POS Meaning and Definition: Finance – Law – IT – Data Transmission

POS Meaning in Finance and Commerce – Point of Sale

POS meaning in finance is the physical point of sale location where a customer payment occurs and transaction data is captured for products or services. The point of sale refers to the location where a customer makes the payment for products or services and where sales taxes may become payable. It might be at a physical storefront where POS terminals and systems are used to handle card payments.  Or, it can be a virtual sales point like a computer or mobile electronic device.  POS systems include electronic devices such as magnetic card readers, optical and bar code scanners, or some combination of these

In other words, Point of sale (POS) means to the physical location at which goods or services are purchased and transaction data is captured through electronic cash registers or other electronic devices.

POS Meaning – A Closer Look

Marketers focus on the points of sale (POS) because these are critical sites where customers make purchase decisions.  An even greater emphasis is given to higher-margin items or services. Businesses traditionally place POS systems near shop entrances to improve the rate of spontaneous purchases as consumers leave. Changing POS locations, on the other hand, might provide merchants with a greater opportunity to micro-market certain product categories.  This might also impact customers sooner in the sales cycle.

Department stores frequently have a POS for individual product groupings. For example, appliances, electronics, sporting goods, toys, and clothes. Instead of just processing transactions, the appointed employees can actively market items and advise consumers through purchasing selections. Similarly, the structure of a POS can influence profit or purchasing behavior. Additional flexibility provides consumers with a variety of alternatives for making a transaction.

Amazon Go and Amazon Fresh are concept convenience stores that use specialized technology.  Amazon describes the original Amazon Go store as “a new kind of store with no checkout required”.  It allows consumers to come in, take products, and walk out without passing through a register,  This concept has the potential to transform POS systems with its enhanced ease of use.  Further, it might enable POS, loyalty, and payments to be merged into a single customer-centric experience.

When you shop at one of these stores, you never have to wait in line. The store works with an Amazon Go app for iOS or Android: You enter, take the products you want and, thanks to the app, just leave again. The app is linked to your Amazon account for billing. (Source: pocket-lint.com)

Benefits of POS Point of Sales Systems

Electronic point-of-sale software solutions improve retail operations by automating the transaction process and recording critical sales data. An electronic cash register and software to manage data acquired from everyday purchases are standard components of basic systems. Retailers can improve functionality by deploying a network of data-capture devices such as card readers and barcode scanners.

Retailers can track pricing accuracy, inventory fluctuations, gross income, and sales patterns depending on the program’s capabilities. Using integrated technology to track data assists merchants in detecting anomalies in pricing or cash flow.  Otherwise, these might result in profit loss or sales interruption. POS systems that track inventory and purchasing trends can assist companies in avoiding customer service concerns.  For example, avoiding out-of-stock sales and tailoring purchasing and marketing to consumer behavior.