Concluding this blog series examining two of the different options for POS and store systems hardware repairs – on-site support and depot repair – we consider the important area of
Service
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It is sometimes hard to quantify this factor, but if you are receiving poor customer service your frustrations and potentially your expenditure, will soon increase.
The large high-profile, on-site service providers are often accessible 24/7 via call centers. Depending on your importance to them, they may also assign you a specific individual to be your point of contact and manage your account. This can be reassuring, along with the knowledge that they will deploy repair technicians to any of your sites within the stipulated timeframe of your contract.
However, stripping this away, you are ultimately paying for the service delivered by the on-site repair technicians. Additional support is meaningless if the quality of their repair work isn’t good enough.
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In addition, support departments of large organizations can be problematic. For example, call centers have been known to ”lose” service calls when problems are transferred between departments and no one person takes ownership. Even if you are assigned a dedicated contact, staff turnover is typically higher at larger organizations so your point of contact may frequently change. You could be left dealing with someone inexperienced and lacking knowledge about your operation or industry. Ultimately if you select an on-site repair service, you need to be satisfied that you will be looked after by the company and given a service tailored to your needs, rather than being seen as a small fish in a big pond of other customers.
Depot repair providers contrast markedly from the large, on-site repair companies, often due to the size of the business. Their smaller presence can increase flexibility and provide better customer service with, when necessary, direct contact to the technicians who perform the repairs.
A smaller depot repair provider has to focus more on customer retention compared to their bigger on-site competitors. They often strive to add extra value for their customers by handling warranty work for the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and providing advance exchange services to rival the on-site support model for little or no additional cost.
Depot repair companies don’t have the marketing budget of large on-site service providers, and so the industry is sometimes not aware of them. So if a depot service is chosen, it is imperative at the outset to confirm that they are established, skilled and in a position to provide a long-term, stable service. Reputable vendors should be able to provide references and case studies from existing customers to assist.
Some adjustments will be needed if you choose a depot for advance exchange of POS hardware. This blog series has already covered the differences in turnaround time and these will have to be factored into your day-to-day management. Additionally, if a depot is used for advance exchange then company employees will need the basic technical skills to swap out defective equipment on-site. They may need to access some support from a company helpdesk or other function in order to do this. Again, a depot repair company may be able to provide this if there are no in-house capabilities.
Takeaways
• Quality customer service and repair work from your provider is critical.
• Do not underestimate smaller players – they can have the skills and support of larger companies, but may lack industry visibility.
• Carefully study the costs and benefits of each different approaches to maintain hardware.
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Point of sale (POS) repair can be a financial minefield. Following some basic advice will always stand you in good stead. One piece is this –
Never pay for 'troubleshooting'.
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It is a common practice in the industry for some providers start to charge before any repair work is done. This occurs when vendors charge an “evaluation fee” to inspect the broken hardware. However, if the vendor is unable to complete the repair, that initial fee is still billed.
In our customer review document for the first half 2012, we received this additional comment when respondents were asked about the value for money received:
“The last company I worked with charged an excessive amount just to troubleshoot the problem, then repairs were added on top of that cost.”
You can be satisfied with the knowledge that you have found a reputable POS repair vendor if they promote some or all of the following:
• A “no fix, no fee” policy or similar offer.
• Willingness to complete sample repairs on a batch of your equipment, so you can understand the quality of their work and obtain an estimate of the costs should you proceed with a formal arrangement.
• A no-obligation, free evaluation of hardware and an estimate of the repair work, with a gesture to cover the shipping charges as an incentive.
Above all, it is about transparency. Vendors with dubious practices and hidden charges will not provide any value in the long term.
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Having point of sale (POS) and stores systems repaired on-site is one maintenance option that retailers with a large footprint can choose.
We are contrasting this with the advance exchange approach of faulty hardware repair in this latest blog series.
The second area we focus on is the comparative costs –
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Pricing
The on-site repair option can provide peace of mind with a fixed price contract. This means that all support is covered, with the outlay factored into appropriate yearly IT budgets. It may be the only option too, if you cannot permit hardware to be down for more than a few hours. Making sure that you receive this support within a stipulated time can be important.
The downside of this speedy response is the cost, as it is normally the most expensive option for support. The number of vendors who can provide complete nationwide coverage is small, so they charge a premium for the service and often require lengthy contract terms. This commitment can be difficult and costly to leave should the vendor’s service or the quality of their repair work deteriorate.
