The ongoing growth in online shopping is accounting for major changes in the field. On the one hand, physical stores are being closed. On the other hand, the point of sale (POS) in the stores that continue to operate undergoes some changes. Are you interested in the future of POS? Do you want to know how you can get the right merchant services, including a high risk merchant account for your business? If yes, just keep reading this article.
POS Terminals: How POS is Changing
The developments in the payments world are making changes to POS. However, the role the standalone POS terminals play in payments isn’t fundamentally changing. Only, retailers and their payments providers need to adapt to the new reality.
The POS systems you use today have changed dramatically. Once, merchants were using simple card readers. Today, these simple systems have turned into a vital piece of the in-store retail experience.
Increasingly, mobile POS devices featuring pay-on-the-go capabilities are being used. Mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets that are being used for sophisticated POS capabilities completely bypass the need for a centralized POS station. Now, POS devices are incorporating gift token acceptance and loyalty programs.
It’s become more vital than ever before to provide excellent customer experience on all POS platforms. This refers both to online, mobile, and in-store. If retailers want to fight the competition in the marketplace and create customer loyalty, they should follow all these changes.
With all this in mind, it’s critical to apply to a reputable payment processor for reliable, affordable, and advanced merchant services. eMerchantBroker.com, the #1 high risk credit card processor in the US, helps both traditional and high risk business to get the right payment processing services, including a high risk merchant account, for their business needs. EMB talks to every single business and only then decides what’s right for you.
The Point-of-Sale Future and Its Benefits
The advances in cloud technology allow you to use web- and tablet-based systems with improved functionality over micro-merchant processing systems. Hosting all POS data in the cloud, you enjoy the flexibility to manage your business from a remote location. As a result, you stop being dependent upon a specific piece of hardware. What about the future?
- Many physical merchants are also present in the digital world. However, often, there’s a lack of coordination between the two worlds. Very often, the website run by a storefront merchant has a different acquirer.
- This makes it difficult when a consumer purchases a product online and brings it to a store for a return or exchange. Merchants should focus on having the same acquirer as it can help solve the payment side of this transaction.
- The decline in the use of paper checks results in growth opportunities for credit and debit cards and expansion of mobile payments and wallets. Retailer-based mobile wallets such as Walmart Pay offer more than multi-retailer wallets do. This “more” has to do with retailer engagement. Only one or two retailer wallets will be used by consumers for places they shop frequently.
- The future of POS is RES for retailers. Retail Engagement Solutions dissolve channel boundaries and adapt to innovations, thus offering a true omnichannel customer experience. RES is an integrated system aimed at enhancing customer service and boosting sales. POS systems will continue to be used. Only, they’ll function to facilitate rather than drive a transaction.
- The transformation in the market for larger business will be significant. An omnichannel experience based on 100% mobile- and cloud-based systems, including integrated mobile payment, security, and back-office management, will have a great impact on the market.
- Increasingly, the focus will be on the buying and selling experience through mobile front-end operations, automatic purchase orders, seamless promotions, augmented reality experiences, customer preferences, and more.
- Efficiency and automation will be in the center of attention. New advances in POS technology will result in increased efficiency and detailed marketing insights.
POS devices aren’t going away anytime soon. Having payments at its core, the POS is now evolving into a full business management tool with an irreplaceable value. The POS is going to enhance an engaging customer experience and bring other benefits to merchants.