Top 54 Tablet POS Systems Software (Mar 2023)

2023's Best 55 Tablet POS Systems Systems

Shlomi LaviShlomi Lavi / Mar 02, 2023

We publish unbiased reviews. Our opinions are our own and are not influenced by payments from advertisers. This content is reader-supported, which means if you leave your details with us we may earn a commission. Learn why ITQlick is free .

1. Toast POS

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $165 per month
  • Dec 28, 2022
Compare Toast POS Vs. Toast POS

Toast POS is a simple yet powerful all-in-one point of sale (POS) software designed to supercharge the operations in a restaurant setting.


2. Rezku POS Software

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $99 per license
  • Mar 09, 2022
Compare Rezku POS Software Vs. Toast POS

Rezku POS is a cloud-hosted iPad point of sale solution designed to serve all categories of restaurants and bars, and that can also be installed on-premise. The primary features of Rezku POS include staff management, advanced menus, tableside ordering, customized floor plans, mobile access, online o...


3. Lavu

  • Best for: SMBs
  • Price: starts at $59 per month
  • Mar 02, 2023
Compare Lavu Vs. Toast POS

Lave software is a cloud-hosted iPad Point of Sale (POS) system that is specifically engineered to serve the restaurant industry. The platform targets both quick-service and full-service dining establishments in the small to large enterprise settings.


4. Revel iPad POS

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $99 per terminal/month
  • Mar 09, 2022
Compare Revel iPad POS Vs. Toast POS

Revel iPad POS software is a point-of-sale solution that is designed to transform businesses. The solution has a number of features that include a gift card tool that increases sales, earn new ones by offering gift cards and retain old customers.


5. Breadcrumb

  • Best for: SMBs
  • Price: starts at $59 per month
  • Mar 09, 2022
Compare Breadcrumb Vs. Toast POS

Breadcrumb is a point of sales/POS management software giving users with an extensive suite of features optimized for Apple devices. Aside from POS system, payment solutions, time clock and check and table management functionalities are also integrated with it.


6. TouchBistro

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $69 per month
  • Mar 02, 2023
Compare TouchBistro Vs. Toast POS

**EMV Ready!** TouchBistro iPad POS has been reviewed as the Best Restaurant POS by Business News Daily and is the #1 food and beverage app in 34 countries worldwide. TouchBistro is designed specifically for the restaurant industry. Every ounce of engineering and design put into TouchBistro i...


7. LightSpeed

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $69 per month
  • Mar 10, 2022
Compare LightSpeed Vs. Toast POS

LightSpeed software is a point of sale solution that helps retailers run their businesses. The solution has a number of capabilities that include merchant services that manage all transactions from one place and increases security.


8. Lightspeed Restaurant

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $39 per month
  • Mar 11, 2022
Compare Lightspeed Restaurant Vs. Toast POS

Lightspeed Restaurant is a cloud-based, comprehensive point of sales (POS) system helping the users in managing the staff, serving the customers and monitoring performance, so they can ensure that the guests receive the best.


9. Springboard Retail Software

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $80 per month
  • Jun 01, 2022
Compare Springboard Retail Software Vs. Toast POS

Heartland Point of Sale is a cloud-based POS and retail management software that offers a fresh approach to POS solutions and a better retail software experience. Starting from item entry via look up or scan to customer lookup and creation, this POS system offers all the features you need and is als...


10. Yelp Reservations

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $249 per month
  • May 20, 2022
Compare Yelp Reservations Vs. Toast POS

Yelp Reservations is an online task management software for restaurants to locate more diners, manage table reservations, increase takeouts and delivery, and advertise your restaurant business.


Pricing Guide - Tablet POS Systems Software:

Retail POS Price Range

Most retail point of sale products in the market have pricing based on the number of users, physical locations, machines, or sales outlet. Most products are priced per month, and their pricing can be divided into three tiers, starting from $29 to $39, $39 to $75, and then $75 upwards.

These are the price ranges for basic offerings of most vendors; hence, premium offerings which come with more features cost more. For example, Ricochet pricing starts from $99 per month, KORONA costs about $49 per month, and WooPOS pricing starts from $29 per month. Perpetual licences can also be bought for some retail POS software. An example is RetailEdge which can be bought with a one-time fee of $449.

In addition, retail POS vendors target different organization sizes, so business size determines the price.

