Should You Switch to An iPad Cloud POS System?

Almost every company now has a website and why not? The Internet is the biggest consumer market in the world and more than 5 million customers are always online shopping for one thing or the other. In fact, most businesses have noted that their online business and retail business runs along the same lines.  However, most companies make a mistake of having their store and website POS as two separate entities.

For small business owners, this is a very good idea as they can use the same POS system for their store and for their website and save money.

The latest iPad POS system are the best as they are the most affordable and very simple to use. However, retailers are yet to be convinced to switch over from traditional POS systems to an iPad-based POS system.

Why Is a Cloud-Based POS System Useful For Retailers?

Small business owners are usually tight on finances and they cannot afford to invest in expensive appliances and utilities. As a result, they might find it difficult to invest in a website POS, a store and a store POS. An iPad POS is an asset as it is multifunctional and economical. Apart from these direct benefits, an iPad POS system also has other benefits for small business owners like:

• Lesser hardware – All iPad POS systems require minimal hardware. That means you can actually run the system with an iPad, a credit card reader, and a barcode reader. As there is very little hardware to invest in, business owners literally save a lot of space and money.
• Hybrid Systems – Traditional systems store information on the local systems and if there were a hardware problem, the entire system would shut down. Store sales would stop completely until the system could be repaired.  However, cloud systems store all their billing information online as these systems are based on internet connectivity. In case there is no internet, the system automatically converts to a traditional hybrid system and stores information on local systems until it can come online again. This is much better as store sales can continue irrespective of connectivity.
• Inventory – Taking inventory is never easy but a cloud-based system simplifies all that says Microsoft. Consider the fact that the POS system is integrated with your website and your real-time store. Now, if anything sells online and in the store, the information is updated immediately and you can order new goods to make up the deficit. This is far better than actually counting items in your store and manually counting items sold on your website. That’s something that will eventually drive you crazy.
• Promotions and Markdown – With a POS system, you can easily tag all related items on your website and your store for promotional deals and markdown sales. In fact, all you have to do is enter the details into the system or the vendor will do the needful. The discounted deals, promotional offers, etc. will automatically appear when the customer checks out items through the iPad POS or through the website shopping cart system.
• Costs – Think about it. If the hardware involved in an iPad POS is minimal, it makes sense that set up costs will be minimal as well. For a small business owner, all they have to invest in is an iPad, barcode reader and a credit card reader. If they already have a credit card reader, and an iPad, you are already saving quite a lot of money. In fact, the actual set up costs for an iPad POS can range anywhere from $500 to $1000 as compared to traditional systems that cost about $3000 upwards.
• Instant Upgrades and Advanced Integration – Cloud based systems are completely online. The iPad just contains an app that the user has to swipe to gain access to the cloud-based POS system. As a result, customer data and information is entirely online, the store owner does not require a local storage system. Data is uploaded instantly due to advanced integration features. The entire system is also updated constantly due to the cloud system. The best part is that business owners do not have to append more money on software updated and upgrades in case they are required.
• Minimal Risk and Ease Of Use – Almost everyone knows how to use an iPad. As a result, training time for employees is minimal. On top of that, there is very little danger of employee-related errors and problems as the system stores data continuously.

In recent years, almost all retailers have realized the importance of faster processing systems to complete billing and sale.

An iPad-based POS system is based on cloud-technology and retailers can complete billing, inventory, ordering, etc. quickly and efficiently through these internet-based systems. However, before making a final decision make sure you weigh all factors and then make an informed decision.