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Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Co-Brand your gift cards and maybe save a buck

Have you ever thought of doing this?    


Co-Branding is when you support another companies brand with your own in order to connect the two in your customers mind.   It can be a great way of enticing your customer to visit you because of that connection.  In the specialty beverage world a natural fit is the coffee shop and the roaster relationship.  

Where do gift cards and POS come into co-branding?  Interestingly enough, in a couple ways.  Think about all that real estate on the back of your nice looking gift card.  Now, slap a "Proudly Serving YourRoasterNameHere"  on the back with your roasters logo.  This is an immediate co-branding opportunity.  Want to save some money?  Ask your roaster to pay a portion of the tab on the gift cards or to discount the next order of roasted coffee to help offset the cost.

For those of you with restaurants and cafes, you can do this same thing by asking your cheese vendor or beverage provider (think Coke/Pepsi) to do this. 

Want another way?  SP-1 has the ability print a coupon on the bottom of a receipt.  You can use this to proudly promote a partner, vendor or even another business in town.    

Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Training on your POS

Has it been a while since you dug into some of the other features of SP-1?  Did you hire a new manager and now want to train them on the back end of SP-1?


One of the challenges with any store is that they rarely have an opportunity to train on the POS because it's in use.  It's not a time zone thing either - I don't know a lot of owners who would want to train at 3am or 11pm with their staff.  It's usually because the POS is in operation!


So, why not call us and let us help?   With our SP-1 POS we can setup a virtual training session of your SP-1 system through our support department that let's us train any of your staff outside of the POS computer or even outside of the store!  

This is a free option included with our support plans.  Don't hesitate to use it! 




Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Why you SHOULD NOT buy your own equipment

Buying hardware on your own is a bad idea. . .How is that for a starting point?  It's true though,  it's not usually just a bad idea, it's a potential recipe for disaster.


I know that many of you feel that you should be able to buy the cheapest computer you can find at Costco or Best Buy and be up and running in minutes.  I'm sorry - it just won't happen.   


One of the best reasons to purchase equipment from the same company you buy software from is the support.  The crude term is "One throat to choke" but it can be appropriate.  The amount of money you save purchasing a computer based on price will not justify the long term support you will have to supply.  Notice that I said you in that line . . . Expecting the POS company to support equipment they were not paid for is just not realistic.  


Right now the cheapest I can find a computer is about $200 less than what we sell one for.   Of course that does not include:
Setup by a qualified technician.
A professional version of the OS.
PCI / PA-DSS hardening including proper Windows user setup, passwords, turning off and eliminating of the unused services, activating the required auditing.  
No finger pointing when an issue comes up. 
The proper port configuration and software setup in Windows to function with all the peripheral equipment. 
Supporting that computer through the warranty and, in some cases, beyond.  




So for an extra $67 a year you get all of that and more.  And, let's not forget that we have to agree that talking to one of our technicians is way less frustrating than the kid behind the counter at a box store or the guy on the other side of the planet when buying over the internet. 


Are there exceptions?  Of course, but call us before you spend the money on the computer.  


Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

4 Loyalty Card alternatives

Not interested in doing a traditional "punch" card system?   Looking for something different than "buy 10 get 1 free"?   Try one of these alternatives that other SelbySoft customers have used and passed on to us. 


Buy a gift card, get a drink... Pretty standard but still a great way to get around doing a punch card at all.  If I buy a $30 gift card then I get a free drink (up to $3.00 value) right then and there.  This can be great because it eliminates a customer being "owed" a drink at a later time.  You get the money and they get the drink.


Surprise a customer... This actually IS a punch card system but you don't tell anyone about it.  Instead of customers keeping track of points, your POS reminds the crew member that it is time for the customer to get a free drink.  The biggest catch is that it is not something that happens with the customers knowledge - you only track it internally so it is a surprise.  It's a very effective way of saying Thank You to your existing customers.


Surprise a customer #2 (gift card) . . . Create a gift card account that you load every day or week.  Allow your employees to use this gift card to buy a drink for your customer.  This is a great way to help your employees feel empowered at the store.  Be careful that it is not only being used for friends or for the same customers and it can be an awesome way to make a customers day.


Surprise a customer #3 (lottery)... Keep track of the points for your customers.  When a customer has ordered 10 times, have your POS prompt to record the visit.  Every week enter all the customers that have ordered 10 times into a lottery for free or discounted product. 




