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Revving Up Hobby and Toy Retail Stores Using an Integrated POS System

May 17, 2024 / 10 minute read / By Nick Borowitz

Revving up hobby and toy retail stores with integrated POS systems

2024

The stores that embrace an integrated hobby and toy store POS system are the ones that will be able to meet the demands of passionate parents, collectors, and enthusiasts!

The world of hobby enthusiasts, toy collectors, and RC gearheads is bustling with considerably unique demands. Toy stores and collector hubs can cater to these unique demands by harnessing the power of a modern POS system, seamlessly integrating and connecting the diverse facets that drive the vibrant world of hobby enthusiasts.

Acknowledging that this retail vertical encompasses a large array of products, knowing what’s in stock, where and when to get more, the business financials, and being able to ring customers out at the point of sale while collecting information can make or break retail businesses in this exciting world.
In our decades of serving hobby shops, we’ve learned a few things about the finer details that make a competitive strategy encompass the key aspects to stay relevant. So let’s explore the finer aspects that an integrated POS retail system for hobby and toy stores needs to do for a business.

Streamlining the Sale Process at the Point of Sale and eCommerce Website
Collecting Data and Crafting Efficient Digital Marketing Campaigns
Executing a Successful Inventory Management Strategy for Fast Fulfillment
Driving a Comprehensive Loyalty Rewards and Membership Program
Using a Robust Accounting Program with Their POS for Quick Business Analysis

Streamlining the Sale Process at the Point of Sale and eCommerce Website

Customers want one thing when they check out in a toy or hobby retail establishment: make it fast with a receipt ready. Streamlining the sale process is vital for toy and hobby shops, both at the point of sale and on their eCommerce websites.

Customers expect a quick and seamless checkout experience, whether they are shopping in-store or through your eCommerce website. When customers enter the store, products need to be organized and easily located in their respective sections.

Retail stores can simplify the process in-store in a few easy ways:

Using mobile in-store kiosks with online product feeds from suppliers where customers can look up the products they want and effectively offers the ‘endless aisle’ experience.
Those same tablet kiosks can act as mobile point of sale tablets, equipped with card readers and barcode scanners to allow the customer to check out immediately with an employee and skip the line.

Optimizing the eCommerce shopping and purchase process is simple, too:

Incorporate a dynamic product search that uses smart filters to find products based on various parameters such as size, color and style.
Use online product feeds from your vendors that display their products on your website as if you were fulfilling and shipping them yourself. Offer an ‘endless aisle’, without stocking the products, by allowing your vendor to drop ship your orders.

Integrate in-store POS software to manage product listings and account information for online marketplaces. This POS and eCommerce integration synchronizes product availability across physical stores, eCommerce websites, and marketplaces. It helps to continuously monitor inventory to prevent inaccuracies and avoid selling unavailable items.

While this is a quick example, there are other marketplace websites that a hobby or toy retailer could sell on, too:

Marketplace	Benefit/Reason
eCommerce Website	Keeps drawing customers back to your website and shopping directly in your storefront, helping build your SEO authority.
Amazon - Fulfill by Merchant (FBM) and/or Fulfill by Amazon (FBA)	Offers many sale options and fulfillment choices to increase opportunities to get in front of new customers.
eBay	Customers involved in niche hobbies and collecting specific products use eBay to find rare deals, selling both new and used products.
Walmart	Offers a generic marketplace, and in the same spirit of utilizing FBA, Walmart has similar programs to sell your products to customers.
Mobile Shopping Apps	Makes it possible for customers to shop and purchase from your business directly on a branded mobile shopping app that you make available for customers to download.

Toy and hobby shop eCommerce and marketplace integrations

Pro Tip:

When customers want to check out both in your store and your online website, providing a range of payment options expedites the process. While many shoppers still use cash, others prefer cashless alternatives, such as credit cards, mobile payments, and digital wallets. For retailers exploring additional choices, offering ‘buy now, pay later’ and ‘buy online, pickup in-store’ facilitates larger order sizes and increases conversion rates. Payment options ensure the retailer receives full payment while allowing customers to break payments into a set schedule, including pay-in-2, pay-in-4, and financing options spanning 3 to 48 months.

Collecting Data and Crafting Efficient Digital Marketing Campaigns

People buying toys, RC car parts, model kits, or anything in the hobby world more than likely means they’re making only one purchase. That means keeping your business at the back of their minds is imperative.

Opportunities for customer data capture are plentiful at all stages of the shopping process (with their consent, of course). When customers checkout in-store, they can enter their information at tablets or be given a code on their receipt to sign up for marketing content.

