items, increasing speed and accuracy while reducing labor costs.
Some of the RFID advantages include real-time tracking, better accuracy, faster data collection, enhanced security, increased durability, scalability, and flexibility. These advantages make RFID the right choice for businesses looking to improve their inventory management processes.
Studies show RFID significantly boosts performance metrics. For example, research from Auburn University found that RFID improved inventory accuracy from 65% to 95%, reduced out-of-stocks by 50%, and increased sales by 5%. Similarly, the University of Arkansas reported a reduction in inventory carrying costs by up to 40% and out-of-stocks by 60%, with sales increasing by 18%. These findings illustrate that RFID solutions can have a significant impact on the bottom line of retail businesses.
It is well known that barcodes and RFID play an important role in inventory management. Barcodes offer a cost-effective solution for many businesses, but RFID technology stands out as the superior choice for organizations that operate in high-volume environments and prefer higher operational efficiency.
Using RFID systems, retailers can conduct inventory counts efficiently and accurately without having to perform manual tallies, which leads to a significant reduction in stock discrepancies.
Organizations must carefully evaluate their specific needs and select appropriate technologies to optimize their inventory management strategies and fully capitalize on these advantages.
The Inventory 360, RFID Inventory Tracking System from retailcloud offers distinct advantages in this context, including streamlined catalog management, precise stock control, and efficient label printing. Using this comprehensive software, audit processes can be simplified, discrepancies can be minimized, and accurate stock levels can be maintained easily.
Likewise, businesses utilizing RFID technology to track and manage tools and equipment can significantly enhance precision and operational efficiency, thereby positioning themselves as competitive entities within the ever-evolving landscape.
Ready to incorporate these benefits into your business? Get ready to join hands with retailcloud. Our team of professionals is dedicated to providing goal-driven retail POS software suites and services across various industries, including retail, sports, and entertainment. Let us help you streamline your inventory management with tailored RFID solutions that help you make informed decisions.
The new rules in Major League Baseball aimed at shortening average game times can have several impacts on merchandising and concession sales at stadiums: MLB revealed the pitch clocks have shaved an average of 26 minutes a game to 2 hours and 36 minutes. The following are some of the ways that game day sales have been impacted.
Reduced sales volume: With shorter game times, fans will spend less time in the stadium, which could lead to fewer opportunities for them to purchase merchandise and concessions. This may result in a decrease in overall sales volume.
Shift in spending patterns: As fans adapt to the new game duration, they may alter their spending habits. For example, they might make quicker purchases before the game or during breaks, rather than casually browsing and buying items throughout the game. This could lead to increased sales in specific periods, such as pre-game or between innings.
Focus on efficiency: With a shift in buying habits, stadium operators can increase the efficiency of their merchandising and concession operations with sports and entertainment POS systems. This could include streamlining product offerings or offering item of the day promotions, optimizing staffing, and adopting technology to speed up transactions.
Changes in pricing: Stadiums may adjust their pricing strategies to compensate for the potential decrease in sales volume. This could involve offering discounts or promotions to encourage fans to spend more in a shorter time frame, or even increasing prices to maintain revenue levels.
Increased emphasis on fan experience: To keep fans engaged and spending during shorter games, stadiums may invest more in enhancing the overall fan experience with premium suites in seating. This could include offering unique or limited-edition merchandise, creating innovative food and beverage options, or providing interactive experiences that encourage fans to visit concession stands and merchandise outlets.
Off-stadium sales: Teams and stadiums might also increase their focus on online and off-stadium sales channels to offset potential losses from decreased in-stadium sales. This could involve improving their online stores, offering exclusive online deals, or partnering with local retailers for co-branded merchandise.
Ultimately, the impact of the new rules on merchandising and concession sales at a stadium will depend on how well teams and stadium operators adapt to the changes and implement strategies to maintain or increase sales in the new environment. Improving the fan experience with improved checkout efficiency, allowing fans to return to their seats will be paramount.
To speed up transaction times in merchandising at stadiums and improve the overall fan experience, there are several technologies that can be adopted:
RFID technology: Integrating RFID tags into merchandise and using RFID scanners at the point of sale can expedite the checkout process by instantly updating inventory and allowing for quicker transactions.
Mobile ordering apps: Fans can use their smartphones to pre-order and pay for merchandise, allowing them to skip lines and simply pick up their items at designated locations or have them delivered to their seats.
Self-service kiosks: Equipped with touchscreens and payment processing systems, these kiosks enable fans to quickly place orders and pay for merchandise without waiting in line at traditional counters.
Automated inventory management: Smart inventory systems can help ensure merchandise is always in stock and readily available, reducing wait times for items to be retrieved from storage.
In-seat merchandise: Installing small vending machines or merchandise storage lockers near seating areas can allow fans to quickly purchase items without leaving their seats.
Digital wallets: By creating a digital wallet or a stadium-specific currency, fans can preload money onto their accounts for faster transactions at merchandise stands.
Queue management: Implementing queue management systems, like virtual queuing or line-monitoring apps, can help distribute customers evenly among available service points and reduce wait times. Giving fas access to approximate wait times at different stands can also help them plan their purchasing trips
Augmented reality (AR) shopping: AR can allow fans to virtually try on merchandise and make purchases from their seats, eliminating the need to visit a physical store or stand.
By adopting these technologies, stadiums can create a more efficient merchandising experience for fans, allowing them to spend less time waiting in line and more time enjoying the event.