There you go. . . A couple ways to reward customers without duplicating what you competitors might be doing.  If you have a different method you use, let us know! 






Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

What is Leasing?

Today we have a guest blog from one of our partners.  Gary Lentz at Vend Lease has worked with us to secure financing to purchase SP-1 for many of our customers.  I asked Gary if he had some words to help clarify leasing. . .  

From Gary Lentz - Vend Lease

First, let’s rid ourselves of the notion that leasing is a “dirty” word.  Many of us are of the mind set that if we lease something that we made a bad decision, or that we were somehow mislead in the transaction and wound up making a bad deal.

Let’s set the record straight…Today, leasing is the preferred method by over 80% of U.S. corporations that purchase capital equipment.  If you own a business that requires equipment, or technology, to produce revenue, or save time and labor, then leasing may represent the most cost-effective course of action.  Leasing provides benefits that solve business problems and satisfy company needs.  Often, leasing is the more efficient way to grow your business with less risk to capital.

A lease is normally structured in one of two ways – as a capital lease or as an operating lease.  However, each is used for different purposes and treated differently from a business accounting perspective.  What’s most important is that leasing, in general, affords businesses the opportunity to invest in the latest technology and stay ahead of the competition.

Below are some of the benefits of leasing that business owners may want to consider:

1.       Lease payments may be 100% tax deductible (consult your tax advisor).

2.       Leasing preserves other established lines of credit.

3.       Fixed lease payments facilitate monthly budgeting of your expansion project.

4.       Leasing improves cash flow, allowing you to pay for equipment as it generates income.

5.       Keeps cash in your hands while you update to more technologically advanced equipment.

Growing and expanding any business requires equipment and technology.  Leasing will clear the hurdles that typically confront the purchase of capital equipment, i.e., sticker shock, lofty down payments and shrinking lines of credit.  Leasing is frequently less expensive and is one of the building blocks to building business success.

If you are interested in seeing how Vend Lease can help with your next expansion project visit www.vendlease.net, or contact Gary Lentz directly at glentz@vendlease.net

You can also find an application at http://vendlease.net/pdf/CreditApplication.pdf

Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Do you ever look at your customer receipt?

Random Competitor Receipt

I pay attention to customer receipts.  It's part of my job and I always like to see how different companies present a customer receipt.  

Recently I received a receipt from a store that was using one of my competitors.  I was a little shocked at how bad it looked.  The prices don't line up, the quantity field has 1.00 instead of whole numbers (after all you are not selling 1.25 scones).  I'll hope that the receipt is partially a reflection of the way that company setup that particular location.  Maybe, just maybe they have some switches that will allow them to reconfigure the receipt to look better.   


Seeing this receipt made me realize that many people don't really consider how a receipt might look when they are shopping for a POS.  I think that the receipt can be very important as it is a reflection of your store and your professionalism.  It's also a reflection on the POS company.  Nobody is perfect but receipts should look good.   


For example, the receipt I'm referring to has the quantity as 1.00.  The reason this is a poor reflection is that it shows a lack of thought in programming.    It makes sense to take it out to two decimal places if the item being sold is weighed and sold by the ounce / gram etc.  This company choose to mark every quantity to two decimal places, even if the item is not something that is weighed.    It was most likely done this way because it was easier from a programming standpoint.   


We have the same ability to sell by weight.  We choose to add the extra lines of code to insure that weighed items are taken out to two decimal places and other items just show the whole number.  It just makes sense!  

SP-1 Receipt

Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Stop Buddy-Punching!

It's amazing sometimes how loose security can be in the food and beverage industry.  Considering the fact that statistics say employee theft is likely in 75% to 95% of all locations, we know it probably is happening to you.  

There are all kinds of theft out there but I'm going to focus on employee time theft today. 

Do any of these scenarios sound familiar?

Your employee is running late (again) so he calls a friend.  The buddy clocks him in and he is collecting wages without working. 

There is a ticket that needs voiding or a discount applied.  The manager is busy.  So, the employee knows the code, grabs the managers swipe card or keys and fixes the ticket. 

Happens all the time right?  It shouldn't. . . These are just two scenarios where biometrics (fingerprint id) can help.   With a fingerprint id in place there is no mistaking who did what and when.  

Fingerprint readers are cost effective, safe and reliable.  Better yet, they are theft proof when used right.   Want to bring control to your location?  Call us and find out more. 

Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Got Cloud? We do!

There is a lot of talk about cloud based computing, storage and POS in news over the last year.   Did you know that we are on top of this and have been for a while? 


Cloud Based Backup Service.  SelbySoft offers, free of charge, a cloud based backup service for every customer on an annual support plan.  What this means is that we have the ability to backup all of your data, tickets, customer files to a central server outside of your store.  This is a great option that allows you to be safe and have peace of mind when thinking about your data.  Did  we mention FREE? 
P.S. We introduced this cloud based backup to our customers in 2007!


Best of Both Worlds.  With SelbySoft you get the best of both worlds.  Secure, controllable data storage at your site and the cloud backup.  What this means is that your data is never held hostage and no internet connectivity problems will interrupt your operations at the store.  


Gift Cards.  You are probably aware that we have a free, built in gift card system in SP-1.  This is stored locally in the POS and does not even require an internet connection to operate.  Now, with the cloud backup you are secure offsite as well.  Interested in cloud based gift card systems?  We do it!  Two different methods of having your gift card systems stored and processed out of the store.  Oh and both are free!


Corporate Reporting.    We can't forget that our corporate and multi-store operators are taking advantage of our cloud based options when accessing their data from their laptop, home or corporate office!




Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Sell by weight? We handle it!

Do you sell coffee by the ounce or pound?  What about loose-leaf tea?  If so, you should look at a retail scale that is electronically hooked up to SP-1.  I touched on this briefly in a previous blog (Retail Options In SP-1) but thought it worth supplying some information about using the scale itself in SP-1. 

Scales are accurate.  So is SP-1.   Once you have an integrated scale, you will get 100% of the price per weight.  For example, with a scale, the employee puts the tea / coffee on the scale and l SP-1 calculate it.  If the tea weighs at 100.5 grams and is $19.75 per 100 grams the sale is calculated at $19.85.    We know that an employee will often round that tea to 100 grams to make it easy if they are typing it in.   Even worse is the employee who transposes a digit or misreads the scale.  At $.19 a gram mistakes add up quickly!

Scales are easy.   Take product, place on scale, hit a button.  It's simple.  

Customers trust them.  When a customer knows the scale is electronically connected to the POS, they trust the totals that they are given more.  

Contact us at:

SelbySoft

Mike Spence

800-454-4434

Sales@SelbySoft.com

WWW.SelbySoft.com

8326 Woodland Ave. E

Puyallup Wa 98371

Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

4 Reasons order confirmation monitors are cool!

They are not pole displays.  Sounds harsh doesn't it.  It's true though.  A pole display is typically old looking, unappealing and really does not cut it in todays world.  Think high resolution monitor with pictures of your product instead of that 3-4 line display with ugly green text. 


They cut theft.  That's right, they can actually cut employee theft.  Simply by making sure that the customer sees a total on the screen before the employee collects money.  With an OCM facing the customer, you are enlisting your customer in making sure the employee actually rings up the order. Add a simple sign stating your order is free if not displayed and you will cut theft down a significant degree. 


You can sell advertising.  I know it sounds weird but you can.  Since the OCM has the ability to display a slide show of pictures it's possible to load anything you want.  We currently have customers that sell one slide.  Think advertising for a Realtor.    Sell a popular roasters beans?  Offer to advertise on the OCM for them.


Customers confirm their order.  This is the reason that these were originally developed after all. Because the customer can see their order on the screen, you will will make less mistakes.  Actually, you will probably make the same amount of mistakes, you just catch them before completing the ticket. 

Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Are you secure?

Are you really secure?  Let's ask some questions:

Do you review the security levels in SP-1 from time to time?  

If not, you should.  It's vital to check over what access employees and managers have.  Remember that your store evolves over time.  Call us to make sure what your employees are currently allowed to do. 

Are you checking that your password is not being used by anyone else?

Check the audit reports we offer and compare them to the times you and your manager work.  If you see those employee codes used when you are not there, then you have a problem! 

Do you change your password on a regular basis?

I hope so!  In 7.60 and above, you are required (PCI / PA-DSS Standards) to change your password every 90 days.  If you are not doing that now, you should be.  It's one of the best ways to insure you employees don't have access to your system. 


Are you using "hard" passwords?

Is your password "1234" or your name?  That's not OK and we all know it.  Your passwords should be at least seven characters with a combination of letters and numbers. 


