POS Systems for Small Business: What You Actually Need
A POS system does more than take payments. Here’s what to know before you pick one.
POS systems for small business range from a card reader on a counter to a full register that tracks every item you sell. The right one depends on what you’re selling and how much you need to keep track of.
If you’re running a store on a cash register and a separate card terminal, here’s what a POS system would actually change.
What is a POS system?
POS stands for point of sale — the place where the sale happens. A POS system is the hardware and software that runs it: the screen your staff rings the sale on, the card reader the customer pays with, the receipt printer, and the software behind all of it.
The difference from a cash register is what happens after the sale. A register opens a drawer and adds up a total. A POS system records what sold, subtracts it from your inventory, and puts it in a report you can look at later.
The difference from a credit card terminal is scope. A terminal takes the payment and nothing else. A POS system takes the payment and runs the rest of the counter.
Plenty of businesses only need the terminal. Whether you need the whole system comes down to the next two questions.
What does a POS system cost?
It depends on a few things, and it’s worth knowing what moves the number before anyone quotes you.
How many registers. One counter costs less to set up than four. This is usually the biggest factor.
What hardware you need. A screen, a card reader, a receipt printer, a cash drawer, a barcode scanner. Some businesses need all of it, some need two pieces.
What the software has to do. Ringing sales is the baseline. Inventory tracking, employee logins, and reporting add to it.
Whether it’s bought or included. Some setups charge for the equipment up front. Others fold it into the processing.
Tell us what you sell and how many registers you’re running and we’ll quote it.
What kind of POS system does your business need?
The answer usually comes down to how many items you sell and how closely you need to track them.
A POS system for a convenience store is doing the most work. Hundreds of items, constant restocking, lottery, and age-restricted products that need to prompt for ID. Inventory tracking earns its keep here — knowing what sold without counting the shelf is the whole point.
A POS system for a liquor store has the same inventory problem plus compliance. Age verification at the register, and enough reporting to know which bottles move and which sit.
A restaurant needs the order to reach the kitchen, tabs that stay open, and tips handled at the end of the night. That’s a different setup than retail.
A smaller shop — a smoke shop, a counter-service spot, a business with a short item list — often doesn’t need the full system. A card terminal covers it, and it’s less to learn and less to maintain.
If you’re not sure which side you fall on, that’s a normal question and worth asking before you buy anything.
How does FPE handle POS systems?
FPE sells POS systems and provides the processing behind them — one company for the equipment and the transactions.
We’ve been doing this since 1997, a family owned business in Burbank, California, and we work with businesses across the country. A lot of them are the same convenience stores, liquor stores, markets, and restaurants we already handle ATMs and card terminals for.
Hablamos español — call and speak with someone in either language.
Tell us about your business and we’ll tell you what you need — whether that’s a full POS system or just a terminal.