If you are considering whether or not you should upgrade your payments technology, the answer is probably yes. Technology develops so quickly these days that high-tech items are obsolete almost as soon as they hit the shelves.
Fortunately, modern ePOS systems are equipped with everything you need to expand and grow, and most are designed to keep growing well into the future. Read on to learn how an upgraded ePOS system can help you serve your customers better and give you the support needed to scale your business.
Make Payments Faster
Have you ever gone to the store in a hurry, applauded yourself for getting everything on your list in record time, then had everything come to a halt because the checkout process is taking forever?
Outdated legacy POS systems have a tendency to be complicated to use. They slow clerks down as they scan, and sometimes completely stall out in the middle of processing a payment.
Updated ePOS systems are intuitive for employees to learn and use, and they are often equipped with quick scanners or simple item buttons on a touch screen. Newer hardware processes payments faster, so your customers can zoom through checkout just as fast as they ran through the store.
Increase Payment Options
When customers visit your store or your eCommerce site, they expect to be able to pay using their preferred method. No one wants to get to the checkout with all their items, only to find that you cannot process their payment.
Updating your software will help by expanding the types of payments your system can handle, but you likely need new hardware to be prepared for all forms of payment consumers are currently using.
Contactless pay is on the rise in the UK, with most cards carrying NFC capabilities. This means if your hardware is more than five years old, it may not be equipped to handle the newly-popular form of payment.
In addition to contactless pay, mobile wallets are on the rise as well. Upgrading your ePOS system means that you will be prepared to take payments in whichever way your customers are prepared to pay.
Know Your Customers
As many businesses develop social media personas and consumers look for engagement from brands, customer relationships are more important than ever before. People want to feel like their favourite shops understand and care about them, and the most successful brands find ways to show they are listening.
An upgraded ePOS system can integrate with your customer management software for a powerful combination of tools that help your customer service stand out, letting patrons know you are paying attention. When they sign up for loyalty programs, newer software can track customers’ purchase histories so you always know their preferences, keep records on significant dates like anniversaries and birthdays, and store loyalty points and discounts due so clerks can easily apply them.
Keep in Touch With Your Customers
In addition to making it easier to personalise your customer service in the store, you can use your upgraded ePOS system to reach customers at home, too. Integrate your ePOS system with your marketing software to create clearly targeted campaigns that reach exactly who you want to reach, with the promotions that will be most beneficial to them.
Your campaign could be as simple as offering a free nail polish to people who haven’t been to the shop in a while, or as complex as giving ten percent off purchases of $20 or more for customers who bought lipstick in the last three months. You set the parameters and your software creates a campaign based on the data your ePOS has collected through your store’s loyalty program.
Ensure Favourite Items are in Stock and Avoid Overstock
Poor inventory management is a major source of revenue loss for many retail businesses. When a shop overstocks, it loses money due to decreased value of goods as they sit on the shelf. Conversely, when a shop runs out of a popular item, consumers start shopping elsewhere.
Your upgraded ePOS system can help you get control of your stock so you never have to worry about human error, poor judgment, or forgotten stock orders again. An integrated system removes items from your inventory as they are purchased—so no more double entries—and powerful reporting helps you see trends so you can make better decisions about the timing of your orders.
You can even automate your stock orders to be sent when your inventory reaches a specified point so you can just relax, knowing your inventory management is covered.
Final Thoughts
As brick-and-mortar shops blend with eCommerce, then do their best to compete with enormous corporations like Argos and Amazon, the customer experience is a major focus of marketing trends.
Small and medium-sized businesses just cannot compete with the convenience that big box stores offer, so making the experience pleasant and convenient, creating a personality for the brand, and staying in touch with customers is how shops compete.
Newer integrated and comprehensive ePOS systems give you an edge in the competition by supporting every aspect of the customer experience.
Use your system to ensure favourite items are always in stock, personalise a quick checkout experience, and keep in touch with customers. When you learn to fully utilise all the features available to you through an upgraded ePOS system, you can be confident your business will give customers the most optimal experience possible, keeping you ahead of the game as you grow.