  • Small Businesses that are looking for a retail POS system can expect to pay between $25 to $50 on a monthly basis. For instance, Epos Now pricing starts from $39 per month, and ThriftCart starts from $50 per location, per month. Meanwhile, some products have freemium plans for small business, while some products are completely free. For example, HadePay is 100-percent free to use.
  • Medium Businesses can expect pricing points between $50 to $120 for a retail POS system monthly. For example, Heartland Retail pricing starts from around $99 per month, LightSpeed POS from $69 per month, and Realtime Cloud from around $80 per month. The number of user accounts paid for on each plan can also attract discounts, depending on the pricing terms from each vendor.
  • Large Businesses can expect prices that fall between the range of $120 to $500 for a retail POS system monthly. For example, RUnit Realtime Cloud pricing starts from $258 per machine monthly, WinWard System Five from around $125 per month, and Epicor Retail Solutions costs around $350 per month for each user account. However, many vendors do not disclose their pricing for large businesses so as to enable them to adjust their pricing based on the need of each organization.

Here are some Retail POS best of breeds and their price ranges are as follows:

  • Retail Management Software Retail management products can be divided into three tiers, and the price ranges for each tier are $28 to $39, $39 to $83, and $83 above. Also, most retail management products are priced on a monthly basis per user or physical location managed with the software. For example, Quant Retail pricing starts from $180 per user monthly, PHP Point of Sale from $39 per month, and POSExpress costs up to $190 per month.
  • iPad POS Most iPad POS products in the market are priced per user or per usage based on a monthly basis. Their price points fall into two tiers, starting from $0 to $30, and then $30 to $85. For example, TillPoint pricing starts from $29 per month, Ambur POS from around $60 per month, and Loyverse pricing starts from $0.01 per usage every month. Meanwhile, some iPad POS software have perpetual licenses that can be bought with a one-time fee; an example is Digital Dining which costs $10,000.
  • Bar POS Software Bar POS products in the market can be divided into two tiers, with each having a different price range depending on the robustness of features. The price ranges fall within $15 to $40 and $40 to $85. For example, BePOZ Point of Sale pricing starts from $69 per month, HarbourTouch POS from $29 per month, and Unicenta from $49 monthly.
  • Restaurant POS Software For a restaurant POS software, users can expect to pay between the ranges of $50 to $100 above per user, table, or managed location. For example, SpotOn Restaurant pricing starts from $65 monthly, Toast POS from $79 per month, and Upserve POS pricing is around $59 monthly. However, most products may incur extra one-time fees that fall between $2,000 to $7,000 because they require additional hardware equipment to run.
  • Retail Management POS Most Retail Management POS software in the market are priced on a per-user, per-month basis, and their price can fall between three ranges, from $0 to $50, $50 to $100, and then $100+ upwards. For example, Lavu pricing starts from $69 per month, PoinOS from $39 per user monthly, and TouchBistro from around $70 per user monthly.

11. Nobly POS Software

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $49 per month
  • Jun 07, 2022
Compare Nobly POS Software Vs. Toast POS

Nobly POS is a cloud-based Retail & POS software that enables retailers to garner more insights on their products through analytical tools and reports.


12. CAKE Point of Sale

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $69 per month
  • Jul 14, 2022
Compare CAKE Point of Sale Vs. Toast POS

CAKE Point of Sale is a cloud-based Restaurant POS software that assists restaurant owners in speeding up order processes and establishing custom workflows.


13. Vend

  • Best for: SMBs
  • Price: starts at $99 per month
  • Jul 02, 2022
Compare Vend Vs. Toast POS

Vend is a cloud-based and on-premise Point of sale system that is specifically designed for use in businesses of all sizes from small-sized businesses, medium-sized businesses, and large enterprises.


14. Smartwerks

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $119 per month
  • Aug 18, 2022
Compare Smartwerks Vs. Toast POS

Smartwerks is a cloud-based Point of Sale software with inventory and accounting solutions. It provides users with a platform where they can sell their products faster, optimize their inventory, reward customer loyalty, and manage item repairs.


15. Preferred POS Software

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $89.95 per license
  • May 16, 2022
Compare Preferred POS Software Vs. Toast POS

Preferred POS Software is a trending cloud-based Retail-POS software, it is designed to support small and medium size business. Preferred POS Software received a rating of 3 from ITQlick team. The software cost is considered affordable (1.2/5) when compared to alternative solutions.


