How to Use Your Retail POS Software to Gather More Specific Customer Data to Increase Loyalty and Revenue
Retail POS software can gather huge amounts of data every day. But when it comes to collecting relevant customer information, retailers should shoot for quality over quantity, which is how retail POS software can help. Capturing relevant data requires a variety of gathering methods, each focusing on connecting customer information with every sales transaction. Here are three ways to effectively capture that data at the point of sale.
1. Create and MAINTAIN an attractive customer loyalty program
Customers today expect good loyalty programs, and if you want to identify demographic trends, a store loyalty program is among the best ways to connect customer information with sales transactions. Those are two great reasons to set up and maintain a customer loyalty program. Do this by first determining the type of customer analysis you need to know. Next, set up your POS software to gather that information. To make this as easy as possible, allow customers tp register for your loyalty program by issuing the customer a card with a number.
You also need to entice the member to provide other useful demographic information, such as address, gender, age, phone number and income. After signing up for the program, give the customer loyalty rewards or benefits for providing information to than not only makes it easy for them to earn more rewards, but also provide you with the information you need to continue connecting with them. Finally, during a sale, your POS software should provide an easy way to enter and scan the their program number and associate it with the sales transaction that follows.
A customer loyalty program is invaluable as it helps you identify your top-selling products according to your desired criteria and drill down to the buying habits of specific customers.
2. Gather customer data appropriate to your business
The work flow to collect customer data at checkout varies based on customer expectations. For example, grocery shoppers expect a fast checkout, so your POS software must collect basic data quickly during checkout. But if you have a bridal salon, where you spend at least two hours with a customer before a purchase, the first step might involve more steps and be a bit more deliberate and slower. Effectively gathering customer information with your POS software must be adjusted according to the type of business and customer behavior, and that includes the actual process. If the transaction time is fast, consider scanning a numbered card and linking it to the customer’s telephone number.
3. Identify ways to gather more customer data during the checkout process
You can design your POS software to gather specific customer information or promote a sale by being prompted by specific actions, or triggers, during checkout. For example, the purchase of a particular product prompts the POS screen to display an option to offer a warranty. Defining triggers in your POS software makes it easier for your cashiers to assist customers so to avoid relying on employee observations to gather data, which is not humanly possible, because no human (or group of human) can observe and remember every promotion and how many customers of varying demographics responded.
There are many more ways to gather relevant customer data during POS checkout. Just remember that effective data-gathering is the basis of customer behavior analytics.