5 Cutting-Edge Point of Sale Technologies Which are Completely Changing the Way Retails Do Business

A Retail Store

There is no doubt that technology is evolving very fast. If we can’t keep the pace with it then we have to lag. Some of the latest tech trends are online payment wallets & different ways data is stored. If you are in the retail business then you must have to adapt the new retail technologies for your benefit only.

If you are reading this blog then you are very lucky to know the new Point of Sale technologies which are right now trending in the market. These trendy POS technologies will change the entire shape of the retail industry.

A Brief Definition of POS (Point of Sale)

A Retail POS System

In layman terms, Point of Sale is a platform through which a seller passes a product to its customer. But exactly what these POS terminals do? They perform the sales transaction of the product, keep the record of the product & perform the billing part also.

So, it can be said that Point of Sale software acts as a one-man army. A single POS system acts as a sales system, inventory & stock management system & many more.

Another Retail Store POS System

As you have learnt in brief what a POS is & what are its functions, now let’s discuss about the latest POS technologies which are revolutionizing the retail market right now:

1. The Evolution of Mobile Payments & Online Wallets

With the passing years, more & more people are using smartphones. As online wallets can be accessed by smartphones only so the usage of these wallets are also increasing. People are using these wallets to access their bank debit cards, credit cards & more.

A Mobile Payment

As I already mentioned that people are using mobile & wallets for most of their payments. They are very happy with these mobile payments & wallets because they provide a highly flexible option & a very smooth platform for transactions.

Now you don’t have to carry a lot of cash with you in your pocket or several credits or debit cards with you. Everything can be done by your smartphone only.

An E-Wallet in Action

With digital payments, you can do fast transaction checkouts. So, you don’t have to go to an ATM or use cards. Everything can be done instantly, anywhere anytime.

With these mobile payment & wallet applications, customers can very easily track their expenditures. Even you can get a lot of cash backs with these wallets.

Even bank charges very fewer interest rates on these e-wallets. You can get a lot of discounts with these wallet systems.

You will be happy to know that all the Point of Sale systems have the options of mobile payments. So, it is an undeniable fact that mobile payments are becoming a major source of transactions. So, it can be said that we are marching forward to become a society which will be completely cashless.

2. Implementation of Cloud-Based Technology

Cloud-based technology is used to store & access data through the internet anywhere anytime. Cloud technology is highly used to access data very fast anywhere in the world.

Cloud Based Technology in Action

Now you can implement Point of Sale technology with the cloud technology. A majority of retailer irrespective of business size is using these cloud technology in their POS systems. With these POS systems which are based upon the cloud technology, business owners can access their retail sale data anywhere anytime in the world. Now it can be said without hesitation that cloud-based technology has become a blessing for all retail businesses. Retail owners can use these cloud technology to do their business with ease. This POS technology has changed the way of doing retail business entirely.

3. The Trend of Consumer Marketing

In this present time, more & more people are opting for personal marketing. Consumers are buying things on their own via the POS systems. With the blessing of these POS systems, retailers & their consumers can do whatever they want.

4. The Advent of Big Data

Now retailers are using more & more data to do business. With the use of in-store analytics & Big Data people can track whatever can be done with the retail stores. With this use of Big Data retailers can take the right decision for their business.

With the passing days, the demand for data is increasing more. So, you can buy a POS software system which has all the tools to measure the performance of your business, the behavior of your shopping, inventory management etc.

5. Multiple Channels Retailing

An Ecommerce Store

The sales experience of retailers is increased with the sale of their products. As the number of online sales is increasing so it has become very important to set up an e-commerce shop. Some of the main advantages of using this multi-channel retail are:

• Now your retail store can remain open for 24/7.
• The operating cost has now reduced.
• The products can be accessed very fast & many more.

So, POS systems are helping retail businesses single-handedly to install e-commerce shops.

Last but not least, some of the benefits of using POS systems in your details are:

• You can access the retail data from the cloud.
• You will be eligible for a hoard of promotions & discounts.
• Your POS system can be easily connected with the e-commerce store & many more.

iPad Based Cloud Point of Sale Software for Retails & Restaurants

Important Reasons Behind Major Oil Companies Opting For POS Software

A Gas Station in USA

You will be surprised to know that the US market for retail gasoline is huge. Major brands of USA have done a lot of investments in this sector. The retail gasoline industry has severely exposed to consumer fuel. But it is a matter of concern that extensive frauds are occurring in the gasoline pumps.

Careful on Fraudulent Transactions

Generally, the websites of these branded companies are handled by different dealers. So, it is very hard to know whether those dealers or whole sellers are doing any type of frauds while transacting. This type of fraudulent transactions is growing rapidly. The US government is losing a huge amount of money due to this type of rogue transactions.

An EMV Enabled Payment Card

Those fuel retailers who haven’t updated their POS systems to EMV compatibility will face great problems in the future. The deadline is by October 2020. These retailers have to act very fast in this matter.

EMV Enabled Card Payment

Nowadays, the EMV liability shift is becoming more & more important. There are two types of liability shifts- indoor & outdoor. The indoor liability shift can be done very easily but the outdoor one is very tough & is a matter of grave concern.

A Petro POS System

The concept of a pump controller is very different than a Petro POS system. The pump controller is the system who controls all the payment processing of a retail gasoline pump. So, the connection of a pump controller to a Petro retail POS system is a very complex task.

Shell Oil Company Sign Board

But it is believed that now things are getting completely changed. Nowadays, more & more pump retailers are trying to get this liability shift of EMVs. Some of the top brands who are working on this matter are Gilbarco, Wayne Pumps, Shell Vantage retails etc.