Determining the Item of the day sales can be complicated, ideally they should create an urgency for fans to buy a specific item without cannibalizing existing sales, you can follow a systematic approach that leverages data and considers various factors. Here’s an algorithm to help you identify the “Item of the Day” for each game:
Collect data: Gather historical sales data for all items in your inventory. Ideally, you should have data for the past few seasons to better understand sales trends and customer preferences. Also, take note of any special events or promotions that might have influenced sales.
Determine item popularity: Calculate the average sales per game for each item. Rank them according to their popularity. This will help you identify the items that are selling well and those that need a boost.
Identify slow-moving items: From the ranked list, identify items that have a low sales volume per game and could benefit from being the “Item of the Day.”
Factor in seasonality and trends: Consider the time of the year, special events, or other trends that might affect item popularity. For example, if your team has a rivalry game coming up, you might want to promote items related to that rivalry.
Create a non-repeating schedule: Once you have identified a pool of items that can be featured as the “Item of the Day,” create a schedule for the 81 home games that ensures no item is repeated.
Set a discount strategy: Determine the discount percentage or pricing strategy for each “Item of the Day.” You might want to offer a higher discount for slow-moving items or lower discounts for more popular items to avoid cannibalizing sales.
Monitor and adjust: Track the sales performance of the “Item of the Day” and compare it with historical sales data. If you notice any negative impact on overall sales, adjust your strategy accordingly.
Quickbooks desktop alternatives are more essential as businesses evolve. While QuickBooks Desktop has long been a trusted tool for accounting, many companies now seek flexible, cloud-based solutions that provide greater accessibility and collaboration options. With the growing trend towards remote work, cloud accounting software enables teams to access financial data securely from anywhere, eliminating the need for local installations and maintenance. Additionally, some businesses find that QuickBooks Desktop lacks industry-specific features or scalability options as they grow, leading them to explore other platforms that offer specialized functionalities.Alternative accounting software can also provide a more budget-friendly option for small businesses or freelancers who need streamlined features without the higher costs. Consequently, there’s a strong demand for QuickBooks Desktop alternatives that offer robust, scalable, and mobile-friendly accounting solutions to meet today’s dynamic business needs. retailcloud’s ZeroPOS is an all in one point of sale software that has been designed with today’s retailers in mind. Conduct and manage all aspects of your business with the one, easy to use system. retailcloud gives you less to worry about and more time to spend growing your business.
-Processor-agnostic Solution with Dual Pricing Capability
-Multiple Support Channels i.e. Phone, Chat and Email
-Intuitive Cashier Experience
-Multiple Tender Options and Tap Pay
-Robust Inventory Management
-Powerful CRM with In-house Loyalty and Gift Cards
-Dynamic Employee Management
-Muli-location Capabilities
-Insightful Reporting
-Mobile App and Clienteling Toolkit
-Cloud-based Back Office with Real-time Updates
ZeroPOS, a cloud based pos system, is a full suite of management tools that streamlines payment processing, inventory management, and other business operations. Integration to QuickBooks Online allows you to manage your finances with ease.
ZeroPOS pushes all data to QuickBooks Online as transactions are processed throughout the day. This allows you to view sales activity in QuickBooks and effectively gauge your business’ performance based on accurate financial reconciliation.
With ZeroPOS you have a full suite of inventory management in one system. From purchase orders, to receiving, selling and adjusting, you can track where your inventory is at all times. Integrated with QuickBooks Online, you can make more informed decisions with your inventory management and increase profits.
Tracking your profits and losses, as well as your invoices and house accounts has never been easier with ZeroPOS and QuickBooks. Streamline your accounting activities and record-keeping!
retailcloud’s integration with QuickBooks Online makes it the ideal cloud POS solution for those who have worked with QuickBooks Desktop POS. As QuickBooks moves to discontinue their POS, retailcloud is proud to offer a turnkey solution that allows merchants to gain sales reporting, simplify inventory management, and accurately track income and expenses: allowing them to take advantage of the accounting and financial management tools in QuickBooks Online.
One of the most difficult aspects of being a retailer is inventory management. It is, however, one of the most crucial aspect. It’s impossible to understand your company’s financial situation unless you have a good understanding of how much your inventory is worth.
Retailers can build an accurate picture of how much their inventory costs them over time by performing regular inventory valuations — and how the value of this asset affects their tax obligations and profitability.
In this post, we will define inventory valuation and the various inventory valuation methods that retailers can use for inventory accounting.
The majority of merchants will have a significant amount of capital invested in their inventory (particularly if they use a Just in Case [JIC] inventory management approach), so knowing the worth of your present assets and how they affect your profitability is critical.
Inventory valuation is an important aspect of inventory accounting that allows you to determine the worth of unsold inventory. Understanding inventory value is crucial when generating end-of-year financial accounts for cash flow and tax purposes, among other things.
In conclusion, inventory valuation is used to determine your total gross profits, which are influenced by your total cost of goods sold (COGS). This will either inflate or deflate your profits, depending on how your inventory is priced and the cost flow assumption you apply.
To properly value your inventory, you must account for all costs associated with acquiring and preparing goods for sale, as well as the purchase price (excluding indirect costs such as marketing or administration). This includes the following:
Understanding the value of your inventory goods will help you make future purchasing decisions and establish whether your present inventory management strategy is effective. To help control changes in the market rate of your inventory, there are a variety of inventory valuation methods available, albeit the most appropriate strategy will depend on the type of your organization
COGS is a term that refers to the cost of goods sold. Depending on which inventory valuation technique your retail business employs, COGS will vary.
The less you can assign to the cost of goods sold, the higher the closing inventory valuation. This is why it’s critical to ensure that you’re appropriately pricing your inventory, otherwise your entire profitability will suffer.
