Are you making the most of your point-of-sale system?

Finding ways to make your business stand out in a crowded market is not only difficult, it's time consuming. But savvy business owners are taking advantage of the growing number of tools and data sets available to them, starting with one unexpected place: their point-of-sale (POS) systems.

At its most basic a POS system is a terminal that processes payments and records sales, and allows businesses to accept different payment methods, like credit cards, gift cards and digital payments. That variety gives business owners information, and that information helps them find patterns and insights that can inform strategic decisions.

Whether tracking inventory, launching marketing campaigns, or guiding operating hours, three business owners share how they use their POS systems for a lot more than transactions.

An integrated marketing solution

When Jonathan Peregrino was preparing to open JP Makes and Bakes, a Filipino eatery in Detroit, like many small business owners he initially eyed his POS system simply as a way to accept payments. But Peregrino worked more than a decade in sales and marketing before launching the eatery. As he puts it, “I already knew the business side of things; then I had to learn the restaurant side of things.”

He knew a more advanced POS system could inform his decision-making, and so he upgraded his to unlock an additional power to help boost his business: executing marketing campaigns to attract customers. “Small businesses need systems we can fully integrate to transform multiple aspects of the customer retail experience,” he says.

Peregrino launched a loyalty program through the system that helps build customer relationships with birthday rewards and free sweet treats at designated point tiers. Those small—but meaningful—gestures have gone a long way with building a relationship with the community in a short time. “We aren’t a traditional Filipino eatery; our food is authentic to me, so it’s Filipino food with a twist. It’s been humbling to have so much support already from the community.”

A streamlined, all-in-one platform

Modern POS systems help tackle far more than in-store transactions. They’ve become do-it-all solutions that business owners like Katherine Lewin, owner of Big Night in New York City, rely on for everything from inventory management to customer service.

Even though her business originally opened as a brick-and-mortar store in Brooklyn, she invested out of the gate in a POS that could offer in-store sales and e-commerce transactions—and support inventory management across the board. By the time she was ready to offer online sales, she was already equipped. “It's great that it's one system for everything and can track the customer journey along the whole system,” she says. “My POS system rules my life,” she adds, laughing.

Data that empowers strategic business decisions

Gone are the days of the manual cash register at Miss Debbie’s Sweet Delights, which launched nearly 15 years ago just south of Miami and gained a following for its unique Caribbean-inspired key lime pies.

Instead, Debra Allen, affectionately known as Miss Debbie in her South Florida community, values her modern POS system for the data she can glean from it. Its insights are so valuable that she was able to give herself one gift every small business owner needs: the gift of time. “I used to be open seven days a week, and then I looked at the information the POS was showing me. Based on that, I was able to close on Sundays and give myself that day to recover and prepare for the week ahead.”

Her POS solution provides the right insights about her customers and their shopping behaviors, and she’s constantly reviewing week-over-week, month-over-month and year-over-year reports to make decisions concerning her business. “The reports even tell me when I need to hire part-time help to get through the busy seasons,” she says.