8 Features to Look for in Your Convenience Store POS

Are you a convenience store owner looking to set yourself up for success?

You may not realize it, but having the right point of sale (POS) system in place can make all the difference when it comes to running a convenience store business.

POS systems aren’t just about taking payments anymore; today’s modern convenience store POS systems offer features that enable faster and more accurate transactions, as well as better inventory management and customer service capabilities.

Which features should you look for? From inventory management to loyalty program integration, these POS features can help you grow sales in your convenience store and make your operations more efficient.

What’s the Best POS Software for C-Stores?

No matter the size of your business, you need an efficient way to manage finances and keep track of your sales.

There are a multitude of advantages that businesses can enjoy by utilizing point of sale (POS) software, from improved customer service and simplified stock management to optimized recordkeeping and streamlined business operations. Some of the features you should look for include:

• Inventory management
• Loyalty programs
• Tobacco scan data integration
• Data analytics
• Financial reporting
• Employee management
• Security

Ultimately, your POS system should be a tool to make your c-store business easier to run, more profitable, and more secure.

1. Easier Inventory Management Creating efficient inventory management procedures requires accurate pricing and sales data, and this is an important feature for many businesses. In fact, nearly 80% of buyers of POS platforms cite inventory management as their main motivator.Inventory management tools for convenience stores and gas stations can be integrated with a point-of-sale system.

   Retail Inventory

   Inventory management allows you to maintain stock levels and eliminate out-of-stock items. Your POS system helps you do this through real-time sales data tracking and automatic inventory tracking.

   This functionality empowers store proprietors to assess which items can be safely discontinued without impeding business operations, which products are best sellers, seasonality trends, and more.

   Fuel Inventory

   The process of managing fuel inventory is complex and regulated by various federal and state reporting standards.

   To track sales, taxes, and surcharges, fuel inventory management systems are integrated in gas station pos systems. The back-of-house management software can then be updated with this information. Automated ordering systems can also use sales data to track fuel sales and plan vendor deliveries to best fulfill fuel demand.

   Lottery Inventory

   Gas stations and convenience stores are responsible for 50% of total lottery ticket sales in the United States.

   This presents a lucrative opportunity for businesses looking to expand revenue. However, the sale of lottery tickets also poses a potential risk of financial loss and requires meticulous management and surveillance. By incorporating a lottery ticket management software solution, businesses can automate tracking, collect data, and make informed decisions regarding which games to carry.

2. Pricing and Transaction SimplicityFor a gas station to operate successfully, it is essential to have a POS system that effectively manages the sales transaction process.This requires an point–of–sale pricebook that is user-friendly and created from a precise inventory of each item in your store. You should be able to update pricing info quickly and accurately.

   When every item sold through the POS matches the database, the accuracy of your sales reporting will be substantially improved. This eliminates a lot of human accounting errors and promotes more precise and efficient sales data.

   

3. Rebate Programs for TobaccoC-stores sell a huge volume of tobacco. And there are numerous reasons c-stores should join a tobacco scan data program.C-stores can get rebates by integrating a gas station point of sale software solution that manages tobacco sales reporting. This will free up your time to concentrate on developing promotions and carrying out marketing campaigns to increase tobacco sales.
4. Advanced SecurityYour POS system should be PCI-DSS compliant and designed to protect the integrity of customer data. Beyond the customer, POS systems prevent employee theft and lower the costs associated with loss and waste. In addition, the best c-store POS systems include safety features like:
   • Cash drop alerts
   • Age verification on receipts
   • Cashier activity logs
   • Configurable cashier permissions
5. CRM and Loyalty ProgramsSuccessful loyalty programs are built on quality data. You should have insights into customers’ activities, which you can use to customize future incentives. You can do this by connecting your POS to your customer relationship management (CRM) system.According to a Statista study from 2016, consumers heavily consider loyalty programs when choosing a convenience store. Over 40% of respondents from each generation connected with loyalty programs, with 59% of millennials citing them as a contributing factor.

   In terms of convenience stores, loyalty members spend 38% more money annually on average, and the study found that in 2021, trips to gas stations climbed by 8% when the customer is a loyalty member. Additionally, the most devoted convenience store patrons frequently shop once or more per day.

   

6. Employee ManagementMany payroll and human resource tasks can be automated or streamlined by companies by integrating labor management features into the POS system. Employees can clock in and out using the POS system, which records their hours for weekly payroll reconciliation and loads them into the back-of-the-house management software solution.To make sure you have adequate workers on site to meet customer needs, a scheduling strategy can be developed using sales data pertaining to the volume of sales and the volume of transactions throughout the day.
7. Insightful Analytics DataTo increase sales, your point of sale (POS) system must have the ability to gather crucial data, expedite transactions, and ensure speedy service. Some data sources you can gather from a POS include:
   • Customer Feedback – Many convenience stores and gas station POS systems ask for feedback from customers on a touch screen at the point of purchase.
   • Loyalty Data – You can integrate a loyalty program so that feedback on the visit may be requested later, separate from the transaction process.
   • Transaction Data – See which products are performing, test new products, identity weak performers, and use this data to better refine your product mix.
   • Employee Data – You can better manage labor costs with a system that will help you identity when peak hours are, and how many hours your employees are working.
8. Financial ReportingWhen all of these sources of information are combined, they provide a dataset that managers and owners can utilize to assess the general health of their business.Operators can immediately access revenue and profit from the data gathered by the POS system in conjunction with other software components. They can also quickly determine the cost of items and delve further into the demographics of their customer base. They can immediately evaluate the results of marketing and promotion activities and spot trends for upcoming marketing campaigns.

   Managers will be better able to oversee the entire business and start making better leadership decisions as access to this data gets easier and they learn how to explore the information available through POS reporting.

   Owners and operators can access this data remotely as more gas station POS and convenience shop POS systems migrate to the cloud, enabling quicker business decisions and enhancing customer service in general.

An All-Encompassing POS Software Solution is the Answer!

An effective and versatile point of sale (POS) system is crucial, irrespective of the software solutions you want to integrate with an efficient back-office management solution. At FTx POS, we understand that the POS system of your gas station or convenience store should be the center of all activities. Get in touch with us today to schedule a consultation and demo to explore our solutions that can help you make a fresh start!