Mobile POS: Checkout Convenience, Pandemic or Not
Mobile POS: Checkout Convenience, Pandemic or Not
We’ve all been in this situation: You spend a good deal of time wandering a shop, carefully selecting items to purchase with the most discerning of eyes. When you get to the checkout line, you’re stunned to see what appears to be 45 people ahead of you. Disappointed at the amount of time you’ve already dedicated to perusing the shelves, you quickly abandon your armload of treasures and walk out. It’s just not worth the wait!
Sound familiar? This situation is obviously frustrating for shoppers, but it’s equally so for business owners. Long checkout lines have a tricky way of destroying your profits, one walkout at a time. While we may be in the thick of a global health pandemic, it’s critical to start thinking about the future landscape of brick-and-mortar shopping when our doors can finally open again. If shoppers are required to stand 6 feet apart, your average checkout line on a busy Saturday could very well snake around your entire store. How to deal? Enter the mobile point-of-sale (mPOS) system. And here’s why it’s the perfect solution for your business right now.
Speedy Checkout
An mPOS is essentially a tablet, smartphone, or other handheld device that allows cashiers to take payments anywhere around the store. No longer does checkout have to be limited to a centralized (often congested) hub by the front door. Perhaps when the checkout gets clogged, a couple salespeople can step in with their mPOS and help. Or, arm everyone on staff with a device so no matter who a customer runs into, they can be taken care of quickly.
Streamlined Customer Journey
Equipped with mPOS, a salesperson can greet a customer, help them find the perfect gift, and take their payment – all in the same spot. Not only is it convenient, it also creates a more personalized shopping experience. Only having to interact with one employee during the entire customer journey is a unique experience few consumers are used to today.
Inventory Integration
The big plus to adopting an mPOS is clearly the seamless checkout experience it can bring to your brick-and-mortar. But another perk is that a lot of these systems today can be integrated with your inventory, allowing employees on the floor to check stock of an item without having to run to your stockroom—and potentially lose a sale.
Anywhere Sales
From pop-up shops to sidewalk sales and everywhere in between, retailers are embracing new ways to get their merchandise out into their communities. The mPOS makes it possible to process sales wherever the day takes your business. And going on the road is a great way to increase awareness of your business within the community.
Paperless Perks
Customers interacting with an mPOS can be given the option to forgo a receipt or have it emailed to them (there are also devices that come equipped with printers, if needed). For the customers who want an email receipt, this is the perfect opportunity to capture their email addresses and ask if they want to be added to your mailing list. And we all know the importance of a healthy email list.
As we navigate this new shopping landscape, retailers are going to have to shift their mindset—and adopt new ways of doing business. If you’re thinking of incorporating an mPOS into your shop, check out these helpful lists of great options and comparisons. And as always, ARF Financial is here to help fund your new endeavors.