J.D. Associates Retail POS Solutions Blog

In December 2011 we welcomed Peter Scerra to the J.D. Associates’ team as a Retail Systems Consultant. Peter comes to us with more than 20 years of retail experience. He’ll work diligently with retailers researching POS systems to find the right point of sale solutions to run their business.

Now that the dust has settled from the 2011-2012 Holiday Season, many retailers are wondering what's next. How can we improve on last year's results? One important step is taking a good look at the retail point of sale solutions we have in place to help us streamline and optimize sales processes. For that information, retailers look to the retail point of sale solutions industry. A recent survey by VSR found that retailers are still very interested in "getting the most bang for the buck" from their POS systems, but many are wondering how to accomplish that goal, and they have questions.

We work so hard to make our retail businesses a success, it's easy to forget why we started them in the first place. Every now and then, why not give yourself a pat on the back, a reminder of where you've been and where you're going? Especially at the Holidays, we remember to give thanks for our families and the good fortune we've had. Why not thank ourselves too?

Customer loyalty is the ultimate goal for retailers seeking to grow their businesses and become more profitable. The easiest, least expensive sale is a returning customer, but the benefits go beyond repeat business. If you nurture your loyal customers, you can turn them into a valuable part of your sales force as brand advocates. Brand advocates spread the word about your products and services and refer their friends to your store. This is especially important in today's connected world in which recommendations are made every day via text messages, social media, email and customer comments on your website.

A week from tomorrow the 2011 Holiday Season will come to a close, and we will all breathe a collective sigh of relief. Whatever the outcome, we will have a lot of customers to thank and to nurture for future sales. Let's get busy now so that we can reach them all and start developing those relationships a little deeper. Here are five simple things you can start doing now.

We talk a lot about "touch points" in retail sales. None is more important than your employees. Customers seek them out when they have questions, and that transaction alone can make all of the difference in making a sale. How your in-store employees think, speak and act can be your best friend or your worst enemy at the retail point of sale. Here are a few sure-fire ways to get the best out of your employees and maximize sales this Holiday Season.

The Holiday Season is one of the best times to attract new customers into your retail store. Why? Because people like to shop this time of year, and they especially like to shop in attractive, well managed stores. What can you do to improve your odds of attracting more customers? Here are some ideas:

In recent years you've had to up the ante each Holiday Season due to two kinds of competition - online shopping and competing stores in your niche. Every year more and more shopping is done on the Internet, and it's getting harder to attract new customers to your store while maintaining your current customer base. You can do a number of things to reverse that trend, and here are a few relatively inexpensive ideas.

This Holiday Season put your customers to work for you. No really, if you have a good retail point of sale solution, it can tell you a lot about your customers' preferences and buying habits and help you in a variety of ways. Here are some ideas for using that information to drive sales, reduce inventory and make this holiday a happier one for you and your store.

So far this season, things are looking pretty good at the retail point of sale. Black Friday and Cyber Monday carry their own weight, however, and we can’t depend on special events to keep the sales flowing in. One of the best ways to increase sales any time of year is to get to know your customers, both literally and from a marketing perspective.