Since the 70’s point of sale software has been used by retail companies both large and small, yet some people still haven’t heard of it. By definition Point of sale software is the software located on tills and checkouts, hence “point of sale”. You’d be forgiven for never noticing the till as many are tucked away behind plastic screens and even people who work on a checkout can take the software for granted. Shopping would be a very different experience without point of sale software, here’s how it developed to become a staple ingredient of the retail supply chain
How Did Point of Sale Software Begin
The first tills that used a basic form of point of sale software date back to the 1970’s and the advent of the microprocessor. It was actually first used by McDonalds fast food restaurants and the simple till was button driven, one button for a burger, pressed twice equals two burgers and so on. New levels of accuracy where achieved by this new software, albeit in a primitive form compared to today’s standards. Cafes and restaurants took advantage of Apples early POS systems and Atari brought a touch screen POS solution to the market place. Microsoft became an increasingly large force in the technology market, and soon became the point of sale software home. The main reason for Windows popularity as a point of sale operating system was its ability to be supported remotely.
The Reasons for Point of Sale Software
The benefits of point of sale software can be measured in both more accurate accounts data and stock information. Cashing up and inputting was done completely by human control before the advent of POS software in the 1970’s. Mistakes and discrepancies stemming from human error where common place.Accounts where further disrupted if the till roll went missing or if the till fell on the floor, spilling its contents. With more discounted offers being tried out and stock returns policies changing a stable system needed putting in place. The solution came in the form of point of sale software. Utilizing barcode scanning and data processing the software brought new levels of accuracy.Each transaction could be looked at in detail and even matched against the till operator.Security was also improved as individual transactions could be scrutinised and cashiers had their own id numbers. In this economic situation a companies need to be 100% efficient with the accounts is a must.
Modern point of sale software is saving companies millions a year by bringing a clear solution to previous problems.