Upgrading Your POS System for The New Year

2022 is proving to be another year of significant growth for many businesses around the world, and they’re looking for every opportunity to gain even more momentum as demand for their products and services increases. Identifying the right investments to make in order to achieve the biggest positive impact is always a challenge, but there’s one opportunity that many businesses should seriously consider; a new POS system.

It’s been proven that one of the most effective ways to enhance operational efficiencies and boost customer satisfaction is with a powerful, convenient, and secure point-of-sale solution, but how do you know now is the right time to upgrade? What functionality or features would a new system have that your existing POS does not, and what are the real benefits of them? In this article, we’re going to explore these different elements, and provide the clarity you need to make the right choice for the future success of your business.

What Is the Best POS System?

While it may seem like a pretty straightforward question on the surface, determining what is the best POS system for small business actually takes careful consideration across a number of different factors. Just like any other major investment in technology that your company might make as it grows, taking the time to truly understand the importance of each aspect, as they specifically relate to your own unique business conditions, will help you determine which POS system is the best.

For example, businesses managing large amounts of products will certainly need a powerful set of inventory control features in their POS system, whereas mobile services providers will need a compact and portable POS terminal that can go anywhere along with them. Let’s take a closer look at each of the main categories of point-of-sale system features that can help you determine which solution is the best fit for your business and deliver the results you need to succeed.

Compatibility With All Types of Payment Methods

In retail stores of all types, you’ll see customers paying for products with a diverse array of payment types. While some customers still prefer to pay with cash, their numbers are rapidly dwindling. Debit and credit card payments are the method of choice for the majority of consumers these days, and within this group there are sub-segments for swipe-and-sign, chip-and-pin, and tap-to-pay card types. In addition, the popularity of digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay continue to grow, and other payment technologies including QR codes and near-field communications are also rapidly gaining traction.

Older point-of-sale systems may not have the capability to accept newer payment methods like tap-to-pay cards or digital wallets that use NFC technology. In these cases, upgrading to a new system is essential, as older POS terminals simply don’t have the hardware in them to process contactless payments. Modern POS systems, like the Clover Station Duo or Clover Mini from MONEXgroup, are designed with the future in mind and are able to process all payment methods, from cash to digital NFC payments. Plus, these types of systems are more compact than older styles of POS, and feature a much more intuitive user-friendly interface that makes processing payments faster and easier.

Convenience & Flexibility in A Point-of-Sale System

Payment method technology isn’t the only thing that has dramatically evolved over recent years. Consumer behaviour has changed in many ways, especially recently due to the effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic. In the age of physical distancing, strict sanitization protocols, and store capacity limits, customers need a more convenient way to pay for their purchases. Many merchants who have traditionally relied on a stationary checkout counter or single POS system had to adapt, and fast. Compact and portable POS terminals, like the wireless Clover Flex from MONEXgroup, allow employees to checkout customers quickly and securely from literally anywhere using all types of debit cards, credit cards, and digital wallets.

Furthermore, online click-and-collect business models have made it simple for customers to place their orders using an ecommerce payment portal and then head to the stores’ curbside for pickup, or simply select direct-to-home shipping if available as an option. Any business that does not currently have an e-commerce store, virtual terminal, or online payment portal that integrates directly with their point-of-sale system is at a distinct disadvantage, and so should look at upgrading their systems to deliver enhanced convenience and flexibility for their customers.

Comprehensive Functionality & Essential Business Tools

Another aspect of modern point-of-sale systems that makes upgrading now even more enticing is the expanded functionality that they can provide. They’re no longer only used for processing payments. Advanced POS solutions are essentially complete business management platforms, with plenty of apps and tools that can be used to perform a wide range of critical business functions. These include things like inventory management, staff scheduling, marketing promotions, business reporting, sales analysis, and much more.

Another core function that many businesses are missing from their POS system is the ability to create and manage an effective customer rewards and loyalty program. The benefits of a loyalty program are widely known, and include increased customer retention, more frequent purchases, larger average order values, and more. With a modern POS system that includes loyalty program management functionality, your customers will be able to easily earn points and seamlessly redeem rewards at the point of purchase, and that means a better experience for them each time they shop with you.

Top-Tier Digital Security Against Transaction Fraud

Digital security is top of mind for businesses of all types, as the risks of data theft and transaction fraud are very high if the right protective measures are not put in place to guard against hackers and thieves. Older POS solutions don’t have the same level of protection as modern systems do, especially against newer types of attacks that can exploit the weaknesses of aging technology.

Contactless payment methods such as tap-to-pay and NFC digital wallets use powerful encryption to ensure that each and every transaction is protected with a unique one-time-use code that renders the data useless to thieves, as it cannot be used to create any future transactions. Multiple levels of authentication and authorization protocols ensure that identities are confirmed and verified each time a payment is made through the POS, helping to reduce the risks of fraudulent transactions. These additional layers of security help to guard your company against the dangers of fraud, and reassure customers that their data will be kept safe and secure when they do business with you.

Complete Merchant Services and Ongoing Technical Support

In addition to selecting the new point-of-sale system itself, the merchant services partner you choose to help implement the system and support it is a vital part of the process that can truly help your business thrive and grow. When evaluating the different merchant services providers out there, it’s wise to look at several key decision-making factors that can help differentiate the field of available options. For example, does the vendor provide just the POS hardware, or do they offer software configuration services as well? Not all do, so you’ll want to be sure. Along this same line, will they also handle the physical implementation of the POS and work to integrate it successfully into your business operations? This type of end-to-end commitment from the merchant services provider is critical to a smooth and efficient process when your business upgrades its POS system.

One thing you’re definitely going to want to look for is the breadth of support that a merchant services provider has to offer. When you have a question or a problem arises, you need a knowledgeable, dedicated support person to answer your calls and emails, and get your business the help it needs. At MONEXgroup, our customer service experts and technical support teams are available for our clients 24/7/365, and we work closely with them to deliver the greatest impact from their point-of-sale solutions and boost their bottom line.

The Time to Upgrade Your POS Is Now

We hope that this article has given you the insight and clarity you need to look objectively at your current point-of-sale solution and evaluate its ability to meet the objectives of your long-term business plans. If the time to upgrade has come, contact the team here at MONEXgroup to speak with one of our payment processing experts today. We are eager to help you choose the right point-of-sale solution for your business, and equip it with the advanced payment processing technology necessary to drive sales, increase customer satisfaction, and deliver the competitive advantage it needs to succeed.