The point of sale (POS) and payments industries are changing. About five or six years ago, a shift in the business occurred when the payments side of the business and the POS hardware and software side began to integrate. Because of this merge, it’s not enough to simply sell your core product anymore.The key to success today – and tomorrow – is selling a full solution to the customer. In today’s blog, we will explore the best way to sell merchant services and remain sticky with your customers in this time of innovation and blending.
Why the Change?
The change is happening for a good reason: for the customers! While it may seem like a tricky and ever-evolving shift, integrating payments and offering a full POS solution provides the best possible experience to the customer. Simplicity is key, so why should customers have to piecemeal their solution together when payments and POS providers all work with the same customers in the end anyways?
Offering POS Systems and Hardware is Crucial to Today’s Merchant Services
When it comes to selling merchant services, offering POS systems and associated hardware is a must. In the past, technology companies told the customers what to use. Today, that situation has completely flipped, and now the customers tell us what they want.
The Amazon effect, as it’s called, essentially means that consumers want what they want, and they want it now. This is a great opportunity for companies looking to “get a bigger slice of the pie” and claim more market share. By offering a complete, end-to-end solution, you can increase profits and offer your solution as a service model, ultimately increasing your bottom line over time and giving the customers the simple, all-in-one solution that they crave.
The POS Tech That Makes Waves
So, by now you might understand that you need to offer POS hardware in addition to payments services. But what POS tech will have the most impact on your business? Again, it’s good to focus on providing a full solution, including:
- Printers
- Cash drawers
- Scanners
- Tablet POS stands and enclosures
- Customer displays
- Consumables like paper, labels, and ribbon
By offering a full, robust POS stack, you relieve your customers of having to deal with different companies and you guessed it – you can easily add to your bottom line along the way.
Offering Industry-Specific Solutions
It should come as no surprise that different vertical markets require different POS hardware. The best way to sell merchant services is to cater to these unique needs instead of trying to sell a “one size fits all” solutions. Some industry-specific examples include:
- Cannabis customers, such as dispensaries, require NTEP-certified scales which are legal for trade
- Most retail customers require a barcode scanner/imager
- Customers looking to take advantage of self-service kiosk applications require a kiosk printer to be mounted inside an enclosure
The Secret Sauce: Support and Value-Added Features
The icing on the cake of a bundled solution is of course top-notch support and value-added features. What does this look like when it comes to POS?
One example is to offer POS hardware that features an easy-to-integrate SDK (software development kit). A simple SDK can help ISVs utilize and support a complete line of products. It’s important to also offer hardware that is backed by an experienced integration team and readily available technical support staff.
On a value-added front, some POS hardware includes marketing tools that work out-of-the-box. For example, Star offers PromoPRNT, a receipt marketing tool which allows anyone using Star printers to create custom scheduled advertisements and promotions at no charge.
Value-adds can be more technical, too. Take for instance, Star’s SteadyLAN® technology which allows tablet POS users to not only charge but also communicate via Lightning- or USB-C®-to-Ethernet connection without the use of third-party peripherals.
The Future of POS and Payments
What does the future of POS and payments look like? We believe that more mobile solutions will emerge that encompass the entire solution with payment and printing in one device. Self-service checkouts with kiosks are another trend that’s sure to remain strong. We’ll also likely see more acquisitions/mergers from payments companies, and more companies will begin to offer total solutions or risk going out of business.
How Does Star Fit in to This Trend?
Star Micronics has been around for over 70 years and started in Japan manufacturing precision components. Today we are one of the leading manufacturers of POS solutions, offering the entire POS stack with our easy-to-integrate SDKs which allow ISVs the ability to deliver a predictable outcome every time and confidence that the solution is going to work for the customer.
Star’s approach is to remove the fear of the unknown by educating ISOs, resellers, and anyone interested in learning about POS. We have the resources available to help our partners gain confidence in offering the total solution.
Most importantly, we listen to our customers. We never try to fit a square peg in a round hole. We realize aesthetics and functionality are critical in today’s market. Merchants spend millions on furniture, displays, and retail designs, and we understand that the POS system should also look appealing. To make this happen, our engineers are always looking at the most recent trends and ways to improve our products both technically and aesthetically.
Listen and Learn
To learn more about the changing payment landscape – and how to navigate it for success – tune in to the Soar Payments’ PayPod podcast episode, “POS Hardware and Sales Insights” featuring Star’s Channel Partner Manager Michael Flores. Listen below!