Making the best markdowns/restocking decisions. You need to know how much your inventory costs you in order to price your products appropriately and make a decent profit margin. This has an impact on markdown decisions, especially if you have surplus inventory that needs to be sold before depreciation sets in. You may calculate your business’s minimum profit margin by using the correct inventory valuation method.
It’s crucial to understand the difference between using an inventory valuation method for accounting and using it as an inventory system. For example, in order to employ FIFO for inventory valuation, a company does not have to sell things on a first-in, first-out basis.
Choosing the best inventory valuation method for your retail firm is dependent on a number of criteria, including:
Inventory is one of the most important parts of the jigsaw when it comes to running a business, and it’s crucial that you adopt the correct valuation plan to help your company expand and profit. You may acquire a strong handle on your business’s profitability and be better by employing one of the four inventory valuation methods discussed above. When it comes to making important decisions about your brand’s future, you should be well-informed.
Now that you have set yourself up for success by following all of the recommendations from Day 1 and Day 2, it is onto Day 3. Today you will begin the counting process, one of the most important steps of a successful inventory. Following these simple steps will help you in completing your inventory correctly and efficiently. Make sure you schedule a time to do this when the store is slow or closed – if doing it while closed, it’s best to section off areas as they are being counted – so you are not selling items from the counted inventory.
What to do on Day 3
Using the mInventory app you will need to go to Inventory counts and start a new project. It is best practice to name the project based on the locations you are counting.
Once you have created the project it is time to start scanning. The scanning can be done two ways. The first method is to scan every item individually, this will be the most accurate way to scan as it will make sure you are counting similar items as the correct UPC. The second method would be to scan the item once and then type in the total count for that item. If you do have similar items with different UPC you will need to make sure that you separate them before attempting to scan your inventory with this method.
Once your whole section is counted you will export the project and email it to your manager.
The manager will receive all exported project files which will contain the details of who counted each section and what was counted.
After all projects have been consolidated, the manager will compare these counts to the current quantity on hand using an IBR from the CAS Portal to find any large discrepancies.
These large discrepancies will then need to be recounted to verify that all pieces have been accounted for.
As a best practice, you can randomly select products and recount them – assuming there is no variance, you can be confident of the counts. If you see substantial variances, you may want to determine if the errors were with one counter or section and expand the recounts accordingly. Some stores keep counting until all items have been verified (the same count appears twice). The comfort you have with inventory counts is not decided in the annual count – it’s typically achieved in periodic cycle counts.
Review all the adjustment reports and confirm the count once you are satisfied that you have an accurate count.
In the next blog, we will discuss best practices in analyzing your inventory and maintaining accuracy of your stock levels throughout the year. For more details on Key Performance Indicators you can read our blog post on Retail Math.
It’s that time of the year!
No, I am not talking about New Year’s resolutions – I am talking about getting your inventory done and putting in some best practices to keep your investment in inventory efficient year round.
I will be posting 5 blogs that will get you ready for your annual inventory counts – the first 3 will be to break down the activities you do to prepare for the counts and the last 2 will be on the best practices that you can implement to keep inventory managed year round. You may have already had a chance to read about how to do ABC Cycle Counts by Justin McCollom from our Major Market Team, which discusses the importance of having good inventory management to support your Online Ordering/eCommerce sites. My approach over the next 3 posts is to take you through a more granular list based process. So don’t forget to subscribe to new blog posts over on the right panel.
So let’s get into the tasks – this is really meant to be a checklist that you can share with your team, and since many of you reading this will be retailcloud customers, I will occasionally refer to specific processes within the CAS Portal.
What to do on Day 1
Almost done!
From the back of the house perspective you have accomplished a lot today, and built a foundation of success for your full inventory count.
Start organizing the inventory in the store so that it will be easy to count, have your team prepare a floor map by Department or Category of where the product is and to begin to place it. If your store is not organized and ready to be counted, then this is a good place to start getting it prepped for inventory and gather like items together.
While organizing, take some time and look out for damaged items, these should be inspected and discounted or adjusted out of inventory as needed. Good luck, please share your feedback and don’t forget to subscribe so you can see the next post – if you don’t want to subscribe, you can join us on Facebook or Twitter.
Inventory counting is the process of systematically tracking and verifying the quantities of products or materials on hand within a business. With the start of the new year upon us what better time than now to start thinking about inventory?. Year-end inventories can be a thing of the past if you incorporate cycle counts into your operation. Utilizing the tools we provide at retailcloud you can have more accurate records year-round instead of waiting until the end of the year to do the typical tedious full year-end inventory. With a multitude of backend reporting, innovative and completely free inventory management apps we will help you through the process. Whether it’s running analytics like real time inventory tracking system, nGauge or utilizing retail inventory software, mInventory for all of their inventory needs, we got you covered. Users can use our apps to scan inventory for your cycle counts using the camera on your phone and complete inventory adjustments all from the palm of your hand.
An inventory count, also referred to as a stocktake or physical inventory, is the process of manually verifying and counting the items or materials a business holds in its inventory at a particular point in time. This procedure is carried out to confirm that the actual stock matches the recorded inventory levels and to detect any discrepancies.
Performing an inventory count allows businesses to evaluate their stock levels, identify any problems like overstocking, understocking, or inventory shrinkage, and uncover potential weaknesses in their inventory management system, ultimately helping to improve operational efficiency.