When checking out online, you can offer them opportunities to enroll in marketing campaigns from your business.

With the data, you can use the following tools to send communications:

Marketing Tools	Purpose
CRM with Tablet Checkout	This is the best opportunity to grab the information from the customer and get them into your marketing segments.
Automated Emails	Use these to send emails based on purchase behaviors and follow up on prior purchases.
Push Notifications	Mobile push notifications allow you to bypass the spam filters of email inboxes and send marketing material directly to their phone, effectively putting you “directly in their pockets!"

Toy and hobby shop digital marketing services

Essential items to keep in mind for hobby retailers and toy retail businesses are a solid online presence backed by simple advertising methods and promotional strategies.

Learn More: Use Automation to Sell More and Increase Reach by 6x with Email Marketing

Build an Online Presence for your Hobby and Toy Store

Website Optimization and SEO: Create a user-friendly website that showcases your products and upcoming events. Optimize your content for search engines (SEO) to improve visibility.
Social Media: Establish profiles on platforms like Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Engage with followers and share relevant content related to hobbies and crafts.

Pro Tip:

Besides digital marketing strategies, hosting in-person gatherings is an excellent way to draw crowds to your store. Because hobby, toy, and RC have such a diverse crowd, hosting events like RC races, model kit competitions, or video game tournaments attracts different groups. Invest in print and online ads in local publications or magazines to expand your reach. Design visually appealing flyers and promotional materials for distribution both locally and online. Engage your audience with contests and special offers to spark interest and boost sales.

Executing a Successful Inventory Management Strategy for Fast Fulfillment

Inventory management is a delicate balance—products on shelves can sell quickly, especially in the toy and hobby industry.

When customers shop online, they might purchase individual items, some no larger than a pencil eraser. It is the same circumstance when they shop in-store since those pieces can sell fast, and you need to stay on top of the merchandise flow.

Optimizing your inventory processes to meet demand efficiently is crucial as a retailer. There a few simple methods to make it easy!

Streamline Inventory Receiving and Shipping

Implement handheld devices with barcode scanners to speed up inventory receiving and order shipping. Scan items to keep counts consistent in the store system as merchandise moves. Mobile scanners simplify the process by reducing manual data entry errors.

Maintain Accurate Counts and Reconciliation

Conduct regular physical inventory counts to ensure accuracy. Schedule these counts periodically (e.g., weekly or monthly) to track stock levels. Compare the physical count with your system’s recorded inventory.
Leverage your hobby and toy POS retail software’s rollback feature. After completing cycle counts, reconcile any discrepancies by adjusting inventory levels. This ensures that records align with the actual stock on hand.

Plan Demand Forecasting and Reordering

Regularly analyze sales data to identify patterns and trends. Understand which products are popular during specific seasons or events. Use sales and promotions to move stale inventory or to know when to send it into storage if it’s a high-value item.
Set automated min/max order points for products based on historical sales and lead times. When inventory reaches the reorder point, use vendor integrations to place electronic purchase orders and save time with the ordering process.

By implementing robust demand forecasting and efficient reorder processes, toy and hobby shops can optimize stock levels and meet customer demands effectively.

This helps them meet in-store and online customers to maintain positive eCommerce account ratings and word of mouth within a store’s local community.

Explore: Using Hobby Horizon to Keep the Shelves Full with Automated Ordering

Driving a Comprehensive Loyalty Rewards and Membership Program

Because the hobby world or toy collector hustle can get expensive fast, customers want rewards for their purchases.

These rewards should be simple to issue and redeem in the store at checkout and when purchasing online. One of the benefits of using a modern toy and hobby store point of sale system is that the buttons on the screen can be customized to suit the store’s most common register occurrences.

Reward Redemption Type	Purpose
Automated Loyalty Rewards	Set up automation for when the coupon or reward can be redeemed. This can be the time frame when allowed, the exclusions on the products, or spending amounts at any given time.
Restrictions on Loyalty Rewards	Set restrictions on how a coupon can be used for brands, types of products, or specific promotions and discount instances.
Minimums for Loyalty Rewards	Can require that a certain customer only can use the rewards or that a certain amount needs to be spent in order for the coupon to activate.

The added benefit of an all-in-one POS software for retail hobby and toy stores is that it should include a comprehensive CRM database. This allows you to consolidate their information and, going off of the digital marketing mentioned above in tandem with rewards, using unique pieces of information about customers to send rewards and offers.

Such opportunities are:

Birthdays
Holidays
Seasonal
Clearance
Brand-Specific

The best part? It doesn’t have to be a lot. With the niche nature of RC, toy, and hobby, any reward can be enough to draw the customer at least back to your store or website. They are more likely to convert when they shop with an offer ready to go in their pocket.

