How do you win with bar codes you ask. Let me count the ways.
1. Improved data accuracy: This is the single most common motivation for using bar codes. Just about everything in your business is based on having good data. Profit/lost – forecasting future sales – and we can’t forget making sure we’re charging the correct price.
2. Efficiency: Scanning bar codes as opposed to manual entry speeds the checkout process or inventory counting or merchandise receiving without sacrificing accuracy.
3. Consistency: There are no typo’s in bar code scanning. Of course you have to make sure your employees are properly trained.
A True Story:
We received a frantic call one morning from one of our clients whose previous day’s sales were off by thousands of dollars. A new clerk had scanned the correct bar code – only he had scanned the bar code into the quantity field. He didn’t notice his mistake and unfortunately the customer didn’t look at his receipt because the charges were going on his store account and he was in a hurry. So I guess consistency is only as good as the human doing the work. On the other hand, this never happened again!
4. Improved Inventory and Asset Management: Bar codes aren’t just for merchandise. Use them to track your store equipment, computer hardware, furniture – the types of items you can depreciate or amortize at tax time.
If you use CounterPoint software, you have a head start with using bar codes – not just one but many for merchandise you buy from multiple vendors. If you don’t use CounterPoint, it may be time you took a look at a great piece of point of sale software.
Contact us for the rest of the story.