Wherever you look in the current business world, the focus seems to be solely on ecommerce. Online stores and web page designs are all the rage. So much so that those branching into bricks and mortar stores can feel entirely out of the loop. Is there no place for physical business in this high-tech world?
Of course, there is. Vast amounts of shoppers still prefer physical stores. But, it is worth noting that your traditional shop could still benefit from tech. While the bricks and mortar business lives on, many have only managed it by staying up to date.
This applies in a variety of different ways. The most visible of all has got to be the various payment options available. Once, unwieldy tills were the only way to go about this. Now, there are a whole host of tech-savvy solutions worth your time. And, we’re going to look at the top three contenders here.
Cut lines with contactless
Contactless card machines are, by far, the most obvious option here. While contactless technology is still making its way into the American psyche, it now accounts for 1 in 5 purchases in the UK. And, with interest growing, it won’t be long before we catch up. So, when it comes time to choose which card machine would be best, consider investing in contactless from the off. These still provide the option of standard card payments for those who haven’t updated. But, this also means you can speed things up with the choice of contactless for those who want it. And, given that many consumers name queues as their biggest shopping peeve, saving time here could be a real plus point.
Take on tablets instead of tills
Let’s be frank; chunky tills which take up your whole payment area are hardly appealing. Sadly, they were once the only option available. But, that’s not the case anymore, with many tablets now supporting till capabilities. This way, all you need to do is buy a tablet or two, find a way to secure it, and then install apps like Chargent. By pairing this with something like the BlueSnap payment integration, you’ve got a ready made till on your hands. What’s more, you can bet this will look more pleasing than its prehistoric counterparts.
There’s an app for that?
There’s an app for everything nowadays, and paying for shopping is no exception. While this is still a tech-in-progress, retailers like Walmart are leading the way. They’ve been piloting an app which allows customers to enter items as they shop, and pay on their phones. Of course, there are obvious security risks here, and this is by no means a tried and tested technology. But, if you fancy developing an app, it might be worth playing around with payment options. By removing the need for checkouts, this would undoubtedly please queue haters. And, it’ll save you the need for checkout staff. So, if you manage to keep on top of security, this could actually cut costs.