16. BarTab Software

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $39 per feature/month
  • May 16, 2022
Compare BarTab Software Vs. Toast POS

BarTab Software is an on-premise and cloud-based point of sale solution that is designed for bars and pubs that runs on iPads. BarTab Software is a tool that maintains the till reports which provide notifications in case of a variance occurrence.


17. Clover POS

  • Best for: SMBs
  • Price: starts at $39.95 per license
  • May 15, 2022
Compare Clover POS Vs. Toast POS

Clover POS is an integrated server-based and cloud-based point-of-sale (POS) system designed to offer retailers built-in payment solutions. Some of its core features include gift card management, order tracking, data reporting, a point of sale and reporting among others.


18. RetailEdge

  • Best for: SMBs
  • Price: starts at $495 per license
  • Nov 23, 2022
Compare RetailEdge Vs. Toast POS

RetailEdge is an on-premise retail point-of-sale software solution that is designed to serve the small and mid-size businesses. With the software, a user can manage to have multiple location support as well as a mobile POS.


19. Cashier Live

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $75 per store/month
  • May 18, 2022
Compare Cashier Live Vs. Toast POS

Cashier Live is cloud-based retail Point of Sale (POS) which was designed to assist the store managers and owners run their businesses on different devices. The solution core features include Point of sale, inventory, and reporting.


20. POSbistro

  • Best for: SMBs
  • Price: starts at $49 per month
  • May 24, 2022
Compare POSbistro Vs. Toast POS

POSBistro is a cloud-based Restaurant POS software that enables employees to manage tableside ordering, payment processing, and order.


21. KORONA

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $49 per month
  • May 23, 2022
Compare KORONA Vs. Toast POS

Korona is a cloud-based point of sales (POS) software that is designed for all retailer sizes. Integrated in this POS module are CRM and inventory management.


22. Rapid Bev POS Software

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price:
  • Jun 10, 2022
Compare Rapid Bev POS Software Vs. Toast POS

Rapid Bev POS software is a comprehensive cloud-based point of sale platform mainly built to serve wine shops, liquor stores, breweries, wineries, and wholesale distributors. The core features of Rapid Bev POS are inventory management, security, labor management, reporting, e-commerce, accounting, a...


23. Phorest Salon Software

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $99 per month
  • Jun 22, 2022
Compare Phorest Salon Software Vs. Toast POS

Phorest Salon Software is a growing cloud-based Retail-POS software, it is designed to support small, medium and large size business. Phorest Salon Software received a rating of 4.9 from ITQlick team. The software cost is considered affordable (1.4/5) when compared to alternative solutions.


24. Salonbooker

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $129 per month
  • Dec 30, 2022
Compare Salonbooker Vs. Toast POS

Salonbooker is a salon management and scheduling solution for salon businesses of all sizes. It offers online booking and scheduling and the management of day-to-day activities. The software was designed and launched by Booker Software Inc headquartered in New York, United States.


25. Instore

  • Best for: SMBs
  • Price: starts at $39 per feature/month
  • Jun 24, 2022
Compare Instore Vs. Toast POS

Instore is a point of sale management solution for businesses of all sizes. It offers support for multiple payment methods along with inventory management, analytics, and other services. The software was developed and launched by Own Group Inc headquartered in California, United States.


26. Restaurant Manager

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $199 per license
  • Jun 23, 2022
Compare Restaurant Manager Vs. Toast POS

Restaurant Manager is a Point Of Sale (POS) software that can be efficiently used in any food distribution points. This software can be easily tailored to fit the individual needs of any restaurant. Users can carry out a number of functions, including inventory management, ordering, mobile managemen...


27. NTS Retail Suite

  • Best for: Large business
  • Price: starts at $600 per license
  • Jul 12, 2022
Compare NTS Retail Suite Vs. Toast POS

The NTS Retail Suite is developed by NTS New Technology Systems and it is designed to provide users with server-based solutions and help them in keeping communication with their customers.


28. BrewPOS

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $69 per license
  • Mar 11, 2022
Compare BrewPOS Vs. Toast POS

BrewPOS is a point of sale software designed for businesses to manage their customers, finances and employees. The software helps users split tickets by the number of people, seats, items ordered or partial items.


29. ITWERCS POS

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $160 per month
  • May 06, 2022
Compare ITWERCS POS Vs. Toast POS

ITWERCS is a hospitality software that enables restaurant operators to create schedules for team members across multiple locations and analyze insights from the restaurant.


