Now's the time to prep your retail operations for sunny summer spending.

When you think of those warm summer months, images of slumbering, lazy times might come to mind. As a business owner interested in making a robust profit every month of the year, this isn’t exactly the scenario you want to promote for your company. The good news is that there are things you can do to jump-start your retail operations even during the hottest and traditionally slowest selling times of the year.

Strengthen your infrastructure.

Whether you operate solely online, in person, or are a hybrid of both, you inevitably have an underlying system of staff, equipment, and software that keeps everything running smoothly. Before summer comes, you need to take steps to ensure that every element of this ecosystem is up-to-date and in good working order.

Start with your smart POS. If you’re not sure what we’re talking about here, it’s time for a quick primer. Your intelligent POS is a conglomeration of software and hardware that combine to not only accept credit cards to conduct customer payments but also work to streamline virtually every aspect of your company’s operations. Most POS systems consist of the following.

• A terminal or tablet that allows you and your customer to access information about the transaction. It can also be used by you and your staff for back-office functions.
• Card readers that gather and transmit information from customers’ credit and debit cards and wearable devices in order to complete payments.
• Barcode scanners.
• Receipt printers.
• Cash drawers.
• Software that acts as the brains behind the POS and coordinates multiple business functions in addition to payment processing.

When your POS is current and you take advantage of all its functions, you can streamline numerous day-to-day activities, thus making running your company easier and more efficient.

Get a handle on your inventory.

One of the best ways to increase sales during that languorous summer season is to make the most of each and every piece of inventory you have in stock. When you run out of a top seller, customers are left unsatisfied and frustrated. Meanwhile, you might be needlessly storing excess quantities of other items that people don’t even want. Both of these situations are signs of poor inventory management.

Not so long ago, the solution to this problem would have involved countless hours of your time. You would have needed to sort through piles of receipts and pored over data in order to manually create some sort of report that would have allowed you to make predictions about how to improve your buying strategies. Thanks to today’s POS solutions, you can say goodbye to this arduous work once and for all.

That’s because you have a barcode scanner that is equipped to work in tandem with the rest of your POS to record each item as it enters your warehouse from your suppliers. Your system will keep track of it throughout its lifespan, including when it is sold and even to whom. The system will even alert you that stock is running low in plenty of time to enable you to reorder it before it is totally depleted. By that same token, you will be able to effortlessly create reports that tell you what is not flying off the shelves, enabling you to decide what steps you should take to correct the situation.

Rev up your social media presence.

Accelerating sales does not happen by accident. In fact, one of the best ways to gain buyers’ attention is to make a name for yourself on sites like YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook, just to name a few. It takes time and some initial research and familiarization, but we promise that you will never regret the effort you put into creating, maintaining, and updating your social media sites.

To that end, be creative, and be diverse in your content style. In addition to text, jazz up your pages with visual content. Encourage your best customers to contribute their thoughts, reviews and product hacks. They will often be your best and most convincing brand ambassadors.

Connect with partners.

Whether it’s local businesses in your community, affiliates that you link your online page to, or micro and macro influencers, you should always hitch your star to those of other successful people and stores. Customers are quick to resonate with positive feedback, and they love to be associated with successful brands and people they recognize. Especially during a time of the year when profits can slump, these connections can prove to be invaluable.

June, July, and August might seem like they are worlds away from the hustle and bustle of that all-important Christmas holiday rush. However, they don’t need to drag. Once your systems and inventory are set up for success, you can optimize your social media presence and capitalize on as many relationships with contacts and influencers as possible. Combine all of these tools, and what you will have is an effective, diversified foundation that will allow you to turn those lazy, hazy days into cash in your business account.