Do you allow Windows access?
This is a tough one.  In some cases you may have to.  If you don't have a specific need to, then make sure you set SP-1 up to be maximized at all times.  This helps eliminate the ability to access Windows.  If you do allow employee access, then check the Internet Explorer history on a  regular basis to see what your employees are doing online. 

What about checking your Audit Reports with Customer Service?
Call us on this.  Seriously - you need to ask about this.  Basically, we can show you any ticket that has been altered or reduced and help you stay on top of theft. 

Do your employees have a separate code to clock in?  What about employee cards or fingerprint ID?

Please don't use one employee code or card for everyone in your store!  If you have to use codes then make sure each employee has their own.  This will allow you to track who is doing what and when! 

Hopefully, you answered all of these correctly!  If you didn't then you might want to call us to review how we can make sure you are as safe from theft as possible. 






Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Using promotions to increase your business

Promotions can be a great way to look at increasing your business and your bottom line.  Let me correct myself there. . . Effective, trackable promotions can be a great way.

There are all kinds of ways to intice people to try your product.  WIth SP-1, we look at ways to track your promotions and help you decide if they are working.  

Facebook & Foursquare.   These social media tools make it very easy to promote product to your customers.  If you want to take it a step further, use the built in places and deals to allow for specials that take advantage of geolocation features in cell phones (I.E. check-in specials).

Gift Cards.   I know that people think we beat a dead horse with this topic but it is because it is such a great way to increase revenue and cash flow.  Gift cards can be sold at a slightly reduced price to encourage customers to pre-pay.  This is a simple and effective way to increase your cash flow.

Bundles.  If you are looking to discount items, try creating a bundle.   The concept is that you take a high profit item and pair it with a different item.   Pairing items together for a single price can help introduce low-selling items to a broader customer base.

Timed pricing.  A "happy hour" special can be a really great way to encourage customers to order outside of your busy times.  Creating promotional pricing on certain items and offering them only between 2 and 4pm can help direct some of your traffic to those hours when you are slow.

Tracking.  This is, in some ways, the most important part of what you are doing.  You have to track what is and is not working in order to know how effective these are.  If a promotion is not working, stop doing it!  SP-1 will allow you to really evaluate the number of times these promotions are used over a time frame. This will allow you to make better decisions about how you create better promotions in the future.

Contact us at:

SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Back office needs?

One of the challenges that smaller stores face is that they are typically only running a single POS station at a time.

SP-1 can certainly handle the volume and will help you increase your speed of service.   But what about being able to look at numbers when the front counter is busy?  What about employees clocking in?

That is where our back office license can come in.  With the back office license, you can load a special version of SP-1 on a second station.  This license allows you to do any of the functions of your front counter computer with the exception of taking an order.  

Call us today and see how we can add this to your store!



Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

FREE Coffee Fest Seattle Passes!

Going to Coffee Fest in Seattle this September?  

So are we!   Before you register for passes, check with us!  


We often have free passes for this show and would love to help you get in free!


See you there September 23-25th in the Seattle Convention Center - Booth: 804/806




Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Don't clean your computer!

Like the title? It's a little tongue in cheek but hopefully makes you think about maintenance.

With summer coming and the heat (finally) starting to hit, we know that some of our customers will see hardware failures due to overheating start to become more common.

Most of this can be easily avoided. All it takes is a little preventative maintenance. What we are talking about is no different then getting an oil change, tuning your oven or backflushing an espresso machine. It's necessary to keep things running along smoothly.

There are really three things to consider when checking out your POS.

• Removing materials from around your POS computer. Are you one of those people with a roll of paper towels on your computer? Do you stack menus on top and around the computer? If so - Stop it! Computers (even those without fans) need air flow.

• Cleaning. When you have a chance, open the case on your computer and spray it with a can of compressed air. You might be amazed at the amount of dust that fills the air! Do this once every six months and you will extend the life of your computer.

• Printers. Don't forget that those printers load up with dust from the paper rolls. Every so often, just open the lid, turn the printer upside down and tap it once or twice.

If you need some additional advice, don't hesitate to contact us!

Contact us at:

SelbySoft

Mike Spence

800-454-4434

Sales@SelbySoft.com

WWW.SelbySoft.com

8326 Woodland Ave. E

Puyallup Wa 98371

Gift Card Feature Updates

Over the last couple weeks our developers have been working on new enhancements to SP-1.  Along the way, there have been some improvements to the gift card system!