There are four main types of inventory counts, each serving a specific purpose to ensure accurate tracking of stock levels:
Periodic Inventory Count: This method involves counting the entire inventory at regular intervals, such as annually, quarterly, or monthly. It is commonly used by smaller businesses that do not have the resources for continuous tracking. After each count, inventory records are updated based on the physical count.
Perpetual Inventory Count: This system involves continuous tracking of inventory in real-time using technology like barcode scanners or RFID. As goods are sold or received, the inventory count is automatically updated. It provides a more accurate and up-to-date view of stock levels, making it ideal for businesses with high turnover or large inventories.
Cycle Count: A cycle count involves counting a portion of the inventory on a regular basis rather than all items at once. This method allows businesses to keep inventory levels accurate without disrupting operations. The items are counted in cycles, often on a rotating schedule, ensuring that every item is counted periodically throughout the year.
Spot Inventory Count: This is an ad-hoc count where specific items or categories are counted randomly or in response to a particular issue, such as suspected theft or discrepancies in inventory. It is usually a targeted approach used to verify specific parts of inventory rather than a full count.
Each of these methods offers a different approach to inventory management, and businesses choose the type that best suits their needs and resources.
There are many benefits that come along with cycle counting as opposed to doing the full end of the year inventory including:
ABC analysis is an inventory categorization technique, that divides an inventory into three categories. These categories will be cycle counted throughout the year based on the rules set by ABC. Putting your focus on the higher valued items first.
When determining your ABC categorization, it is important to factor in these 5 key pieces of data to give an overall idea of the value of each item. Once you have all these factors determined you will be able to assign them to the ABC categories based on their ranking in each field.
Once you have your ABC analysis completed you will be able to sort your inventory based on these factors and determine which items you need to focus on first. Your A inventory items will be counted more often and can even be added into your warehouse staff’s day to day operations. Once you complete all of your A inventory items you can move on to the B category which should be counted semiannually, and then onto the C category, with the least effect on your business these items can be counted annually. Utilizing your own staff is best practice as they will have a vested interest in the inventory and the accuracy of their counts. They will also be familiar with the many tools retailcloud offers to make these tasks simple.
Streamline your inventory counting with retailcloud’s powerful tools! Using mInventory and nGauge, you can simplify and accelerate your inventory management. With mInventory, manage your inventory directly from your mobile device, making stock counting and adjustments quick and efficient. nGauge, retailcloud’s integrated analytics platform, provides you with real-time insights and actionable data to optimize your inventory management. Don’t let inventory take over your valuable time—use retailcloud’s solutions to gain control, reduce discrepancies, and make smarter, data-driven decisions. Start using mInventory and nguage today and transform the way you handle inventory!
1. Embrace the data – Quality Data Will Replace Big Data , Have your POS data start working to provide you with information on lagging lines and to start matching product to customers more effectively.
2. Embrace the tech – The discussion has been resolved; Consumers do prefer shopping via mobile in store and out of the store. The POS has extended to the customer phone, and it’s easy for SMB to respond.
3. Embrace your online presence – Digital shopping can be a destination, and with the dropping cost of ecommerce, online insight to product and inventory is a must have.
4. Embrace customer engagement – Reset your customer service culture, train associates to provide quality in-store engagement and use your customer preferences and inventory data to provide relevant engagement through social media.
5. Don’t fear the unknown – It’s about a seamless customer journey. In store experiences and loyalty will get more relevant, the brick and mortar experience will become the secret weapon against big online.
6. Don’t fear payment providers – Payment solutions are becoming more competitive and innovative, the entry barriers to provide multiple payment options are being lowered as consumers demand more options.
7. Embrace Retail as a Service – It’s more than just carrying inventory and selling the product – customers expect more and suppliers want to do more. Endless aisle, pop-up stores within stores and customer preference data will all lead to a more curated retail experience for the consumer.
A full annual inventory can seem like a very daunting task as a whole. However, prep planning will break down the steps and make the full process less overwhelming. These steps will increase your count accuracy, reduce the time you spend counting, and lead you to a successful inventory overall.
Who & When In planning for your prep, schedule your inventory day far enough in advance that you give yourself plenty of time to prep. A good practice is to have 30-45 days to prep. It is ideal to schedule your count at a time that will not be busy in your location.
Plan the team that will be doing the prep and counting. When selecting counters, choose seasoned employees as well as those who can provide fresh eyes. A key part of planning your staff, is communicating with them the importance of their role in the overall success of the inventory. Share with your team the tasks they are assigned, and create a centralized location for tracking progress of the prep.
Organize
A majority of your prep work, will be organizing your product. Make a map your that includes dates that each section is expected to be ready to count. Assign members of the team that will prep and count each section. If you have a warehouse, it is best to start there, as your team will be able to maintain the prep work once it is done. If you have freezer/refrigerators or off-site inventory, don’t forget these in your map and timelines.
Identify
Identify what it will take to organize your product for counting day. Locate items without barcodes and decide if you will generate and affix barcodes, or prep them on a manual count sheet. Designate a space or sign that will clearly identify items that will not be counted. Any defective or obsolete product should be disposed off and removed from the count area and written off from the system quantity. It is important that any receivings/transfers are frozen and staged in an area that has been designated to not be counted inventory day.
How will you count
Establish with your team how you will conduct your inventory count. Traditionally, physical counts are done with pen and paper. While this can get the job done, it requires an extra step for someone to enter all the data. Using a scanner app, will make counting your inventory a breeze. The app will sync completed counts with your POS so once you’re done counting, you can easily update your stock levels.
