If you’re in the market for a point of sale (POS) solution for your liquor store, finding a system that’s specific to your industry is key.
You know that package stores have specific needs — and a customized POS system will set you up for success and help you reach your goals.
So, how do you know if the solution you’re considering is right for liquor stores? We’re going to share the four must-have liquor POS features you’ll need to run your small business. Make sure the provider you’re considering can deliver!
Liquor stores have an extremely large number of items in inventory at any given time, which can make onboarding to a new solution a headache. First, ask the provider you’re speaking with if they help you import and set up your inventory. (If you work with Bottle POS, we have more than 20,000 common liquor products in our centralized database — which we import for you!)
Next, using a solution that can help you make important decisions about your inventory will make your life so much easier. Your software should be able to recognize when stock is low and how much product should be reordered.
Then, when products are delivered to your store, your solution should automatically import the invoice from your vendor or supplier. This saves your team hours of manual data entry every week. (Bottle POS grades all of your products based on their selling patterns, and the software knows exactly how much to order and when thanks to this algorithm.)
At the end of the day, your POS software should make inventory a breeze — not difficult to manage.
Built-in dual pricing, formerly known as cash discounting makes it easy for liquor store owners to transfer credit card processing fees to consumers. When making a purchase, customers will receive a discount off their purchase if they choose to pay with cash.
If they choose to pay with a credit card, however, they will notice a small fee added to their transaction total. The customer absorbs the cost instead of your business, meaning less fees toward your bottom line.
This feature is extremely common in the liquor industry, so be sure to take advantage of it!
While customer loyalty is great for any retailer, it has proven extremely effective for liquor stores.
Make sure your point of sale solution comes equipped with a loyalty program to collect customers’ information and reward them points for their purchases. A program like this also makes marketing easier, since you’re collecting customer information and storing their purchase history on your software. Many POS providers will charge extra for a loyalty program integration, so confirm that this feature is included.
Bottle POS customers enjoy a baked-in loyalty program, and customers can enter their phone numbers on the customer display at checkout. This makes it easy for customers to monitor their progress toward rewards, and it keeps them coming back for more.
Last, but certainly not least, make sure your POS solution can support online sales, as well as pickup and delivery.
Many liquor store owners are offering these services now, so make sure you’re not behind your competition. While it may sound like a lot to manage, the right software will make it easy — and you’ll notice the boost in profits when you start reaching customers you never would have appealed to before.
Bottle POS includes a free e-commerce webstore set up by our team. This makes it easy to manage online orders and navigate whether a driver is needed or a customer will be stopping in for pickup.
These are the features your point of sale system absolutely needs to set your liquor store up for success. Make sure you’re not missing out on an industry-specific benefit that will save you time and money!
If you want to learn more about Bottle POS and its many features designed for package stores, set up a live software demo with our team. And if you’re still in the mood for research, download our free resource: The Guide to Liquor Inventory Management.