An on-site repair vendor will base costs on an estimate of how many call outs and repairs will be needed during an average year, based on knowledge of your equipment and their experience. However, this will always be weighted in their favor so that costs are covered and they make a profit. Plus their cost to maintain a large labor force and transport to many stores throughout the country is factored in too.
The pricing available from a depot to provide advance exchange repair services is markedly different. While some can offer inclusive options, a fixed-fee per item repair price usually proves the most cost effective. This is because you only pay for what is repaired. Often the vendor will warranty the complete unit and not just the specific component that is repaired - this provides increased return on investment over the life of the equipment. Plus many depots will cover the storage and warehousing of the advance exchange equipment for a minimal additional charge (if any at all). This helps the depot add value and encourages long-term relationships with their customers.
With no restrictive contract on fixed-fee, per item repairs, there is greater flexibility for retailers to quickly change vendors should the current supplier’s performance deteriorate. In fact, retailers may choose to hire different depots dependent on their particular specialty. For example, one depot to carry out printer repairs, one to fix barcode scanners and so on. This option can spread the risk between different vendors and should reduce disruption should one vendor’s performance suffer.
The downside to using multiple depot centers is the added administrative burden for a retailer to manage multiple suppliers. The incentive to source repairs from a sole depot can be additional cost savings as the selected vendor may be able to provide further discounts for increased volumes of work.
Takeaways
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A multi-site retailer has different options when it comes to repairing POS hardware and store systems. One of these is on-site support from a vendor.
In this latest blog series, we hope to aid those reviewing this option with a comparison to a rival advance exchange, inventory management service available from a depot repair center. We analyze three main areas, the first being -
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Repair turnaround time
An on-site support company will promote minimal downtime for critical store equipment as its main benefit. You can generally expect a response with a technician sent to a site within 4 to 24 hours of a hardware issue being reported.
However, this needs careful monitoring to check that visits meet the time set in a service level agreement. It may be the case that a technician quickly arrives, but do the circumstances dictate that the repair will be completed in a single visit? For example, do they carry the correct parts or will they have a replacement if hardware needs taking off-site for comprehensive work? Some on-site repairs can actually take many days to finally be completed.
Much rests on the individual technician in order to complete a successful first time repair. Their experience and knowledge is important. With a variety of POS devices from a multitude of manufacturers in use, will they be competent when it comes to your equipment and able carry out the work to your liking?
Shops, grocery stores and restaurants are busy, so it also needs to be confirmed whether a visit from a support vendor would cause further disruption. Will an on-site repair during opening hours be cumbersome and actually negatively impact staff or a customer’s experience?
In contrast, a depot will require more time to complete repair work compared to the response stated by on-site support vendors, due to the shipping of the hardware. However, replacement hardware could be sent to a site for the next working day if this is the arrangement with the depot and they are given sufficient notice. On arrival, a member of staff may need the basic expertise to swap over the equipment, along with the help of technical colleagues on a support desk at headquarters if they run into difficulties.
With advance exchange from a depot, repair work is carried out away from a customer’s premises. Faulty hardware comes in, is repaired and then held for future use. So without a deadline to complete a repair, a depot can avoid any premium charges for a guaranteed turnaround. In fact, a reputable depot may favor cost-effective per item repairs for a fixed fee and charge only nominal costs for the rest of the advance exchange service, as they are keen to extended added value.
A caveat to this method is the need for spare hardware to begin with, as the depot will need to draw on a pool of spare devices when sending out replacements. Plus prospective depots will need to be diligently reviewed to provide peace of mind that they have the skilled technicians, resources and reliability to carry out advance exchange repairs on your behalf.
Takeaways
• Is the turnaround time crucial to justify the cost of on-site support?
• Establish the turnaround time you can work to and then choose the option for repair that provides the greatest value.
• Note that extra hardware may be needed to begin an advance exchange service with a depot, along with staff resources to complete the swap out of hardware effectively.
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Elo All-in-One desktop touchcomputers are controlled by one main board and one hard drive. Most often, the operating system is Windows XP or Windows 7.
Two common faults arise:
Fault 1 –
More often than not, the unit does not function correctly because of a problem with the hard drive.
Fixed by –
Mercom technicians simply replace the hard drive with a new one. This allows the settings to be re-set to the factory default established by Elo.
Fault 2 –
There is an issue with the main board. A variety of components could fail on the main board to cause problems.
Note the faulty capacitator on the left (the black mark on the top) and how they look once replaced by the technician.