Using an Inventory application or device
Using an inventory application or device enables you to complete your inventory count from a handheld device, sometimes even using your phone & its camera to scan. This saves you the time of working with manual counting sheets. This process will require the use of a fully charged device or maybe a wifi connected phone. When planning your prep, you’ll want to include the set up of your device. It is also a good idea to practice with the device or app prior to count day, and review the steps and best practices with your team.
Food and Drinks for your team
You’ll want to keep your team happy and efficient on inventory day. It is a tedious process, so keeping them on top of their game will be an important part of your planning. Have water, coffee, maybe some pizza or snacks on hand. This will also boost their morale and increase their attention to detail on this important task.
Day of the count
Pre-designate a person that will oversee the flow of the count. Making notations on sections as they are complete is a great way to avoid double counting. Double checking and auditing counts as sections are complete, will be a good idea before updating stock levels. Avoid postponing inventory checks, as the best time to do it, is while everything is fresh in mind.
After the count
Pull up your inventory reports and analyze the data to see what can be done to improve your business. Use this information to identify high risk zones, and adjust standard practices to minimize losses in these areas. A good practice to adopt would be to have frequent cycle counts of areas or items that show significant discrepancies. This will help you in identifying trends within your business.
Smooth and painless inventory days are no accident. Details planned well in advance will help you be prepared and have a more accurate count, and with less stress. Making sure you have the right tools, the right people, and the right plan will help you have a successful day.
If you liked this blog you might be interested in our previous article on this topics as well
It is important that business owners are presented with business tools and hardware which fits their needs. While there are plenty of Android based Point of sale out in the market, there was still void in the space mainly the integration with secured payment integration. PAX’s bold step to fill that void with a suite of smart terminals from 4” screen size to 15” is in that direction.
We are announcing the retailcloud full features Point of sale on PAX E500 terminal. E500 is a sturdy terminal in its own class which can handle your point of sale operations, inventory management, payments and customer engagement in a secured way.
With E500 you can now downsize the Point of sale hardware but still get and advanced solution. PAX E500 comes with 8” touch screen, 3” customer facing screen, Integrated EMV payment terminal, NFC Payments, Integrated 3 inch printer, Extension ports to connect extra peripherals
Here are some other benefits of using retailcloud POS on PAX e500
PAX E500 is All in one terminal with Printer, Tablet, Payment device in single unit. It is built with high quality hardware and have gone through rigorous certifications for the payment industry. PAX E500 comes with high quality & solid performance, equipped with multiple peripherals ports, large paper roll, technologies of auto-brightness setting, magic SR and grease proofing enabling smooth touch of screen.
retailcloud’s Point of sale app on E500 provisioned through the Paxstore is one of the only Full Fledged POS software available for E500. It has
Accepting payment have evolved over a period of time. EMV is gained traction and store owners feel short when they don’t accept Apple Pay, Google Pay, Samsung Pay or Alipay. Pax e500 can accept
The Solution is PCI Certified and compliant to the Payment Standard defined by the industry.
PAX E500 with retailcloud is easy to setup and get going. If you are interested in the program please contact us where we can help you order, setup your terminal and train to modernize your store operations.
3 Must have POS feature for Pet Stores
You own a Pet Store. It may be a specialty pet store, it may be large multi lane and multi location, it may be a straight forward pet shop. Regardless, you have specific needs based on your merchandise and customer expectations. You need a POS solution that understands pet stores and successfully addresses the needs.
I’m not going to discuss the multitude of features that are needed by many or most retail businesses. I want to focus on what makes your POS needs unique.
The POS needs to be able to sell items in decimal places and return inventory levels in decimal places for accurate accountability.
Pet owners and your competing pet stores expect and appreciate creative sale techniques. Your POS solution needs to be able to offer a range of promotions, from buy one get one, to quantity discounts, and Club Pricing. Discounts should have automatic date ranges so when the sale ends, the cashier discount is no longer applied and its not left up to the cashier to decide.
It would be great to have disclaimers automatically print on the customer’s receipt on specific items or categories of items It may be a category – Live Puppies, where you would like the return policy to be very different from when you sell 10 lbs of Kibble. Select a POS system that allows you to print a specific disclaim on specific items. Better yet, add a signature line, so that the owner has proof that the customer understands the policy.
Embrace the unique POS needs of the Pet Store Industry and look for the tools that help you success.
It’s never too late to teach an old dog new tricks 🙂 .
Today’s perfect grocery store point of sale and retail management solution is full-featured, speedy, and reliable. Supermarkets need a POS solution that is seamless, running on grocery POS software that is fully connected to the rest of the store. From a single lane, multi lane, or many locations the POS solution needs to grow with the business and provide the tools for success.
The grocery store needs significantly more than a cash registers that prints receipts and holds cash. The perfect POS system addresses inventory, loyalty, analytics, and accounting. Grocery stores carry tens of thousands of products: fruits and vegetables, meats, breads, and dairy. Keeping track of product volume and sales data will maximize profit and help avoid spoilage, shrink, and stock-outs.
A strong POS system will streamline supermarket operations, cut costs, grow grocer’s profits, and maximize efficiency.
In looking at a POS solution, consider these key features:
Important to consider is the POS provider. Look for software upgrades and enhancements to be included in your monthly POS license fee, this can save you hundreds, if not thousands annually. Understand their merchant support, are they available during your peak hours. Are ou provided with training during your critical early days with the new software. And dont forget track record, are they comfortable with understanding the needs of the grocery store merchant and have the features to help your business thrive.
To begin with – Get to really know your customer!
