How to choose a point of sale system

Write down the specific business problem the new system has to solve, because an unclear problem makes almost every system look impressive in a demonstration and disappointing in daily use.

Start with what is currently slow, uncertain or difficult to control.

For example:

• Staff calculate prices, discounts or totals manually.

• Orders are written down and entered again later.

• The payment total and recorded sales don't always match.

• Stock differences are discovered after an item has run out.

• It takes too long to understand what was sold during the day.

• More than one person needs to use the same product or customer information.

• Queues form because one step of checkout takes too long.

• Your business is adding another counter, service area, sales channel or location.

Turn each problem into an outcome you can test. "We need better reporting" is vague. "A manager must be able to see sales by product, staff member and payment method before closing" is a specific, measurable and usable requirement.

Don't assume that every manual process needs software. Software is worth paying for where it makes a job you already do faster, more accurate or easier to control.

Map the path from a customer's choice to a completed sale before you compare any products, then compare products against that path. Ask:

1.  Where does the sale begin: at a counter, table, chair, market stall, delivery point, website or several places?

2. How are products or services added: from a screen, by barcode, by weight or as an open amount?

3. Can an order change before payment through modifiers, customisations, add-ons, quantities, discounts, tips or split bills?

4. Where does payment happen, and which payment methods must be recorded or accepted?

5. Does the sale need to create a receipt, kitchen ticket, collection slip or invoice?

6. Which records should change afterwards, such as stock, customer history or daily sales totals?

7. Who needs to review, correct, refund or report on the transaction?

Map the normal sale first. Then add the exceptions that happen often enough to matter: a returned product, an unavailable menu item, a customer changing an order, a declined payment or a staff member correcting a mistake.

Choose for the busiest hour, not the smoothest demo

A system can feel easy when one person processes a perfect sale. What matters is how it performs when several customers arrive, staff change shifts, a product is unavailable or the connection drops.

Consider how many people need to sell at once, how many transactions you process during peak periods, when queues usually form, what information staff need at the counter, and which tasks require a manager’s approval.

Sort every requirement into four groups, so an optional feature can't outweigh one that would stop the system working.

Write requirements as actions rather than broad labels. Instead of "inventory", state whether you need to reduce stock after each sale, count stock from a mobile device, track ingredients, receive purchase orders or move stock between locations, and ask what setup each of those stock functions needs before it works.

Similarly, decide whether barcode scanning would cut enough manual typing at the counter to be worth the scanner. If you take cash, decide how you control it: who holds the float, who counts at the end of the day, and whether you need a cash drawer at a fixed station.

A fixed counter, tableside service, mobile trading, product-heavy retail and multiple checkout points each call for a different setup, so let the physical shape follow the work. A point of sale system combines software, a device and the other equipment or services needed to complete and record a sale.

Check the place the setup has to work in as well as the way you sell. Counter space, heat, moisture, dust, spills, available power, Wi-Fi and mobile coverage, lighting, screen visibility and the risk of drops, knocks or theft all decide whether a format that looks right on paper survives a trading day.

Check the software against the exact tasks on your requirements list instead of counting features. Point of sale software is where staff build the sale and where owners or managers work with the records it creates.

Checkout tasks*

• Can staff find products quickly?

• Does the system handle variants, modifiers, add-ons, customisations, quantities and open amounts correctly?

• Can staff apply discounts or tips with the right permissions?

• Can staff save, move, split or reopen an order?

• Does it accept and record every payment method you use?

• Can staff correct a mistake without losing the transaction history?

Management tasks*

• Can the right people create and update products, prices and categories?

• Can you control staff access and sensitive actions?

• Can you find old transactions and understand what changed?

• Can you see the sales, payment and stock information you need each day?

• Can you back up your data and export it in a usable format?

• Can you add devices, staff or locations without rebuilding the setup?

*Illustrative, not exhaustive. Always map your own requirements to make the best decision.

If you are considering integrations - an integration should remove a specific manual handoff. Ask what information moves, in which direction, how often and what happens when the connection fails. "Integrates with accounting" isn't enough if the connection doesn't transfer the detail your accountant needs.

Learn what POS software does.

Confirm compatibility before you buy any device or accessory, especially when the products come from different suppliers. The hardware and software have to work as one setup. Ask*:

• Which phones, tablets, terminals and operating-system versions are supported?

• Which card machines, scanners, printers, cash drawers or scales are compatible?

• Does every feature work on every supported device?

• How do devices connect: through Wi-Fi, mobile data, Bluetooth, USB or a local network?

• Are special cables, adapters, drivers or subscriptions needed?

• How many devices or accessories can be connected at once?

• How will each device connect, charge and stay secure where you trade?

• Do you need spare paper, cables, chargers or a backup device?