A Gilbarco Gas Station

Although this is a great more to connect the branded gasoline pump retailers with the EMV upgrades it is very costly. It is a general sense that if you want to decrease the problems of frauds then it will take a lot of cost, effort & time.

A POS System

Although with the use of POS software, the retailers have minimized the fraudulent incidents & have improved their profits a lot & also it is seen that the number of fraud cases has been minimized but still there is a serious problem.

Checkout this video to get a basic introduction of a basic POS system:

The problem is that still there are a lot of locations around the States which are vulnerable i.e., still there are some petroleum locations which haven’t done any type of EMV options or haven’t done any upgrades. So, it can be predicted that if these fraudsters get a chance to find such a place then they will rob the branded companies severely.

Mobile Payments

Some of the big brands are already using mobile payments. They have set EMV upgrades. They are also telling their customers to do mobile payments or cashless payments. The most important principle of these major companies is to protect the transactions of their precious customers.

A POS Device

But mobile payments are day by day getting more famous than the POS payment systems. You won’t have to enter your confidential PIN or other codes to the POS devices now. It is seen that there are hidden cameras directed to these POS terminals which are used to steal the confidential information of your customers. So they are encouraging their customers to do more & more mobile payments via apps. Trust me, guys!! Mobile payments are very secure nowadays.

It is assured that with mobile payments your payment information won’t be available to the fraudsters. Customers can do mobile payments anywhere in the world. They can do it inside their home, in their car or office, anywhere. Even the mobile payment apps update themselves automatically periodically.

Card Loyalty Programs

Even it is seen that brands are launching loyalty, rewards or discount offers in their mobile payments. The customers will get discounts on the purchase of fuels from retailers. As already said the customers don’t have to enter any type of PIN or any type of information as they are not using any type of POS devices.

A Secured POS System

To defeat frauds, fuel retailers have to install a very high level of security in their POS devices or mobile payment apps. But we have to keep in mind that EMV upgrade is not a single solution for all the frauds, no matter if you are doing POS transactions or mobile transactions.

Then what is the solution?

You have to perform:

• Continuous inspection of all the POS devices of petrol pumps.
• Inspecting all the security levels of the pumps.
• Systematic & repeated training of all petrol pump employees of the above-mentioned frauds & how to handle it.

A Petrol Pump POS System

Finally, it can be said that with POS terminals or mobile payments you can have a great & secured payment option.

Some Interesting Points on The Marvelous POS Terminal Market 2019

A POS Terminal

POS devices are those marvels of technology which are used to do credit card or debit card payments. The work of these POS devices is very simple.

Whenever the credit or debit card is entered or swiped in those POS devices then these devices check whether the customer has sufficient money in its bank account. After that these devices just transfer the food price from the customer’s account to the merchant’s account.

Point of Sale devices consists of two main parts which are:

• Hardware
• Software

With these Point of Sale devices the retail or restaurant merchant will receive card payments. They don’t have to handle any type of hard cash.  Also they don’t have to track the cash payments in their hard copy registers.

Another POS Terminal

There are a huge variety of POS devices in the market. Different business avail different type of POS device depending upon their:

• Size of customer base
• Mode of operation
• Company size
• Amount of Products they sale & their quality

The retail or restaurant merchant that avails these POS devices has to pay monthly fees for the device.

About The POS Market

The POS software is a booming industry. Due to the high level of development in the POS technology, every industry & business gradually understand the importance of POS systems. There is a great demand for contactless & cashless payments everywhere.

NFC Technology

There is a rapid rise of NFC (NearField Communication) devices in the technology sector. Due to these NFC we can use integrated Point of Sale devices. With the use of these POS devices we can perform high level encryption so that secured payments can be performed & more customer satisfactions are achieved.

So, to achieve high level of customer satisfaction you must opt for POS systems. As there is a rise of Smartphones in the market so the demand for POS devices and terminals are also increasing.

But there are some difficulties on the path of POS devices which are:

• Huge restrictions implied by the government.
• Tougher government rules.
• Data security concerns.

There are a large number of POS brands available in the market. Some of them are:

• PAX Technology
• Cisco Systems
• Verifone Systems
• Chronito Technologies
• HP
• Toshiba & etc.

POS Software Market Breakup

The POS software market is divided into 4 main types:     

• POS components
• POS technology
• Region of operation
• Type of POS devices

The POS software is spread all around the world including Asia, Africa, North & South America, Europe etc. This POS software is now targeting the markets of India as its retail market is booming. As a result more & more people are demanding these POS devices in India.

As already said there is a huge rise in the market of POS terminals & software systems. From the year 2016 to 2023, the market of POS terminals & software will grow up to 100 billion USD.

The different types of POS products which are available in the market are:

• Wireless POS terminals
• Fixed line POS terminals
• Mobile POS terminals

Among the above POS devices, there is a huge demand for mobile & wireless POS devices. This trend is increasing day by day.

As there are a lot of players in the market, so there is a huge competition in this business. The top POS brands are working harder & harder on innovations & more sophisticated technologies related to these products.

With the improvement in the ecommerce market & as more & more people are doing cashless transactions, the demand for POS devices is increasing. There is a huge technological shift happening in different industries like retail, restaurants, government, healthcare & many more.

Due to the bigger threats of data security breach & very less marketing of products, there is a negative effect on the development of POS devices.

Generally, the main leader in the POS software market is USA. This country will remain the dominant market in POS technology in the coming years.