by Richard Heitmann, AURES UK Sales Director
We tend to not think of fixing problems until something is broken. But when it comes to high value business assets like a POS system, the point where something goes wrong is already too late. Downtime leads to lost productivity, lost sales, lost profits – all round damage to your business.
Like taking your car for an MoT, or going to your GP for a routine check-up, preventative maintenance is about ensuring everything is in good working order proactively. It means having a trained technician out to give your system the once over at fixed intervals of time. This both helps to catch any potential problems before they can escalate into something which does real damage, and to keep the system fine tuned and performing at its optimum.
Businesses invest in POS hardware and solutions to improve customer service, streamline sales and automate financial and stock control. It acts as a vital cog in the overall machinery of a business, and is in operation all day, every day a business is open. Constant use creates inevitable wear and tear, which soon impact on performance if left unaddressed.
Here are five reasons to take out a preventative maintenance contract for your POS system to protect your investment.
1. Extend Lifecycle
The more regularly your POS terminal is checked out and serviced, the longer it will last. In the long term, this will reduce your capital expenditure, because you will not have to replace equipment so often.
2. Improve Efficiency
With a digital system such as a POS equipment, it is important to keep on top of software updates to make sure it runs at its best. Updated elements in the network also need configuring so they work with the rest of the system properly, otherwise they just slow everything down.
3. Improve Performance
No system maintains an optimum level of performance from the moment it is plugged in, and over time little glitches and faults start to build up to have an impact on the service you can deliver. Regular preventative maintenance returns a system to that ‘just new’ state, optimising performance as a cyclical process. It also helps to prevent downtime and therefore maintain service levels for longer.
4. Maintain Profitability
No business runs any form of equipment for its own sake – it is there to enable the business to function and, in doing so, make money. Preventative system maintenance can therefore be viewed as protecting profitability. This is especially true of POS systems, as downtime means sales cannot be made, creating bottlenecks elsewhere and damaging customer service.
5. Prepare for Peak Periods
Most businesses have periods of peak activity – retailers at Christmas, summer holidays for the tourism and leisure industries, for example. It is often crucial that businesses maximise turnover during these periods to offset much quieter times. During a peak period, a system failure can be particularly catastrophic. Booking a service ahead of these peak times greatly reduces the risk of that happening, and makes sure POS IT solution is working at its very best.
For more information about the maintenance and aftercare services offered on AURES POS products, please contact us here