QuickBooks provides some of the best business software on the market, and their POS systems are unrivaled. Moreover, thanks to QuickBooks’ variety of products, it can be difficult to choose between QuickBooks POS versions. The variety of programs ensures there’s a fit for every business. In order to pick your ideal version, you only need to consider the size of your business and the demands your POS system must meet.
How Many Employees Do You Have?
While QuickBooks makes flexible software that can work with a range of businesses, different QuickBooks POS versions have some features that are only useful for businesses of a certain size. For instance, both Pro and Multi-Store include features to track employee hours. If you work alone, you have no use for that. However, even one or two employees can make the upgrade from Basic worthwhile. QuickBooks POS Pro and Multi-Store track not only employee hours, but also sales commissions, simplifying your job and ensuring a fair pay day for everyone. That pay day is made simpler by QuickBooks POS Pro and Multi-Store, because the programs can send employee time cards directly to your financial software.
Do You Need Help Tracking Vendors, Work Orders, and Shipments?
QuickBooks POS Pro and Multi-Store allow you to handle more work as they are designed for larger businesses. They can handle multiple vendors and help you keep track of your supplies. These programs also help manage work orders, and track shipments. Pro and Multi-Store allow you to follow specific UPC codes and serial numbers. The same is true of outbound shipments. With Pro and Multi-Store, you can ship and track packages directly through your POS software, giving you the information you need to update customers about orders. The same software also allows you to track layaways.
A very small business wouldn’t need many of these tools, however. While they would be excellent milestones for expansion, QuickBooks refuses to make customers pay for software that isn’t needed. Additionally, POS Basic allows you to manage all of your point of sale tasks without the bells and whistles of POS Pro and Multi-Store.
Is Your Business Large Enough to Support a Rewards Program?
Both Pro and Multi-Store offer a rewards program system. This comes in addition to software that allows you to adjust prices and create discounts across departments. You don’t have to be a particularly large business to host a rewards program, as anyone who has ever owned a coffee shop punch card knows. Rewards programs draw in customers and encourage repeat business. This system makes the most sense for businesses that sell products and services customers will need or want again in a short timeframe. This could be anything from a massage to a scented candle. Rewards programs do a lot of advertising with minimal effort and investment on your part. Not only will the customer come in again to earn points, but chances are high the customer will bring a friend or family member during one of their trips. They may bring someone as a treat or stop by incidentally during an errand run with someone else in tow. Rewards cards and tags also act as reminders for customers.
How Many Storefronts Do You Operate?
QuickBooks Multi-Store provides tools specifically designed to help manage multiple stores at once. The program provides various reports from every level of your business, from individual shops to your business as a whole. You can use Multi-Store to track inventory transferred between locations, consolidate data, and more. Naturally, however, these features only help multi-store operations. A small business with a single shop, or a business that only interacts with customers online wouldn’t need any of these tools.
Add On Software
Regardless of the size of your business, you should consider adding on software, such as Intuit Merchant Account. You can buy this program with QuickBooks POS, and the two systems work together to make financing a breeze. It’s easy to send information directly from the point of sale, to your financial software which helps you get ahead on work behind the scenes.
Business demands shift over time, and QuickBooks POS versions provide easy upgrades to allow your software to expand with your business. Appropriate hardware upgrades are also available to help you handle larger demand and complex systems. QuickBooks POS Basic may be the best fit now, Pro next year, and Multi-Store the year after that. Since the software is easy to adapt, you never have to worry about outgrowing the QuickBooks systems you grow to depend on. QuickBooks POS versions take into consideration not only the size of your business, but the number of employees you manage and the number of stores you operate. There are enough features to ease any workload, and enough options to ensure you never pay for more than you need.
