Last Updated on Feb 28, 2020 by James W

Man Beside a Giant Barcode Symbol, illustration

Many small business owners don’t use barcodes because they don’t understand how essential they really are. Barcodes can help your business in many ways, but you don’t have to spend much to use them.

Easier POS

The POS process is incredibly important. A quick and easy process ensures that the customer will be happy. If you don’t use barcodes, then you need to create a paper invoice for each sale. Customers don’t like this, and it can hurt your sales. Barcodes allow you to quickly scan a barcode so that the POS process just takes a few seconds.

Find Items

Most businesses have extra space in the back or at a warehouse. This is useful because you can store your extra items, but it can be difficult to know exactly where your products are. Most small business owners order extra items because they don’t know how many items are stored in these areas. “Barcodes ensure that you can quickly and accurately find all of your products”, says Nicole Pontius, Marketing Communications Manager at Camcode, maker of quality aisle signs (https://www.camcode.com/warehouse-aisle-signs.html).

Manage Items from Computer

Barcodes allow you manage all of your products from a computer. You can see how many products you have, where they are and you can easily order new items without making paper invoices. This keeps you from having to run all over the place just to manage your products.

Automated Ordering

Most barcode systems allow you to setup automated ordering so that you can concentrate on your business. For example, you can tell the program to order an item when there are only five crates left. This also ensures that you always have products ready to sell when they are needed.

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Buying Behaviors

An essential aspect of running any business is knowing what your customers want. Do you have a product that is selling very well? Identifying this product and stocking up on it can improve your profit margin. Barcode software allows you to track sales so that you can see what products customers like and don’t like. Use their buying behavior to adjust your ordering process so that you make the most sales.

Better Ordering

Small business owners tend to waste money because they don’t know how to order. They often order too many items, don’t order when they need to or they don’t check their supply to see if they really need more products. This leads to either wasted money or fewer sales. Barcodes ensure that you can check your supply and customer demand from your computer so that every order is a good one.

Less Theft

Theft occurs in every business. It can be internal or external theft, and it’s very difficult to track without barcodes. You can minimize theft with barcodes because you can track your supply. For example, if you should have 20 pairs of shoes but there are only 14, then you know that some have been stolen. This allows you to create policies to limit theft. You will also have an easier time catching anyone trying to steal from you.

Easier Sales and Discounts

A business needs sales and discounts to increase their number of customers. People expect to save money when they are shopping, but setting up a sale without barcodes is very intensive. You need to change the labels on all of your products and ensure that everyone knows about the sale so that they create the right invoices.

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If you use barcodes, then you just need to change the price from the barcode software. This will only take a few seconds.

Customers Expect Barcodes

Customers expect your business to use barcodes. Businesses that don’t use barcodes seem outdated and less worthy of their money. Modern customers have been conditioned to expect a quick POS process. You can only achieve this with barcodes. If you want customers to feel good about buying from you, then you need to use barcodes.

Fewer Costs

Many small business owners are worried about using barcodes because they cost money, but the truth is that they save money. They also drive more customers so that you can make additional sales. If you want your business to succeed, then barcodes are essential.

Author Bio:

Katelyn writes for Camcode, a company helping users stay systematized and updated on new ways to keep inventory, clients, and employees organized in the work place. 

image credit: fotolia

Author

Founder and chief editor of makemoneyinlife.com Blogger, Affiliate Marketer, Tech and SEO geek. Started this blog in 2011 to help others learn how to work from home, make money online or anything related to business and finances. You can contact me at makemoneyinlife@gmail.com