Are You Now Willing to Invest in Competitive POS Management Tools?

Today, we received a call from the IT Manager for a very large alcohol beverage distributor.  He was calling at the request of his company’s top executive to research OnTrak’s software applications. This distributor, like so many others, needed to get their “out-of-control” point-of-sale (POS) marketing materials expenses under control.  They were experiencing ever higher POS production and placement costs — without knowing the return on investment for those increasing expenses.  The distributor wanted to know “What did I get for my POS marketing spend?”

This distributor found that the on-line POS ordering system he implemented in 2009 only provided a method for his sales and marketing staff to enter orders.  Without additional tracking capability, his team was spending a lot more money on POS, without a comparable increase in sales.  What the distributor wanted was a way not only to easily order POS promotional materials, but a way to analyze how the business was affected, and to report on the impact of the POS.

The IT Manager shared, “Frankly, it feels like we’re spending too much, but we don’t actually know”. They could be spending the right amount or too little, but they had no way to measure and review what was produced, for what customers, and for what return.  This company only knew that POS spending was going through the roof, and that they had no way to determine if they were spending the right amounts, promoting the right brands, and for the right customers.

It appears this distributor is not considering outsourcing.  They know that outsourcing does not automatically save money.  Nor are they thinking they can shift the responsibility for developing POS marketing materials to an outside vendor and still claim they are responsive to their local customers.  

From our perspective, this distributor knows that simply deploying an automated POS ordering system is like giving someone an ATM or credit card and not expecting them to account for their spending. Unlimited spending is not an option for them.  But spending for the right results is the way to go, especially if they have tools to track, measure and manage that POS spending.

This distributor has learned that now is the time to invest in competitive POS management tools:

1. Because POS marketing promotions are critical to a beverage distributor’s revenue generation, and supportive of the core business functions of sales and marketing, and

2. Large and growing POS expenses are not bad in themselves, as long as they can be adequately tracked, measured, and managed.  Fortunately, the tools to maximize the value of your POS investments are right here at OnTrak

For more information on our Point-of-Sale Marketing Solutions, Click Here >> Products or call 800-513-9194.

— Mark Fullerton