30. LS Retail

  • Best for: Large business
  • Price:
  • Mar 28, 2022
Compare LS Retail Vs. Toast POS

LS Retail is a business management and POS software that helps businesses understand and adapt to changing customer buying habits and manage product purchases and sales.


31. HungerRush

  • Best for: SMBs
  • Price:
  • May 17, 2022
Compare HungerRush Vs. Toast POS

Multi-functional SaaS platform with modular apps to quickly address challenges and evolve with consumer preference


32. RMS POS

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price:
  • Feb 10, 2022
Compare RMS POS Vs. Toast POS

RMS POS is a POS software that helps businesses manage their inventory, improve customer service and generate real-time reports. Businesses can utilize this software to manage staff and sales by tracking staff performance and see which employee is behind transactions that improved profit.


33. Rain POS

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $99 per user/month
  • Jul 12, 2022
Compare Rain POS Vs. Toast POS

Rain POS is a web-based point of sale (POS) system and is integrated with the user’s website. This software makes inventory management easy and simple. User’s items are automatically updated every time an item is sold or added.


34. STORIS Software

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $529 per license
  • Jul 24, 2022
Compare STORIS Software Vs. Toast POS

STORIS is a Unified Commerce Solution made specifically for home furnishing and appliance retailers. STORIS Software is deployable through the cloud on a subscription basis or on-premise through a one-time license.


35. WinRetail

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $10,000 per license
  • Jul 15, 2022
Compare WinRetail Vs. Toast POS

WinRetail is a software tool for enterprise and point of sale (POS) management designed for mid-size retailers. The main features of the product are point of sale and order management, mobile POS, ecommerce, multi-sales channels, merchandise and assortment planning, pricing and promotion, purchase o...


36. Swim Jewellery Software

  • Best for: SMBs
  • Price: starts at $79 per month
  • Jul 26, 2022
Compare Swim Jewellery Software Vs. Toast POS

Swim Jewelry Software is a web based POS management software solution for jewelry businesses. The software was designed by Octahedron Pty Ltd., headquartered in Queensland, Australia. It offers various applications for retail accounting, CRM, inventory management and repair. 


37. CORESense

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $150 per month
  • Jul 26, 2022
Compare CORESense Vs. Toast POS

CORESense is end-to-end cloud based retail management software. The software offers solutions for e-Commence, order management, customer relationship and marketing all in one system. The software was developed and launched by CORESense Inc. which is headquartered in Saratoga Springs, New York. CO...


38. iVend Retail

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $160 per month
  • Jul 25, 2022
Compare iVend Retail Vs. Toast POS

iVend Retail is a cloud-based as well as an on-premise point of sale system for retailers as well as wholesalers. The software helps retailers in various industries manage their sales in one platform and makes sure that the process of selling is simplified.


39. RQ Retail Management

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $99 per month
  • Aug 02, 2022
Compare RQ Retail Management Vs. Toast POS

RQ is point of sale (POS) and retail management software designed for businesses selling wireless devices and services. Its core modules include point of sale, inventory management, customer relationship management (CRM) and accounting and reconciliation and online shop widgets. Additional modules a...


40. Bepoz

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $69 per month
  • Aug 04, 2022
Compare Bepoz Vs. Toast POS

Bepoz is a cloud-based point-of-sale (POS) solution designed for single & multi-location restaurant, retail operations, and admissions businesses. The solution helps the user manage multiple locations, get mobile & go anywhere as well as engage the customers.


41. Zoey

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $299 per month
  • Sep 07, 2022
Compare Zoey Vs. Toast POS

Zoey is an order fulfillment software designed to help businesses take orders online remotely. The mobile app allows users to look up product details and customer-specific pricing, and they can create quotes and orders remotely.


42. Thr!ve

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $179 per month
  • Sep 29, 2022
Compare Thr!ve Vs. Toast POS

Thr!ve is a point of sale/POS software developed by Granbury Restaurant Solutions. This software is built to be a mobile POS management tool using mobile devices. Mainly, this software caters to pizza delivery.


43. Retail Pro

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $11,000 per license
  • Sep 17, 2022
Compare Retail Pro Vs. Toast POS

Retail Pro software is a powerful point of sale and retail management solution. The solution has a number of features that include an end-to-end integration tool that integrates data from key retail applications.


