Why retailers need to integrate their ERP and POS solutions

The Retail POS System

A retail POS system facilitates business and customer transactions in a physical location or online. The system’s hardware and software allow a business to accept payments, calculate taxes, provide receipts, monitor sales, and collect customer data. Many modern systems also offer inventory management and reporting capabilities.

Selecting the right POS system involves doing some homework. Retailers will need to assess a potential POS system’s ability to accommodate a wide range of digital and physical payment mediums and determine if it has extensive computing power. They’ll also need to investigate if the system is customizable for their unique needs, is a user-friendly and digitally secure tool for them and their customers, and above all, is capable of effortlessly integrating with a cloud-based ERP solution.

Understanding the Potential of ERP Solutions

To understand why ERP and POS integration helps transform retail businesses from ordinary to extraordinary, it’s important to first understand what an ERP solution is and what it does.

An ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) solution is the linchpin for every department in an organization, from finance, accounting, and sales to supply chain, inventory, human resources, and customer management. Data from each department is gathered into the ERP solution, providing team members with a centralized database of real-time, company-wide information. With access to native and external business intelligence tools, an ERP solution gives companies the ability to analyze accurate, up-to-the-minute data and use this information to make forecasts and plan for demand.

Designed to integrate seamlessly with third-party applications, an ERP solution can be effortlessly linked to most retail POS systems. So, introducing an ERP solution to your POS system—effectively creating a comprehensive ERP POS solution—gives you the data you need to make decisions, your team members the information they need to do their jobs well, and your customers the positive experience they need to become loyal, returning buyers.

Receive Reporting in Real-Time

Another advantage of integrating ERP and POS systems is real-time reporting—a feature that doesn’t exist with separate systems. Instead, reporting requires manual intervention, which can result in:

• Human error
• Delayed data input
• Dissatisfied customers

Automatically transferring the data between the connected systems removes double-data entry, thus saving time and reducing errors. And real-time reporting can lead to an improved customer experience.

Improving the Customer Experience

Customer satisfaction is the ultimate indicator of success. Satisfied customers become loyal customers, and loyal customers share their experience with other customers.

One method of ensuring customer satisfaction is by providing customers with detailed information throughout the buying process. For example, retailers can inform their customers of item availability. If an item is out of stock, they should be able to say when the item will be available (which may need to include a discussion on the current supply chain disruptions). And if a customer purchases a product that is to be delivered, the retailer must provide a seamless delivery experience, informing the customer when and how it will arrive.

Ultimately, a cloud ERP integration with a POS system provides the retailer with updated, accurate information, which they can share with their customers. As a result, their customers have confidence in the retailer, the retailer’s product, and the retailer’s business.