Running a shop means keeping an eye on many things at once. The problems that hurt most are often the ones noticed too late: the product that ran out on a Saturday morning, the layaway balance nobody followed up, the order that needed action yesterday.
We built a notification centre into Xduka POS that surfaces these signals so they reach you while there is still time to act.
What the notification centre covers
As our Xduka POS features page sets out, notifications cover low stock, order events, layaway status and other store signals that need immediate attention.
Low-stock alerts
When stock of a product falls below its threshold, a notification badge appears in the dashboard. That gives you a chance to reorder before customers find an empty shelf. Low-stock alerts work alongside the inventory page's Low Stock and Out of Stock filters and the dashboard overview's low-stock count.
Order events
Order activity that needs attention is surfaced so it does not get lost among routine sales.
Layaway status
Lipa Polepole layaways depend on follow-up. Notifications on layaway status help you keep track of plans and balances, alongside the SMS and email reminders you can send to customers.
Messaging outcomes
When you send receipts, invoices or reminders by SMS or email, we give clear outcomes when sends succeed or fail, and friendly messages when credits run out or the provider is unavailable.
Why it matters
Small problems become big ones when they are noticed late:
- A stock-out loses sales today and may lose the customer for good.
- An overdue balance gets harder to collect the longer it waits.
- A failed message means a customer never got their receipt or reminder.
A single place to see these signals means you do not have to remember to check every page.
Building a notification habit
Notifications are only useful if someone acts on them. A simple routine:
- Check the notification centre at opening and again mid-afternoon.
- Assign responsibility: one person handles stock alerts, another follows up layaways.
- Act, then clear. Reorder, call the customer or resolve the issue.
- Look for patterns. If the same product keeps triggering low-stock alerts, adjust your reorder quantities.
Setting sensible thresholds
Low-stock alerts depend on thresholds that make sense for your shop. A product you sell fifty of a day needs a higher threshold than one you sell twice a week. Review thresholds for your fast movers so alerts arrive with enough time to reorder from your supplier.
Quick checklist
- Set realistic low-stock thresholds for your fast movers.
- Decide who checks notifications, and when.
- Act on each alert: reorder, follow up or resolve.
- Review repeated alerts weekly to adjust reorder quantities.
- Keep messaging credits topped up so reminders and receipts keep flowing.
- Use the dashboard overview's low-stock count and open layaways as a daily health check.
Who should watch which signals
In a small shop, the owner may handle every notification. As you grow, it helps to split responsibilities:
- Store manager: low-stock alerts and purchase orders.
- Senior cashier: order events during the day.
- Owner or accounts person: layaway status and follow-up on balances.
Clear ownership means alerts are acted on instead of being seen by everyone and handled by no one. A short daily check, at opening and before closing, is usually enough to keep on top of things.
A quick example
For example, take a stationery shop in Kakamega in the weeks before schools open. Exercise books and pens sell fast. A low-stock notification for exercise books appears mid-morning; the manager checks the inventory page, raises a purchase order with the supplier and the shelf never runs empty. Without the alert, the gap might only have been noticed when a parent asked for books that were not there.
Frequently asked questions
Where do I see notifications?
In the notification centre in the dashboard, with a badge when something needs attention.
What triggers a low-stock alert?
Stock falling below the product's threshold.
Do notifications replace customer reminders?
No. Notifications are for your team. Customers receive SMS or email reminders, such as for layaway balances.
Less firefighting, more selling
Our notification centre in Xduka POS helps you catch low stock, order events and layaway updates early, so you spend less time firefighting and more time selling.
Explore notifications and other operational features at www.xduka.com/features, or get started at www.xduka.com.
