Faster, more efficient processing ranks at the top of the list of benefits to be reaped from deploying an integrated fuel pump and point of sale system. However, it is far from the only benefit—providing that the solution you select has a top-notch reporting component.

Look for a solution with built-in reporting capabilities that enable managers to generate and print sales reports by shift or day, track seasonal trends and deftly manage inventory, and for an inventory tracking module that will allow you to reduce or eliminate shrinkage, stock outages, and stock discrepancies as well as identify best- and worst-selling products and overall movement for merchandise, food items and fuel alike. Inventory stock levels should be adjusted for each item sold, so as to eliminate guesswork and discrepancies.

But this is not all. A good integrated fuel pump and point of sale system will have a wide range of standard inventory management features for handling purchase orders, automated stock replenishment, minimum/maximum inventory levels, back orders and direct store deliveries. You’ll want the solution to offer standard inventory reporting features that range from actual versus theoretical inventory counts, discrepancy reports, item cost/profit margin tracking and low stock alerts to fast lookup by bar code/description, detailed sales history by product, “on-the-fly” item addition and tracking by case/individual.

Moreover, leveraging the reporting capabilities of such an integrated system should not be difficult. You need a user-friendly reporting screen and the option to select the type of report, date and time range for any desired information, then narrow down options in accordance with additional criteria—including, but not limited to—store number, cashier ID, customer, vendor, department or item. Reports should be viewable online, and integration with an accounting package like QuickBooks Accounting is desirable to simplify the financial piece.

pcAmerica’s Cash Register Express-Fuel Edition offers all these features, and many others. Visit www.pcamerica.com and watch this space—to find out more.