44. CannaPoint Software

  • Best for: SMBs
  • Price:
  • Jan 28, 2023
Compare CannaPoint Software Vs. Toast POS

CannaPoint Software is a growing cloud-based Retail-POS software, it is designed to support small and medium size business. CannaPoint Software received a rating of 2.5 from ITQlick team. The software cost is considered average (3.5/5) when compared to other solutions in their category.


45. Runit RealTime

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $258 per month
  • Oct 04, 2022
Compare Runit RealTime Vs. Toast POS

Runit RealTime is hosted point of service software for retail management designed for stores of various sizes. The main features of the product include eReceipts, business intelligence, ecommerce integration, inventory management, auto distribution, security customization and seamless credit card pr...


46. iRetail

  • Best for: Medium and large size businesses
  • Price:
  • Apr 18, 2022
Compare iRetail Vs. Toast POS

iRetail is a fast growing cloud-based Retail-POS software, it is designed to support medium and large size business. iRetail received a rating of 5 from ITQlick team. The software cost is considered a bit pricey (4.7/5) vs their competitors.


47. OneStep POS Software

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $49 per month
  • Oct 05, 2022
Compare OneStep POS Software Vs. Toast POS

OneStep is point of sale and distribution software for business management. The software was designed and launched by Business Control System headquartered in New Jersey, United States. The software provides affordable automation solutions that are simple to implement and easy to use. 


48. Bravo Pawn Systems Software

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $129 per month
  • Jan 28, 2023
Compare Bravo Pawn Systems Software Vs. Toast POS

Bravo Pawn Systems Software is a growing cloud-based Retail-POS software, it is designed to support small and medium size business. Bravo Pawn Systems Software received a rating of 4.7 from ITQlick team. The software cost is considered affordable (2.4/5) when compared to alternative solutions.


49. Acme POS

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $159 per month
  • Oct 04, 2022
Compare Acme POS Vs. Toast POS

Acme POS is a point of sale management solution for businesses of all sizes. Its capabilities include inventory management, customer management, employee management, and others. The software was designed and launched by Total Business Ware headquartered in Minnesota, United States.


50. Talech Register

  • Best for: Small businesses and start ups
  • Price: starts at $29 per month
  • Jan 26, 2023
Compare Talech Register Vs. Toast POS

Talech Register is a point of sales (POS) that is deployed on mobile. Integrated in the POS module are the customer management and inventory management. It is also cloud-based and hence, information can be accessed anytime and anywhere using iPad or computers.


51. MaitreD Software Suite

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $99 per month
  • Jan 31, 2023
Compare MaitreD Software Suite Vs. Toast POS

Maitre’D POS is a point of sale solution for restaurants and restaurant managers that can help users to fulfill all their specific restaurant management needs. The point of sale solution is highly customizable and offers both tablet-based and traditional point of sale and back-office management tool...


52. ChainDrive

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $1,000 per license
  • Jan 31, 2023
Compare ChainDrive Vs. Toast POS

ChainDrive is a software product for point of sale (POS) services and retail management designed for businesses selling products and services. The features of the tool are POS, customer relationship management (CRM), mobile assistant, operations management, product management, warehouse management, ...


53. RetailPoint Point of Sale

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $139 per month
  • Feb 10, 2022
Compare RetailPoint Point of Sale Vs. Toast POS

The RetailPoint Point of Sales by RetailPoint by the Enspire Commerce Company is a cloud-based point of sale/POS software helping users with the management of the daily operations of the business in real time.


54. Cova Dispensary POS

  • Best for: Small, medium and large size businesses
  • Price: starts at $349 per workstation
  • Feb 14, 2022
Compare Cova Dispensary POS Vs. Toast POS

Cova Dispensary POS software is a cloud-hosted or on-premise point of sale solution built for cannabis dispensaries of any size. The core features of Cova Dispensary POS include inventory management, a touchscreen interface, reporting, compliance, integrations, task automation, insights on the go, a...



A Buyer's Guide to Business Software Solutions

How to Evaluate and Buy Business Software
 
If you’re somehow puzzled if this article is only for a specific size of business, no, it’s not. This is for you SMEs, MNEs and start-ups software buyers. Also, we’re not talking about a specific software solution here. Whether the software solution that you’re planning to buy is for Accounting, Business Intelligence, ERP, CRM, Help Desk, Maintenance Management or other types of application, one thing is for sure; with the help of this article, you will be able to know the right process in evaluating and buying a business software solution.
 