• Who installs and configures the complete setup?

• Who helps when two connected products stop communicating?

*Illustrative, not exhaustive. Always map your own requirements to make the best decision.

For a closer look at terminals, printers, scanners, cash drawers and other equipment, read POS hardware explained.

A point of sale system records the sale. A payment service accepts and processes an electronic payment. These functions may be connected, but they are not automatically the same thing.

Check:

• Which payment methods the setup can accept, and which it can only record.

• Whether the payment amount moves from the point of sale to the card machine automatically.

• Whether an approved payment returns to the correct open sale.

• How cash, card and other payment types appear in reports.

• How refunds, reversals, tips and split payments are handled.

• When electronic funds are paid out, and where payout records can be found.

• How point of sale sales are matched with payment and payout records.

• Which transaction, payout or payment-service fees apply.

If you're comparing payment costs, separate the once-off equipment price, ongoing service fees, transaction fees and payout fees. A low hardware price doesn't describe the full cost of accepting payments.

Compare the cost of a complete working setup over the same period. Add up the cost of a complete working setup over the same period for every option, using twelve months for the starting decision and thirty-six months to point of sale the costs that look small each month and add up over three years. 

Include every cost category:

Upfront costs may include terminals, tablets, card machines, printers, scanners, cash drawers, mounts, routers, installation and data migration.

Fixed ongoing costs may include software plans, device or location fees, support packages, connectivity and equipment rental.

Usage-based costs may include payment processing, payouts, messaging, online orders or other services charged according to activity.

Change costs may include adding staff, registers or locations, replacing hardware, upgrading a plan or paying for another integration.

Exit costs may include cancellation fees, remaining rental commitments, data-export work and replacing equipment that cannot be used with another provider.

Use the same assumptions for every provider. Record whether prices include VAT, which costs are estimates and which functions require a higher plan or separate product.

Price matters, but cost without operational fit is a false saving. A cheaper system can become expensive if staff repeat work, reporting remains unreliable or the business has to replace it soon after setup.

Check:

• Which payment methods the setup can accept, and which it can only record.

• Whether the payment amount moves from the point of sale to the card machine automatically.

• Whether an approved payment returns to the correct open sale.

• How cash, card and other payment types appear in reports.

• How refunds, reversals, tips and split payments are handled.

• When electronic funds are paid out, and where payout records can be found.

• How point of sale sales are matched with payment and payout records.

• Which transaction, payout or payment-service fees apply.

If you're comparing payment costs, separate the once-off equipment price, ongoing service fees, transaction fees and payout fees. A low hardware price doesn't describe the full cost of accepting payments.

A useful trial is a rehearsal, not a demo. Give each provider the same scenarios and let the people who will use the system complete them.

Test the front office and the back office, rather than a fast demonstration sale. Start with the normal work:

• Add or update a product or service, and change a price.

• Create a typical sale with the usual options or quantities.

• Apply a discount or add a tip.

• Accept and record each payment method you use.

• Issue a receipt.

• Create a staff profile and set what that person can reach.

• Close the day, review the sales report and export it.

Then test what goes wrong:

• Process a return and check the sales total, stock and payment record.

• Handle a declined card payment, and an incorrect payment recorded against a sale.

• Split a bill or payment.

• Correct an error on an open or completed sale.

• Disconnect the Wi-Fi or power and see what continues.

• Scan a barcode the system doesn't recognise, and run a printer out of paper.

• Work through a flat battery, a damaged or lost device, and a staff member who needs help mid-sale.

• Have two staff members sell at the same time.

• Look for an old transaction and explain the result.

What you're watching for is whether the system works, whether your staff can learn it, and whether recovery from a common problem is quick or disruptive.

Score every must-have and should-have requirement for each shortlisted option on one scorecard, so an impressive demonstration can't overshadow a requirement the system doesn't meet. Use a simple scale:

Weight each requirement by how much it matters to you. A must-have that scores zero should disqualify the option whatever its total. Add a cost column so value and capability sit side by side.

Record the evidence for each score, so a claim traces back to the test you ran or the written confirmation you were given.

Seven checks decide whether a system that works elsewhere works in your shop: load shedding cover, connectivity, local payment methods, Rand pricing and VAT, the support you can reach, data protection and the contract terms. Two of them are legal rather than commercial.

If you're registered with CIPC you keep the sales records your accountant and SARS will ask for, so check what the system exports and how long it holds it, and if you keep customer details you carry obligations under the Protection of Personal Information Act.

The seven mistakes to avoid are starting with the feature list, choosing on the upfront price, testing only the perfect sale, buying for an imagined future, assuming similar labels mean similar functions, ignoring the work of switching and letting one person choose for everyone.