If you are using a POS management software like retailcloud, you can get an in-depth understanding of your customer preferences, what their ideal product mix is, what their tendencies are, maybe even who their favorite employees are
Having this type of insight will allow you to create a more customer centric approach to your emails, ultimately improving your conversion rates and allowing you to target your product mix more specifically for your customers.
Online retailers gather every bit of customer data, their clicks what they looked at what they bought and what they abandoned, this may overwhelm you if you are not collecting any data today but time is on your side- start with a 3 simple things to get you started
These are just basic steps, if you are already using your retail CRM and would like a more indepth discussion on how to use preference marketing to drive additional sales (especially add-ons) email me at jordan@retailcloud.com.
It is that time of the year, the dreaded full inventory count. This blog lays out 10 steps to simplify the process, increase your accuracy and reduce the amount of time spent on this task
The prep planning is the key to a successful and accurate count, most of the prep work can be done during regular business hours and will both reduce the time you spend counting as well as minimize recounts. Remember, an inaccurate count affects at least two years or stock levels and KPI analysis.
Schedule the date far enough in advance so that all involved have time to prepare for it. Plan for a date/time that is less busy. Ideal timing is right after an inventory clearing sales event before the new merchandise is received into stock.
Best practice tip: Give yourself at least 30 days to plan
Assign a specific role in the process to each person and make sure that they understand the role is fixed. Explain the need for accuracy. Of course, consider your staff for the task, with thought given to checks and balances. If internal theft is a consideration, you cannot depend on an accurate count. You may want to assign personnel to areas which they do not have a direct associate with or other stores. Using an outside service provides an alternative, with the downside is that they can be costly and they do not have the same knowledge of the merchandise and stock locations that your team does.
Best practice tip: Use experienced team members in key roles, who have an understanding of the product and the count plan
A fixture map is a physical layout of the store with all stock locations. Each display, rack, stock location should be assigned a fixture map code that will be used for counting. When doing the physical counts, include the fixture code on the count sheets so you are able to tell which areas are not counts and where the merchandise was, if a recount is needed. The fixture map will also encourage all team members to use the terms in describing the completed work.
This will provide a critical map to a well planned wall to wall inventory count that assures that all product is counted.
Best practice tip: Organize fixtures so that the product is not varied, and the counts can be done systematically. Once counted they should easily be tagged as completed.
Before the count date, visit your inventory to understand the layout of the store and look for obsolete and damaged items. Make sure that the inventory areas are clean and organized; product are in their proper places and not mixed up. Make sure all items have barcodes if applicable. Look for areas that may not have been considered in the fixture map, such as hold/layaway or merchandise that has fallen behind the display. Review all merchandise that needs to be returned to your vendors. Complete RMA’s and ship back or identify these items for the count. Consider products that you may want to markdown prior to the count to reduce the inventory. You can run category and attribute analysis reports and review Stock Days, Turnover and Return on Inventory Investment numbers to identify products that should be targeted for markdowns.
Best practice tip: Organize product on the shelves, removing damaged items and use discounts and promotions to clear obsolete ones.
To get an accurate count, all sales and movement of inventory must cease. Make sure that all store/warehouse transfers are completed and merchandise has been received into the system. New shipments received should be frozen, and seals should not be broken. Review Open Transfers and Adjustments and make sure they are committed or errored out as appropriate.
Best practice tip: If you can’t freeze receiving, then clearly define a physical not to be counted area for items that have not been received into the inventory.
There are a number of methods available and selecting the one that will work best for your business depends both on your type of inventory and how your merchandise and store are laid out.
Manual count sheets are simply forms to enter the product ID (SKU) and quantity. This method is effective for wall to wall counts using count teams, with one person calling out the SKU, price and count and the other recording the data. This allows you to pair an experienced person as the counter with the less experienced employee to record the information and helps less experienced personnel learn the inventory. The downfall is that there is room for mis-recorded SKU’s and it’s a manual process so more time consuming.
Preprint the count sheet from your POS System and use this for recording the count. The biggest problem is that the form will not follow the logical flow of your merchandise layout. To much time can be spend flipping through pages searching for items. If some items are not included, you are more likely to miss them altogether. However, system generated count sheets are useful in narrower spot counts or warehouse locations where the inventory is well organized. Run an inventory balance report and download it to a CSV file so that you can sort it and prepare the count sheets. Your final count sheets can be imported into the system to adjust your inventory balances; this will generate write-off amounts for you to review before you commit the counts.
Using a portable inventory device can be the most efficient way to take inventory when all items are barcoded. You will not need the two person count team and merchandise can be counted quicker. These devices also automate the reconciliation process so that the store can complete the count quicker and be ready to unfreeze the inventory in less time. The primary hurdle is the expense of the devices. There are two options here; you can use Portable Inventory scanners or any Android phone to scan and count the inventory. The Inventory Manager application can be used to load the data into the system automatically or the data from Multiple devices can be combined into one count using mInventory, mobile inventory management software.
Best practice tip: Use digital tools whenever possible, organize counts in smaller groupings so you can easily recount, if necessary.
Designate a responsible person to monitor and control the distribution and return of the count sheets. If you are using electronic counting, designate one person to monitor and coordinate activities. Use the fixture map to describe the counts.
Best practice tip: Have one person in charge, who is managing the process. Everyone follows their plan.
For accuracy, enough time needs to be available to take the count, complete the count audits and recount as needed. If possible, start early in the day, while all employees are fresh and alert.
Although such a major inventory count is disruptive, resist the urge to focus on speed. The primary goal should be accuracy. Speed will come in time, but an inaccurate count does not provide any value to the store
Best practice tip: With proper planning you have plenty of time, however planning will not eliminate errors from exhaustion.