We’ve been into the software business for years and we’re seeing a lot of nitty-gritty things that often bring confusions and hesitations to many companies looking for better software solutions. Some companies can’t afford to let go their legacy systems while a few is encountering technological snags once the new system is in place. While this is the underlying truth behind software acquisition and implementation, what’s exciting about buying a business software solution is that there is a clear and obvious proof that thousands of companies and corporations today are happy with the benefits this technology is bringing into their respective businesses.  There is a significant increase in their revenue and the growth is on-going. And it’s easy to say; many from the Fortune 500 companies are making a lot of money because of their smartly-acquired business software.
 
So, let’s get straight to the point. What should you do in order to acquire that business software that could make your organization achieve its goals? The answer to this is pretty straightforward: evaluate and buy that right business software. Yes, that’s what you need to do and here’s the best manual from ITQlick.com that could certainly help you in doing that strategically.
 
Consider the Needs of Your Organization
Let’s assume that at this point, the entire management team agreed that you are ready to invest on a certain software application. The budget has been compromised and the key persons who will be involved in the acquisition process were already identified. Therefore, it’s time to approach things the project management way.
 
Define the Project
Every business software solution is categorized base on application type, features, deployment model, market size and pricing model. Remember that our objective here is to evaluate and buy a business software product that will fit into the size and present needs of your business. So what the project management team should try to deal with first is to define the real requirements of your business exactly base on the categories set by the software industry. Moreover, by doing this activity, you are already narrowing down your search for the right solution. Now, consider bringing this list of FAQs to the project management and aim to come up with clear-cut answers.
 
  1. What type of software is needed? Is it Integrated-Suite, Best-of-Breed or Industry-Specific? Ask your CEO’s main agenda and find the perfect match from these available options.
  2. What are the core and secondary features? Are you looking for basic, advanced or hi-end features? List down the specific features per category and allow the department managers and supervisors to give their insights on this list.
  3. How are you going to deploy the system? Would it be on-premise, cloud-based, hosted, or mobile-based? Weigh these options with the help of your CIO.
  4. Are you going for Tier 1, Tier 2 or Tier 3 vendors? Their offered solutions are base on the size of their target market - SMEs, MNEs or start-ups. Seek your CFO’s advice as it is important to match your financial capacity against the cost of the solution that the providers have for you.
  5. Are you willing to pay for the perpetuity software license or a subscription-based solution is way better? How many users are there and what would be their roles in using the system? Solicit feedbacks from future end users for they know better what challenges and risks might possibly come along their way when they’re using the system.
 
Finalize the BOM or List of Requirements
After providing definite answers on the above questions, we can say that the project has already been defined. Your procurement team is now ready to do their role in the acquisition process of this solution. However, in order for them to execute their job properly, they must have the complete list of requirements - features, specifications, hardware, and the software product. In other words, the Bill-of-Materials (BOM) that is final, complete and well-prepared must be handed over to the procurement director. Needless to say, it is very important that everybody is following the company purchasing and procurement protocols at all times.  
 
Request for Proposal (RFP)
The RFP process will bring everything into formality. Since you’re more likely in a line of business that doesn’t regularly buy software products, it is of critical importance that your RFP is well-structured before you send it to your prospect solution providers.
 
Draft the RFP
An RFP that contains all the relevant information as discussed during the project management meetings will enable the providers to return back to you their proposal that is complete and substantial. Therefore, your RFP should basically contain the following:
 
Brief Introduction
  • Company Name
  • Mission and Goals
  • Purpose of the RFP (or the need for software solution)
Business Background
  • Organizational Structure
  • Current Situation (IT infrastructure, system currently in-use, system issues and desired solutions, etc.)
  • Major Objectives of the Software Purchase
Request for Specific Requirements
  • Solution Functionality
  • System Specifications
  • Vendor Company Information
  • Price Model, Service Plans, Package Options
Other Important Inquiries (if necessary)
 
Send the RFP
Well-structured RFP will bring a lot of advantages especially when the proposals from various providers are received and then subjected for review and analysis. Send your RFP to at least three to five providers (or prospects which you have already shortlisted during the project definition phase). Depending on the complexity of the solution, most vendors will send their proposal in a matter of time, which could be around 4 to 6 weeks for Integrated-Suite solution.
 
