Advancements in technology occur daily – hourly in some cases. In this “microwave” society, we want information now and we want it to tell us as much as we can possibly absorb. A retailer is no different. The analytics of who is buying from you and what they are buying is more important now than ever. Allowing your point of sale system to provide you with useful information allows you to mold your business offering to goods and services that the public wants or needs. There are some ways to future proof your Point of Sale system that allow you to maximize the amount of information you receive from your customer base and also provide a layer of security to ensure the customer’s personal information doesn’t fall in the wrong hands.
Allow for your checkout lanes to scan 2D barcodes. Consumers, now more than ever, use their mobile devices to scan coupons or to scan a barcode to log loyalty programs. By scanning these coupons and loyalty cards, you capture priceless information as to who is buying what from you. The days of a simple 1D barcode are coming to an end. The amounts of information that can be stored in a 2D code far outweigh that of a 1D code. Many retailers are moving to self-checkout lanes that do not require any manpower in order to capture this information. Many self-checkout lanes have integrated scanners that are included with the standard scanner/scale that traditionally occupied this space. Information gathered from a consumer’s mobile device allows for you to market to that unique individual. It also provides useful information as to what you offer as a “need” for a consumer.
EMV is also being integrated in payment terminals as a new way to protect a consumer’s identity and bank information. Credit card fraud creates a huge cost to retailers in lost sales. In 2012, retailers incurred $580.5 million in debit card fraud losses and spent $6.47 billion annually on credit and debit card fraud prevention annually (Source: PaymentsJournal, Feb. 2012).A 2015 research note from Barclays stated that the U.S. is responsible for 47 percent of the world’s card fraud despite only accounting for 24 percent of total worldwide card volume. Many blame this on the fact that the U.S. was too slow to adopt this technology in comparison to the rest of the world.
Providing your customer base with the latest options to pay or record loyalty behavior only benefits your image as a reputable retailer. Ease of payment and the analytics provided by future proofing your Point of Sale system will reap huge benefits for your business. So maximize your potential and upgrade that old cash register to an intelligent point of sale system. You’ll be glad you did.
Co-contributor: Matt Gadd