Even your best counter can make mistakes so instead of blindly adjusting inventory based on a single person’s count, steps can be taken. Have two separate teams conduct the count separately and compare the numbers to determine discrepancies and areas to look further into. Recount all items where discrepancies exist.
Best practice tip: Double count all items, and triple the count the discrepancies
Depending on device/method used, determine that all inventory has been included. Investigate discrepancies and recount as needed. Document explanations. Determine the adjustment amounts. Make necessary system adjustments based on the physical count.
Deeper research into discrepancies can always be completed at a later date – in fact several weeks or months later, but the only time a physical count can be accurately verified is at the time all movement is frozen. So take the time, while you have the staff in place and focused on the inventory count to resolve any count discrepancies.
Once all data has been uploaded into retailcloud, review the potential write-offs and recount any items where the variances are outside the acceptable differences. Check storage areas again for overlooked product.
Best practice tip: Get the count rights, resist getting involved in reconciliation or adjustments until later.
A well planned and organized physical count is the basis of determining and analyzing shrinkage. Without a reliable physical count, analysis of the results will be unproductive. It takes a bit of work to initiate the implementation of the physical count. But, in the end, when inventory is accurate and operations are running smoothly, the attention to detail will be well worth it.
Click here to subscribe to my next post on Cycle Counts
Also See 5 WAYS TO MAKE INVENTORY MANAGEMENT EASY
There are over 42,000 liquor stores in the US! This is an industry with very specific and unique requirements and not just any POS will do. When selecting a Point of Sale for Liquor Stores everything begins with Inventory Management, from handling a large number of items, pre-loading catalogs and case management. Inventory visibility and reporting is only rivaled by speed of use and reliability of the point of sale hardware. POS equipment should be sturdy and capable of handling the high activity that’s prevalent in this segment. Tablets while small and compact do not provide the power and reliability for liquor store usage. Centralized reporting and proper cost management is also key as individuals frequently own multiple stores or are in buying groups where they may even want to share certain information about sales and inventory.
These are broad areas and the need of liquor stores are varied, however here is a list of 12 must have things, when looking at point of sale solutions for liquor stores.
Inventory management by Cases & Bulk – Be able to purchase your inventory by the case and easily track and reorder, as you sell by the case, 6 pack or single
Preloaded inventory catalog with items and classifications – This will save time setting up your POS as you have the items already added and ready to sell. Prices should be modifiable upon first ring up to update to your selling prices
Print barcode and shelf labels – Easily print our product labels and shelf labels (including reviews) so that customers have current pricing and adequate information to make informed buying decisions
Upload catalog and price changes from supplier to support automated ordering and PO management – Using the current pricing catalog from your supplier, automatically modify selling prices
Flexible pricing options to allow for single, multi packs and mix and match scenarios – Inventory comes in all shapes and sizes and you need to be able to sell it (and price it) for the various ways that your customers want to make their purchases
Automated VIP and club pricing – Define the discounts for your VIP and club members and automatically apply the discount at the register
Item or transaction discounts by category or quantity – Create the discounts that work best for you with date range flexibility, quantity discounts and automatic discounts applied to categories
Reorder level reporting and purchase order module – Make inventory ordering more accurate and save time with the predictive reorder and purchase order modules
Centralized reporting for multi store multi owner environments – Have the tools to manage and report for the entire enterprise or individual stores, with sales tax and pricing set by location if desired
Employee management with time and attendance, pin or password based logins – Have the tools to manage your employees with role based individual logins and clock in/out from the POS
Remote Management with alerts for monitoring key function access and use by employees – It’s key for owners and managers to know what’s going on in a store while at another location or away from the business. Your POS system should offer mobile access to key analytics and sales data as well as emailed alerts that when events you specify occur (such as cash drawer limited reached or price changes)
Ability to use the credit card processor of your choice – Dont let your POS system provider tie you in to a specific credit card processor. Make sure that you have the ability to chose the provider that you want to work with.
Making sure that your POS System can handle these functions on an easy to learn system that’s scalable as your business grows, is key to selecting the POS that’s right for your liquor store.
Inventory Management is the heart of retailers effort to manage their assets. It can be disastrous if they are not approached properly. A lot of retailers rely on the tools mainly on their point of sale systems or retail management systems. In some cases point of sale do not provide what they wanted or they tend to rely on other third party tools to manage these assets. You can simply rely on a spreadsheet or a very complex enterprise grade systems which gives tons of options ( a lot of time it comes with increased complexity ) or it can be like the tools which retailcloud provides which balances simplicity and usability.
Ultimately it should focus on
Here are 5 ways to make Inventory Management easy
This is one of the key first step to have a clean inventory. This is important not only for management but for visibility & discovery.
Once you have a good organisation of the product, it is always easy to look into your inventory and sort, filter through your product whichever software or tools you may use.
Right tools are important for the job. Inventory management doesn’t just end with adding or updating product , counting product. So it is important to have the right tool for the job. retailcloud provide various tools on POS, Web and mobile which can be chosen for your convenience . For some mobile may be convenient and it may be desktop for others.
A few examples of tools which may help
It is always good to have good business process tied to your retail management. This can be when an inventory is brought into the location, moved between locations or if you have to account for damages. If you do not have any of these processes or not used to any of these don’t worry we have built workflows right into retailcloud tools so that you don’t have to do the heavy lifting.