Learn More: Benefits Of Implementing A Loyalty Program In Retail

Using a Robust Accounting Program with the POS Software for Quick Business Analysis

There is no denying that because of the niche nature of hobby and toy customers, some days can be a feast, and others a famine. Integrating your back office and accounting systems into your POS software lets you instantly pull reports and analyze them as needed.

The best part? It can be done from the POS screen of the front register, mobile kiosk pad, and back office desktop- and from anywhere, instantly!

The essential items to keep track of and make every cent count for hobby and toy shops include:

Labor Management

Efficient Scheduling: Use the software to schedule and manage your employees effectively. Assign shifts, track hours, and ensure optimal staffing levels.
User Permissions: Define user roles and permissions within the system. Control access to sensitive information and maintain security.
Employee Punch Cards: Monitor attendance and timekeeping through digital punch cards, simplifying payroll processes.

Accounting and ERP Integration

General Ledger: Manage your financial records directly within the POS system. Keep track of income, expenses, and overall business health.
Accounts Receivable: Handle customer payments, outstanding balances, and credit transactions seamlessly.
Accounts Receivable: Print receipts for past transactions, email AR statements, and manage payments via your POS back office software.
Third-Party Accounting Integrations: Seamlessly integrate financial data with QuickBooks Online or Desktop, Sage 100, and Microsoft Dynamics (if using Stratus Enterprise).

Read: Benefits of Integrating Accounting Software with Your POS System

Pro Tip:

In addition to the immediate availability of sales data for analysis, retailers must prioritize the accuracy of their reporting software. A top-notch POS system provider should offer an intuitive interface with comprehensive functionality to refine your reporting needs. Furthermore, including a custom report designer in retail software allows you to generate financial reports on demand, enabling you to monitor and optimize business performance.

Insulating Hobby and Toy Stores to be Ready for Future Industry Challenges

By simply using the right point of sale retail software for hobby and toy stores, a business can be ready for future challenges.

In the world of hobby enthusiasts, toy collectors, and RC gearheads, businesses must prepare and adapt. An integrated POS system allows toy stores and collector hubs to seamlessly connect the critical systems that keep a store running, from inventory management to customer interactions.

By being prepared to serve customers both in-store and online efficiently, retail toy and hobby outlets can thrive.

Power Up Your Store Today!

Revving Up Hobby and Toy Retail Stores Using an Integrated POS System

The stores that embrace an integrated hobby and toy store POS system are the ones that will be able to meet the demands of passionate parents, collectors, and enthusiasts!

Streamlining the Sale Process at the Point of Sale and eCommerce Website

Retail stores can simplify the process in-store in a few easy ways:

Optimizing the eCommerce shopping and purchase process is simple, too:

Pro Tip:

Collecting Data and Crafting Efficient Digital Marketing Campaigns

Build an Online Presence for your Hobby and Toy Store

Pro Tip:

Executing a Successful Inventory Management Strategy for Fast Fulfillment

Streamline Inventory Receiving and Shipping

Maintain Accurate Counts and Reconciliation

Plan Demand Forecasting and Reordering

Driving a Comprehensive Loyalty Rewards and Membership Program

Birthdays

Holidays

Seasonal

Clearance

Brand-Specific

Using a Robust Accounting Program with the POS Software for Quick Business Analysis

Labor Management

Accounting and ERP Integration

Pro Tip:

Insulating Hobby and Toy Stores to be Ready for Future Industry Challenges

Retail Resources You May Be Interested In…

Top 5 POS Systems for Small Businesses

How Retailers Can Navigate Through An Endless Sea of Customer Types

How To Price Wholesale Inventory: A Complete Guide For Wholesalers

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Revving Up Hobby and Toy Retail Stores Using an Integrated POS System

The stores that embrace an integrated hobby and toy store POS system are the ones that will be able to meet the demands of passionate parents, collectors, and enthusiasts!

Streamlining the Sale Process at the Point of Sale and eCommerce Website

Retail stores can simplify the process in-store in a few easy ways:

Optimizing the eCommerce shopping and purchase process is simple, too:

Collecting Data and Crafting Efficient Digital Marketing Campaigns

Build an Online Presence for your Hobby and Toy Store

Executing a Successful Inventory Management Strategy for Fast Fulfillment

Driving a Comprehensive Loyalty Rewards and Membership Program

Using a Robust Accounting Program with the POS Software for Quick Business Analysis

Labor Management

Accounting and ERP Integration

Insulating Hobby and Toy Stores to be Ready for Future Industry Challenges

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Retail Resources You May Be Interested In…