Fixed by –
With this fault the Mercom technician will determine what component(s) has failed on the main board. The appropriate parts will be replaced and the monitor repaired and tested.
Mercom charges a fixed fee for all repair work that covers parts, labor and return shipping. Work is also covered by an inclusive six-month Mercom warranty. This applies both to the original fault, and the rest of the unit. So, if another fault becomes apparent in that time, Mercom will repair it without charge.
A diagnosis of the fault and a guide to how it is fixed.
If your Elo touch screen monitor produces only a dull, faint background image then this is a sign that the LCD panel is failing. Once again, this expensive component can be repaired rather than completely replaced by swapping the lamps inside the LCD.
The repair consists of taking out the LCD, removing the bad lamps, replacing them with new ones and then soldering them into place. Once completed, the LCD can be returned to its position and the monitor secured. This will return the display to one which is bright and clear.
Occasionally, for the Elo ET1529L model only, this problem can also be caused by a bad inverter board. A qualified Mercom technician can diagnose this though and make the appropriate repair to the inverter.
An explanation of the fault and how we fix it.
This is one of the more common faults with Elo monitors, and it means that the lifespan of the LCD panel is coming to an end.
The display is clear and bright when in full working order. As it starts to age and deteriorate, the discoloration occurs. If this continues, the screen will eventually fail.
The LCD panel of the unit is the most expensive part, but thankfully the display can be fully repaired without completely replacing the LCD.
The problem is caused by back-light failure. The lamps that are used have a finite life, which varies depending on how frequently the monitor is used.
The repair consists of taking out the LCD, removing the bad lamps, replacing them with new ones and then soldering them. Once completed, the LCD can be put back in place and the monitor secured. This will return the display to one which is bright and clear.
Mercom repairs all out-of-warranty Elo Touchsystems monitors. There is a simple flat-rate charge, and a comprehensive 6-month warranty on the complete monitor.
To obtain a competitive price CLICK HERE
Mercom's recent work that covered the factors that need to be considered when selecting a depot to carry our POS and retail IT hardware repair work has been combined in one handy white paper.
It's based on the industry expertise and knowledge of Tony Alcock, Mercom's head of operations. Tony's vast experience allow him to provide a solid overview of the three key factors that need review, along with some further pointers that are relevant for decision making.
Those IT professionals at multi-site retailers who have decided that the depot model provides the best value for repairs of POS technology like registers, monitors, barcode scanners and receipt printers will benefit from the download if they are selecting their first vendor or reviewing the performance of the incumbent provider.
The white paper can be downloaded by CLICKING HERE
The NRF SmartBrief has reported a boost for retailers, with February's gain in sales the biggest for 5 months. They highlighted Commerce Department's report that said sales at clothing stores increased 1.8%, whilst garden and home-improvement store sales rose 1.4%.
Positive news from retailer close to Mercom in Houston - Francesca's Collections posted strong profits this week and further plans for growth, reports Chain Store Age. They added that 76 new boutiques are planned for the 2013 fiscal year.
Chain Store Age also features further news from a Texas retailer, with Dallas' Neiman Marcus announcing it's 42nd store opening in California, to make the state the retailer's third largest market following Texas and Florida.
Finally, thanks to Fast Casual for providing a visual representation of one of the industries that Mercom helps to serve:
![How hot is fast casual dining? [Infographic]](http://www.fastcasual.com/images/fcc-info.png)
How hot is fast casual dining? [Infographic]
Compliments of FastCasual.com and Fast Casual Executive Summit
We have taken an interest in the following news reported this week:
More for Ross
The NRF Smartbrief told us about the discount retailer's increasing store numbers. Ross believes the midwest offers growth potential, which began with 12 store openings in Chicago last year. This is part of 200 openings in recent years, which takes their total locations to over 1,040 and places them as the largest off-priced store in the country.
Big Growth
Chain Store Age have reported on positive figures and store openings at the Ascena Retail Group (home to brands including Dressbarn and Justice) and Big Lots.
With some store closures matched by 145 new openings, Ascena predict a total presence of 2600 by the end of the 2012 fiscal year. Big Lots antipctaes 90 store openings in the US during this year. Their most recent figures show 1451 stores operating in the country, along with 82 Liquidation World and LW stores in Canada.
Top presence
Those with a familiarity of fashion retail on the other side of the pond will recognize the arrival of Topshop. A Los Angeles store will join those already operating in New York City, Chicago and Las Vegas, reports Chain Store Age.