General Facts about SBS and Keystroke POS Software:

Who is Specialized Business Solutions?

Specialized Business Solutions (SBS), incorporated in California in 1988, is dedicated to providing software and related services for transaction-intensive businesses in the retail, wholesale, and service sectors. SBS is the software developer and publisher of Keystroke Advanced POS, Keystroke Point Of Sale, and Digital Sign Controller.

The entire staff at SBS takes great pride in not only publishing quality software, but also in our ability to provide prompt and friendly service to our customers. Rather than relying on pushy sales tactics, our success is driven by the loyalty of our customers who appreciate our honest approach to doing business.

One unique aspect of SBS is that when you call, an actual person (not an automated phone system) answers the phone, and that person can usually assist you immediately. This is true for both sales and technical support calls. In fact, although we have separate toll-free numbers for sales and support calls, they ring in on the same set of phone lines and are answered by the same people. Our sales and technical support staff are one and the same group of people. They are not paid commissions, which means that they will not make inflated promises just to make a sale.

What is Keystroke Point Of Sale?

Keystroke POS is an easy to use, inexpensive, and full-featured retail store management system. Keystroke software enables a standard PC to operate as a cash register and at the same time provides complete inventory control. While Keystroke offers far more capabilities than a traditional cash register (such as inventory control, clerk management, and accounts receivable), it’s also faster and easier to use!

Keystroke improves the efficiency and profitability of businesses by capturing information as it occurs and making data instantly available whenever it is needed. When a transaction is entered, all related databases are immediately updated and the information remains available virtually forever. Keystroke's historical data tracking and extensive reporting capabilities help businesses prosper.

Keystroke will not manage your business for you, nor will it tell you how to run your business; it is a tool you can use to collect, organize, and access information about your business. Using Keystroke will help you to identify areas where you can improve the profitability of your business, and reduce the number of hours you spend doing so. While Keystroke handles the retail counter, inventory, and most other day-to-day tasks, it can also serve as the front end for most accounting systems.

Keystroke is the perfect solution to improve the profitability and management of nearly any retail, wholesale, or service business. Thousands of prosperous businesses across the country rely upon Keystroke software and Specialized Business Solutions’ support services to help them manage sales and purchasing, inventory control, customer tracking, employee monitoring, and many other essential business tasks. SBS is confident that Keystroke is a valuable investment for nearly any retail business.

Is Keystroke PCI compliant?

SBS recommends merchants adhere to the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI-DSS). Complete information regarding PCI can be found on the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council website at www.pcisecuritystandards.org.

While the PCI security standards primarily address the requirements of individual merchants and merchant service providers, SBS voluntarily considers these standards in the development of software applications. Keystroke software does not retain SAD (Secure Authentication Data or magnetic stripe data), PAN (Personal Account Number) or CVV2 data. Keystroke also offers extensive security features such as user passwords, security levels, and activity logs.

How does Keystroke compare to other POS systems?

People are saying good things about SBS and Keystroke POS software. As consistently indicated in industry trade magazines and independent surveys, Keystroke is certainly among the top-rated point of sale and inventory control software packages. Since most magazine publishers are highly dependent on advertising dollars, they are understandably hesitant to print much more than basic reviews of product features. However, the fact that Keystroke has been consistently included in editorial product roundups which focus on point of sale and inventory control systems does demonstrate that it is one of the best software programs in its class.

Business Solutions magazine and Penn State University began conducting the Best Channel Products survey in 2009 along with a similar annual study titled Best Channel Vendor in which SBS has been recognized every year. As a matter of fact, since these studies began, Keystroke POS and SBS are the only POS software and vendor to be ranked high enough by dealers to earn these awards in all six surveys.

That's six awards in three consecutive years! Six times now, independent POS resellers have officially affirmed that SBS and Keystroke POS are clearly BEST in the Retail POS Software category.

Can Keystroke handle the demands of my business?

Most likely, yes. However, you and a local Authorized Keystroke Dealer should review all the requirements you and your business have of such a software system before you purchase Keystroke. We can tell you the strengths and limitations of Keystroke and about other businesses for whom it works very well. Whether Keystroke will work for you will be mainly determined by any unique needs your business may have.

Keystroke is capable of managing approximately 1,000,000 database records in each database (Inventory items, Departments, Categories, Customers, etc.). The Inventory database can be expanded using Matrixing to group like items into a single Inventory record with sub-records representing different colors, sizes, shapes, styles, etc. (i.e., clothing, shoes, screws, bolts, nails, etc.). This database capability easily fits the needs of most retail operations, with a few exceptions such as general auto-parts stores and very large book distributors. To give you some perspective on this size of an inventory, even a typical full-service grocery store carries fewer than 100,000 items.

The number of computers/registers on which the Keystroke system can be used simultaneously is determined by the number of POS Workstation Licenses (registers) purchased. SBS charges for only the first 10 registers. All back-office stations are free with the purchase of the first register license. In other words, if a store has 15 registers and 5 back office stations, 5 of the registers and ALL of the back office stations are FREE.

Keystroke is currently used on as many as 30 registers in some retail businesses. Some of the most impressive statistics reported by Keystroke users include running over 600 transactions per hour and over 5000 transactions per day. Although there really are no set limitations on number of registers or transaction entry rates for Keystroke, SBS does not recommend Keystroke in stores that exceed these figures.

One of Keystroke’s most distinguishing attributes is its ability to handle unusual situations and setups. If you think your business has very unique requirements (e.g., unusual pricing schemes or customer demographics tracking), please consult with a local Authorized Keystroke Dealer or call SBS to learn how Keystroke Point Of Sale can meet your business's needs.