What Is A Retail Management System?
A Retail Management System, (RMS), is a sophisticated software solution designed to streamline and automate various aspects of retail operations. It acts as the nerve center of a retail business, seamlessly integrating and managing critical functions such as sales forecasting and analytics, reporting, inventory management, sales processing, customer relationship management, and financial tracking.
Although many of its functions often overlap those of enterprise resource planning (ERP) and customer relationship management (CRM) tools, Retail Management Software is tailor-made for retailers.
In this article, we will take a look at the 5 essential features you should look for in a retail management system.
5 Essential Features Of A Retail Management System
1. Omnichannel Integration
Your retail management software should feature a unified e-commerce and point-of-sale (POS) interface. This is essential for a streamlined checkout process in-store and reduced abandoned carts online.
If customers choose to shop in-store, your staff can help them checkout soon and offer personalized rewards during checkout. In addition, a multichannel shopping experience allows customers to pick up from where they left off.
Some of the fulfillment options include:
● Picking up the products by the curbside.
● Having them delivered home.
● Browsing and paying for products online and picking them up at the store.
● Experiencing products firsthand at the store and purchasing them online later on.
This means that customers can start their shopping journey on one device, such as a laptop, and then switch to another device, such as a mobile phone or tablet to finish their shopping.
This makes the shopping experience more convenient and efficient, and with the advent of mobile technology, shoppers no longer have to leave the comfort of their own homes to purchase the items they need. Instead, they can simply go online, browse through their selection of products, and make their purchases with ease.
Priority’s Retail Management Software integrates with multiple POS terminals and commerce channels to provide an omnichannel experience both online and offline. By allowing customers to shop where and how they want, you will create a frictionless shopping experience that boosts sales and revenue figures.
2. Offline access for business continuity
According to a Forbes research study, 83% of risk managers have updated their business continuity plans in the past year. The study lists several potential threats to business continuity ranging from financial crises to disruptions to the connected world.
A business continuity plan is essential to mitigate potential risks, one of which is downtime in sales due to electricity outages or disruption to internet service. Carrying out business as usual during such times is essential to keep sales revenue flowing.
By enabling offline mode in your retail software capabilities, you can ensure that sales are not lost due to connectivity issues.
With offline payment processing, you can still accept payments and process transactions without having to worry about losing out on sales. In addition, disconnected payment processing is a great way to ensure that your business is able to handle any kind of payment, even if your internet connection is down. Once connectivity is restored, the system automatically syncs all pending transactions with their respective online databases.
Moreover, providing offline access strengthens inventory management functionalities by ensuring accurate stock counts regardless of connectivity status. Employees can manage inventory-related tasks such as receiving new shipments or conducting physical stock checks even during periods of limited internet availability.
Priority’s Retail Management Software works flawlessly in both connected and disconnected modes. Once connected to power/internet, all the data is synced to the centralized GUI-driven, cloud-based Head Office management console. The unified database is constantly updated, even during temporary disruptions. As a result, your sales counter or eCommerce checkout page can continuously process payments, leading to enhanced profits.
3. Point-of-Sale (POS) Integration
58% of consumers revealed that past customer service influenced their decision to purchase in the future. Delays during checkout, waiting in line, and billing errors contribute to customer dissatisfaction. In other words, ensuring a seamless shopping experience at retail stores is essential.
When retailers expand their business and witness a growth in the number of customers and footfalls, the need for additional POS terminals increases, this is especially true during holiday seasons and festivities, when shoppers often swarm stores, leading to congestion at billing counters. If customers are forced to wait too long, chances are they will abandon the cart and leave before checkout.
This can be a major problem for businesses, as it not only results in lost sales, but also creates a negative customer experience that can lead to decreased customer loyalty. To combat this, businesses should strive to make the checkout process as efficient and painless as possible to improve the overall customer experience.
Another advantage provided by comprehensive point-of-sale features within your RMS lies in streamlining payment processing at checkout while simultaneously enhancing customer service experiences.
For instance, integration with various payment gateways enables acceptance of multiple payment methods such as cash, credit cards, contactless payments, along with loyalty programs for seamless transaction handling. Moreover, advanced CRM functionality built into modern POS systems allows for more personalized interactions between staff members and customers based on their shopping history – this ultimately fosters stronger relationships leading to increased repeat business over time
Priority Retail’s unified commerce solution has a modular structure that helps you add POS terminals at will. There will be no sales downtime, and it enables your staff to attend to a large number of customers simultaneously. In addition to traditional POS solutions, Priority also offers self-service kiosks, thanks to which customers can check out quickly. This eliminates overcrowding, reduces labor costs, and improves your revenue.
4. Sales Forecasting and Analytics
Your retail management software should be equipped with a robust demand planning & inventory forecasting tool. Demand planning helps you forecast future customer demand and manage your inventory and production accordingly. This allows you to prepare for your long-term needs accurately.
This is a critical issue for businesses, as it can lead to a decrease in profits and customer satisfaction. Efficient inventory management functionality reduces stockouts which leads to improved customer satisfaction while minimizing storage costs and markdowns due to unsold items.
Important sales forecasting and analytics features include:
● Analyzing historical data.
● Using machine learning and predictive analysis to make forecasts regarding demand.
● Gain insight into market trends and drive bottom-line value.
● Take both risks and opportunities into consideration.
An inventory forecasting tool helps you with the following:
● When reorders may occur.
● How to avoid overstocking.
● How to stabilize your supply chain process.
● Stay on top of your inventory management.
● Easier management of seasonal stock levels.
With these capabilities and clear metrics in hand, you can efficiently liaise with vendors and suppliers to ensure seamless stock replenishment. You can boost your revenues by ensuring that no order is delayed or rejected due to the non-availability of stock and that excess products do not remain in the inventory when there is no demand.
5. Customer loyalty management
82% of companies interviewed in a survey said that retaining existing customers is cheaper than finding new ones. In addition, loyal customers are likely to spend ten times more than their first purchase.
Most importantly, reducing your churn rate by even 5% can enhance your profitability by 25 to 125%. These figures prove that retaining high-value customers with loyalty programs that appeal to them is essential. The trick is to find loyalty and reward programs personalized to each customer.
To do this, businesses must have a thorough understanding of their customer base. This means collecting data on customer preferences, customer behavior, demographics, and buying habits. With this information, businesses can create loyalty programs that offer rewards that are tailored to each customer’s
Priority Retail’s customer loyalty platform helps you personalize loyalty programs, assign points, and seamlessly redeem gift cards, even during your store’s most crowded moments. Its sophisticated promotions and gift card management features ensure that your customers feel rewarded for continuing to do business with you. The results are reduced churn rate, increased customer spending, and enhanced profitability.
Choose a retail management software that centers revenue generation.
Retail management software is a specialized tool to help retailers manage their sales and inventory and process payments. Although some of its features overlap those of ERP and CRM, it is more targeted toward the daily operations of a retail business. It prioritizes a multichannel shopping experience and ensures business continuity regardless of internet connectivity or electricity availability.