To recap more about how the gift card system can be used, check out my previous blog
 7 Cool Things About Gift Cards.  


Now that we remember all the current cool things about SP-1 and our gift card system, here are some of the new changes!


The balance is now displayed when loading a card.   If you are loading a card with a balance, we now display what the current balance (before load) is.  This was designed to provide all the information on one screen.

When a card is loaded the ticket reflects the previous balance.  If you have a current balance on a card and add an additional amount to it, then we are now showing that on the ticket.  The circled item on the ticket below shows that the card had $25.00 on it and we are currently adding $5.00!













Gift card balance is shown when a customer is selected.  If you assign gift cards to customers, this new option will be helpful. As soon as you start a ticket with a customer that has a gift card, you will see their balance on the screen!  This helps eliminate the need to inquire about a card!

Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Integrate your credit cards through Point of Sale!

When talking to owners of food and beverage locations, I'm often asked about credit card processing. 

Usually the conversation revolves around if the owner should integrate the credit card processing into the POS or continue to use a terminal for processing.   

So what does integration have over terminals?  Quite a bit . . . 

• No equipment needed.  Since it is working through software only, you get to free up space on your counter.
• Ease of use.  Your employees already should know how to swipe a card!  Plus you have the card swipe for employee clock ins and gift cards already.
• Less mistakes.  When credit card processing is integrated through SP-1, your employees don't have to enter any information beyond the card number (and that is handled by swiping the card on the side of the monitor!   Unlike a terminal, the employee does not need to enter the total dollar amount (eliminating those typos).
• Compatibility.  We work with virtually every credit card processor out there.  No issues with having to re-program a terminal.
• Flexibility.  Have multiple stations? With the credit card integration you have the ability to take credit cards on all computers running SP-1 with no additional cost. 
• No additional phone line.  Since the credit cards are run through an internet connection, you don't need an additional phone line.

Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Happy Fourth

Don't forget!  SelbySoft has emergency support available from 9am to 10pm PST on the Fourth!

Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

World Tea Expo Wrap Up

I just spent three days at the World Tea Expo and am overwhelmed by everything I saw there.

Tea is a growing part of the beverage industry and every year I am excited to see it being explored by more and more people.

This year I was approached by more people that described their concept as "Starbucks - but with tea".   I think it is an indication that tea is becoming more mainstream as a younger generation explores the beverage for the health benefits.

So, what is different between a person that approaches us for a coffee shop or a tea shop?   The biggest thing that we see is that the tea client (in general) is more interested in inventory control from a tracking and reporting side of things.

Why?  Because with tea we look at loose leaf and retail sales.  This typically involves using a scale to weigh the tea by the ounce or gram.   When you are doing this, the need for inventory control becomes very important.  With the cost of some of these teas, even a .5 gram variance can start to add up over time.

Of course, SP-1 has the ability to track and control this through barcoding and electronic scale systems. 

Need more information?   Touch base with us and see how we can help you maintain complete control on your inventory.



Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

World Tea Expo

World Tea Expo!

This week we will be at the World Tea Expo in Las Vegas!


I'll be there from 6/23 to 6/27.  If you are in town, stop by and say hi! 




Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371

Customers? We can track them!

Do you take advantage of the customer file features SP-1 has?  If not, then you might be missing out on one of the best features of SP-1!


Most people are aware that SP-1 can track your customers and their name, address, phone number but have you explored the other items that are in the customer file and available to you? 


Birthday.  Yep, we track your customers birthday!  Better yet, you can use SP-1 to alert your staff that customer has a birthday coming up!


Email.  Anyone can track an email address - we track ten per customer! 


Multiple phone numbers.  Use a phone number to track past orders for your customers?  SP-1 tracks ten per customer.  If a customer calls with their cell, home, work or any other line, you can link all of them to the same account. 


Multiple addresses.  An address is great for delivery but what if the customer wants it to go to his office or friends house?  What about catering?  With SP-1 you can have up to three additional addresses for catering.


Custom remarks.  A line just for your staff!  What ever you type here is highlighted on the screen for your clerk to see.  










Contact us at:
SelbySoft
Mike Spence
800-454-4434
Sales@SelbySoft.com
WWW.SelbySoft.com
8326 Woodland Ave. E
Puyallup Wa 98371