Why still send RFP?
Is there really a need for RFP if your preferred solution (like cloud-based) and the service plans or packages are already displayed on the vendor’s website? Well, yes, you still need to undergo the RFP process. For most sales people, they certainly know that those figures appearing in the vendor’s website are usually the “list price” and not the “actual price”. More importantly, the vendor’s proposal (response to RFP) will serve as your main basis for the negotiation. Therefore, sending an RFP is a strict requirement.
 
Follow up questions relevant to RFP
More often than not, questions and concerns will be raised by the vendors to whom you send the RFP. You have to entertain them with utmost professionalism. Solution providers who are seeking further clarifications relevant to the RFP are consisting of professional software experts who wants to help your organization as much as they can. Entertain them but at the same time, always be cautious when providing additional information which you know is confidential or proprietary.
 
Evaluate the Proposals
Always refer to your finalized BOM when tabulating the contents of each proposal. Part of this process is to check the features that are available from this certain vendor and to cross out those that are not. While using spreadsheet aids the tabulation process, laying down the document proposals on the table and allowing your project management team to review them one by one should always be conducted. Evaluating the proposals in full force can help strengthen your decision-making process. Have another round of brain-storming session and come with the name of your preferred solution provider.
 
When selecting the final vendor, always promote the best interest of your organization. Consider answering these questions with full sincerity.
 
  1. Which vendor can provide the long-term benefits to your organization?
  2. Which vendor can provide the best and honest service from acquisition to full implementation?
  3. Which vendor is willing to devote most of its time in better serving its client?
 
Contact this solution provider and in your own strategic approach, try to get the answers to those three important questions above. In most cases, vendor who really wants to prove its craft will offer product demos on a higher level. Others will even invite you to check their already deployed and working systems. Feel free to connect with this type of vendor. Conduct simulation and testing, be it a cloud-based or on-premise solution. Examine all aspects and angles especially those that your project management team want to really know in-depth. For as long as it could help you arrive at a better decision, consider doing all the options available – for the interest of the organization.
 
Enter the Negotiation Process
Most solutions providers can be flexible in terms of pricing. Although the final say is oftentimes on the mouth of the sales person from the vendor’s side, a good negotiation process can always deliver a win-win situation to both parties involve. While negotiation sometimes cannot be settled in one sitting session, always be honest with your intentions whenever negotiating with your provider. If it’s about your budget, justify it with clarity. If it’s about their service plans, tell them what’s lacking or missing on their solution. At the end of the day, the most important event that should happen is that both of you are shaking hands because of a well done negotiation process.
 
Seal the Contract
So what are you going to do on a contract that involves a significant amount of investment? There are three project management approaches for this.
 
  1. Pass the ball to you legal team. They know what to do and more or less they will tell you if there is something wrong with the contract. Give them enough time to review before they affix their signature and then finally seal the contract.
  2. Hire a consultant base on the technical aspect that you want to clarify in the contract. If it’s the Scope of Work (SOW), a software implementation expert is the right person. If it is related to complex legal terms and conditions, a lawyer can help. If it has something to do with money, invite an accountant to conduct a thorough review and computation if necessary.
  3. Always consider consulting your project management team. Remember that the CIO, CFO and CEO are all team members. They will be the signatories and they know what’s best for the interest of the company when signing a contract agreement.
 
From evaluation to buying stage, it is important that the project manager must take full responsibility of monitoring all the works identified and distributed among team members. This is why delegating the right project manager is also an important consideration when buying a business software solution. And again, ITQlick.com wants to emphasize that whatever the size of your company is, using the project management approach will always lead you into a better outcome – that is getting what you paid for the right business software solution. 

Finding the right business software for your business
Proper business software selections are the precursor to successful deployment and business growth. Finding the right solutions doesnít have to be complicated, and it doesnít have to take days or weeks of your time.

After researching over 5,000 systems, we can identify the best solution for companies of all shapes and sizes. ITQlick.com is 100% free for software buyers.



Auditor - Shlomi Lavi

Website Linkedin profile Facebook Twitter

Shlomi Lavi is an entrepreneur and founder of ITQlick.com. He holds a Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) in Information Systems Engineering from Ben Gurion University in Israel. Shlomi brings 17 years of global IT and IS management experience as a consultant and implementation expert for small, medium and large-sized (global) companies. Shlomi’s goal is to share the best knowledge and news about information systems so you can make smarter buying decisions for your business.