Example of a few workflow process are
If you have a custom workflow you can achieve this by leveraging our API’s . Check with us how we can help you to improve your inventory management
It is always good to extra set of eyes to know what is going on with your inventory . The smart way to do is through notifications, alerts and approval management process
Retailers that participated in the 2016 NRSS say that employee/internal theft amounted to 35.8 percent of inventory shrink in 2015. The report also found that the average loss of dishonest employee cases dropped from $1,546.83 to $1,233.77
retailcloud provides various alerts for tools for configuring the alerts at various roles and a permission based feature activation.
In addition to this a more Actionable alerts like below will provide better insights to their inventory
Last but not the least measure your inventory or use tools which provide insights about inventory. Any of the above mentioned ways are not relevant if you don’t measure and have a good idea about how you should sell your existing inventory.
retailcloud provide various tools to get you insights. Some of the amazing tools are
Are you a vape shop owner that wants to improve managing and tracking the different brands and juices that you are selling? Are the upcoming regulations keeping you up at night as you wonder how to handled the imposed changes? These are just two of issues facing vape business owners today. Vape store owners should be aware of all the options to help smoothly run their business.
retailcloud, a Windows and Android cloud-based POS solution, is your answer. Why? It has the many features that vape store owners will find that retailcloud has the solutions to help with the issues unique to their industry in order to make their business work. Here are just a few of the essential elements that retailcloud can provide you with:
Vape store merchants should be aware of the essential elements that should be present in their POS solution in order to have a successful business. With retailcloud’s solution, you will be on the right path.
For more information about our POS solution, email us at support@retailcloud.com.
A point of sale system is the lifeline of small business operations. A Point of Sale system used to be a very expensive and serious undertaking for a business to get this sort of system. But today that has changed thanks to advances in technology almost everyone can acquire and set up their POS systems very quickly. Today, small businesses don’t have to depend on the stand alone terminals to handle point of sale transactions. There is software in the market that can turn your computer or tablet into a point of sale terminal and it is easy and most of this software is free. Remember that having a good point of sale system means that you can get better insights into your business, and it can also help you keep track of what your customers prefer which in turn will help you boost sales magnificently. The best POS system should be affordable and easy to use. It should be integrated such that it can do more than just accept payments and process sales.
A good POS system must have an inventory management system or an inventory program. This will help you take a good look at your stock anytime you need it without having to go to the store. It should record how much of the stock is in the store and depending on the sales data; it should be able to estimate the period which that stock will last. Anytime the stock runs low, the point of sales system should alert you that you need to acquire more stock as soon as possible. The inventory management system should be up to date all the time to avoid issues of failure. Remember if an inventory management system fails, there is a risk of your retail business going out of stock without your knowledge. For the small business retailer, the inventory management system is not complicated and it is very easy to keep up with at all times.
Your retail business should always be safe stock wise if you are using a point of sale management system. The inventory program should look at the historical data of sales and use it to predict when a low stock condition might hit your retail business. It should also be able to create orders for replenishment on low stock conditions. Remember the point of sale might not be so complex as to send an order to the supplier directly. However, it will print out an order request for you asking you to order more stock before a particular time.
A retail business is best run by a point of sale management system. Don’t let your business run on the traditional stand-alone terminals. A POS system is a tool that will increase your sales revenue. Also based on the kind of system it is and how integrated the system is, it should be able to help you market the business increasing the number of customers.
Everyday, consumers are constantly on the look-out for products that are new and sometimes old. With this in mind, merchants have to consistently update their inventory. This can be an extremely tedious task, especially if there are products going in and out of the store daily.
Managing inventory can be quite laborious, especially for small business owners as they would have to keep track of their products through maybe excel sheets. This can be quite exhausting since the merchant could be dealing with the inflow and outflow of products all at once. Organization of inventory is of ultimate significance because it helps calculate and keep track of the numerous point of sales that occur in a single day.
Keeping track of inventory for any small business retailer is a large single investment. Inventory management is crucial for small business POS because it helps the user understand which of their products are selling and which are not. With proper inventory management, the operator is allowed to keep their investment in a product at a minimum while providing a large range of options to their customer. Aside from keeping track of what products are selling and which are not, the merchant can also keep an eye out on the current retail trends at their POS. This can definitely aid in strategizing their small business more.
Currently, in order to help inventory management come at an ease for small business merchants, there are inventory softwares available, especially through the cloud. Using cloud inventory management software allows operators to see what is selling through multiple sources, such as in their brick & mortar stores, their web stores and mobile applications. Through this, users are able to manage and analyze their product mix from any location by using a secure software that can only be accessed by themselves!
One of the key aspects of retail cloud POS and inventory programs is to provide small business retailers with customer data that was inputted at the time the POS was established. Its secure inventory management software is able to collect customer data as well as everyday store activities that create an impact at small businesses. After collecting this information, the merchant can determine how he or she can better improve their sales and know what the current retail trend is.
Inventory management programs are critical for POS. If you are still managing inventory manually or through excel sheets, it is time for a new upgrade as times are certainly changing just as the inventory for your business.
Once I opened and received my retailcloud welcome email, I went to the management portal as it recommended to update my default settings. I entered my store information and sales tax rate for the store. I imagine that this will all show up on the POS receipts.
Next, I exported the data from my current system and checked the UPC numbers and noticed that some of the numbers were much smaller than others, in looking further, I realized that the leading zeros were not being exported from QB. I got on retailcloud chat to see if there was a way to get them and they told me not to worry about it as they had a flag to append leading zeros in their solution.
“Already loving the retail made simple concept.”
(more…)
This website uses cookies to improve your experience, analyze our traffic, and personalize our marketing. By continuing to use this website, you consent to the use of cookies.