How to Choose an Affordable Point of Sale System

As a new business owner there’s one question you’ll have to answer: How much do you want to spend on your point of sale system?

The cost will likely be determined by the size of your business and the features you need to keep it running smoothly.

Cloud POS VS Legacy Systems

Most businesses are better off spending their money on a cloud-based software solution rather than a legacy system, which can cost several thousand dollars to purchase and maintain. Most POS companies today offer software as a service (SaaS) solutions at prices that range from very cheap to a few hundred dollars a month.

Budgeting for a POS

Your budget is precious. Most point of sale providers will have scalable packages (or bundles) that will accurately match the needs of your business with the budget you’re willing to spend on this very important investment. But they’ll always try to upsell you. Sometimes these upsells can be very helpful tools that will make your life easier and save you time and money, sometimes the only benefit to the upsell is in the provider’s pocket.

Be Smart

Be sure to consider both the upfront cost of your POS and the monthly costs of point of sale software and services, and beware of hidden fees and contracts.

Be Informed

Don’t fall victim to point of sale loan sharks. Companies that dangle “free” point of sale offers in front of potential customers are often looking to trap you into a contract with a payments company that will charge you heavy interest.

Be Selective

Well known POS providers make it easy to sign up with them, but once you’re in... things get complicated. There are fees, contracts and limitations you never heard about up front.

How to Evaluate Point of Sale Cost

Once you’ve decided on a few POS vendors, evaluate the prices of your top choices based on the following:

Hardware Costs

Do they let you use your existing hardware? Or do they try to lock you into using theirs? The best POS providers are hardware agnostic, meaning they’ll let you work on any device you want as long as it can handle their software.

Most companies should be able to work with:

- Star Micronics, Bixolon and Epson printers

- Any touch screens on Windows XP or above

- iPad or Android tablets and smartphones

Reputable systems on the market should be able to work with your current hardware, so if you have already invested thousands of dollars in your previous setup, you’ll only need to purchase the software license and you’re good to go.

If you do need hardware, be sure you can buy it outright and that you’re not renting and locked into a one-sided contract. If you can’t afford to buy it outright, check to see if the provider has financing available.

Software Fees

Find out the monthly cost of using the software and if it applies to the number of users, devices, locations, etc. and what kind of customer support is included.

Payment Processing

What does it cost you to make a sale? Be sure to ask your potential point of sale providers exactly that.

Support

Does the price of your point of sale include 24/7 support? You should have a team behind you every step of the way, not just at the beginning of your point of sale implementation but throughout the lifetime of your system.

Contact Epos Now for a free 15-minute demo.