What is POS Inventory System?

 

 

 A pos inventory is technically a system during a mercantile establishment from which you conduct the sale of physical goods. during a store, a POS is where the checkout happens, orders are processed and bills are paid. People often wrongly use the terms a) POS, b) Point of Sale System, c) POS Software and d) Point of Sale Terminal interchangeably. we'll work on explaining all the three concepts clearly first so you'll follow the remainder of this text with greater clarity.

POS System

A POS System is that the overall hardware and software used for billing during a POS Store. it always consists of the subsequent units for displaying the order total, product weight, etc. and other hardware units for scanning product barcodes, a printer for receipts and a register. In today’s times, card readers have also become an integral a part of a POS system.

Here’s what a POS system typically contains:

•  A display unit to point out the billing
  
• A keyboard/touchscreen device to pick products and enter data
  
• Barcode scanner to scan billed objects
  
• A Printer to print the receipt
• Cash register – for storage of money obtained during sales
• A software interface to finish the method
  
• OS Software

 The Software that runs on the pos inventory system is what's usually mentioned because the POS Software. very similar to your laptops that run on Windows or Mac, or your phones that run on Android or iOS, a POS software is the terminal’s OS. In the POS software interface, you'll input file about the products that you simply will sell, tally order costs and transact financially. The POS software helps you to process orders during a mercantile establishment with the assistance of obtainable hardware.

Many large retailers use POS software that has been custom-built for his or her specific needs. As you'll imagine, POS software solutions are as diverse because the needs of the retail industry. Even hotels use a variant of a basic POS software algorithm to simply accept bookings, allot rooms and bill their guests.

 POS Terminal

A POS (Point of Sale) terminal may be a card reading machine or the other device that accepts payments for an order placed on the POS system. These machines may or might not be integrated with the POS Software. You may have noticed that in some stores, the bill is printed and therefore the card swiped on one hardware device. These terminals are usually built into the system as an entire and are integrated with the POS software for seamless order management and faster checkouts. POS terminals usually detect all modes of payments over swipe and chip-based cards- in any case, that’s what they were built to do! Modern POS Terminals also detect NFC/ contactless cards and other payment options like Apple Pay, Google Wallet, Samsung Pay, etc.

What are the advantages of employing a POS for inventory management?

Effective pos inventory management is important for any size business, except for small retailers and restaurant owners, the difference is particularly pronounced. Integrating your inventory management together with your register reduces the prospect of any costly inventory mistakes.

1.     Track inventory

A POS system enables a business owner to trace inventory, whether or not they have one store or three. The POS terminals at each location are tied into the accounting and inventory systems of the business. meaning you do not need to be on-site at each store to ascertain what's on the shelves.

2.     Automate purchase ordering

POS software with built-in inventory management can automate the purchase-ordering process by alerting you when inventory is depleted below a group threshold. More advanced tools do the ordering for you.

3.     Identify trends

An enormous advantage of employing a POS system is that the reporting tools that show you which of them items are moving and which items are languishing. you'll filter this data by week, month and year, which helps you identify sales trends. With this information, you'll adjust your purchase ordering so you've got hot items available when your customers want them.

4.     Expand your inventory

If your inventory management is optimized, it's easier to handle more products, which suggests that you simply can increase the number of SKUs in your inventory. Having more items to sell improves your potential to extend sales.

5.     Improve income 

The last item you would like is inventory sitting on shelves. A inventory point of sale reduces excess inventory situations by tracking what sells and what doesn't. Stocking the proper products – and therefore the correct quantity of them – lowers your costs and boosts your income.