Last Updated on Mar 30, 2020 by James W
We’re living in a rapidly accelerating world. In the past, generations would go by and not much would change. Just think, back then there used to be something called “a job for life.” Now, though, there isn’t. The time between each major generation in technology is getting shorter and shorter. And nowhere is this more apparent than in payment systems.
Despite all these changes, (or perhaps because of them), it’s easy to forget the importance of point of sale solutions for retail store managers. It’s vital, however, that you have a good understanding about where the market is headed. That way, you’ll have an idea about the best options for your company.
Credit: wikipedia.org
Online Payments
Back in the mid-1990s, Amazon launched one of the web’s first online stores. And back then, everybody was remarkably sceptical of handing over money online. People thought it was madness to hand over money to a complete stranger. So why did Amazon succeed and how did the world of internet shopping become so normal?
Well, one reason was that they made it really easy to pay online. All you had to do was set up an account, and then you could pay with one click.
If you’re an online store it important that you get a merchant service that makes it really simple for customers to pay. Choosing the right payment gateway is a vital consideration for small businesses looking to set up an online store.
Payment gateways protect your customer’s credit card details. They make sure that information is passed securely to the customer, the merchant and the payment processor. Secure payment builds trust with customers and encourages repeat business.
Card Machines
Perhaps the most obvious change to the way we pay for things is what is now happening at the till. Recently you may have noticed that when you go into a coffee shop or a store you’re asked whether you want to pay contactless. Card issuers are now making all new credit and debit cards contactless compatible. At the same time, mobile phone operators, like Apple, are trying to do away with physical wallets entirely. Apple Pay will be rolling out soon, as will competitors like Samsung Pay. And consumers will increasingly expect to be able to pay for things just using their phones.
The technology for things like Apple Pay has been around for a long time. The problem has been coordinating the many different industries to make it happen. At the retail end, the problem has traditionally been having the right equipment to accept various forms of payment. But thanks to rapid advances in technology, and prices coming down all the time, you can easily adjust to new payment models.
Most card machine suppliers are now producing machines that will work with many different payment methods, including contactless and Apple Pay. This allows you to consolidate all the different payment types into one simple system, usually organised by a third party.
Once you’ve got a new card machine set up, you can offer your customers what they want: to be able to pay in whatever way is most convenient for them.
