“POS” is an abbreviation for “point-of-sale.” A POS system is a system used by a business to calculate purchases, record items for inventory management, and manage information about sales transactions. Businesses of all sizes use POS systems. Industry – specific software is available for retail stores, restaurants, casinos, gyms, salons, and hotels.
A retail point of sale system can be a very sophisticated cash register. In the 1970s, as computer-operated cash registers became common, features like client-server technology, peer-to-peer communications, backups and remote access became available. POS systems that use these features have become standard in the hospitality industry, and most businesses have even developed customized software that helps them take advantage of industry-specific functions. POS systems can be linked with your existing merchant account to process credit card transactions more easily, and can incorporate hardware that can “scan” items for purchase or place orders and calculate bills.
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