Whether you run a neighborhood grocery store, a small fashion boutique, or a mid-sized book store, digitization is a trend that you cannot ignore today. Many shop owners hesitate to adopt digital technologies like EPOS because of their misconceptions about high swipe machine price, or the lack of awareness about digital payments. Card Machines is also a best option for your shop that makes your work easy. But as a shop owner, taking the technological leap in 2021 is a must.
Reasons to Digitize Shop-keeping
- An increasing number of consumers today opt to pay via card or digitally, as opposed to cash payments.
- The Covid-19 pandemic has given a major boost to contactless modes of payments like e-wallets and QR-code scanning.
- E-invoices and E-receipts are thus being preferred over conventional paper invoices and receipts
- Most EPOS service providers today ensure that the swipe machine price is very reasonable for small business owners.
- All transactions and sales records are safely stored on cloud, and you can access the information anytime without having to maintain written documentation.
- Digitization of your store with a customized EPOS will also save your time and efforts on inventory management.
Tips to Digitize your Shop in 2021
There are many ways to digitize your store for operational convenience, enhancing customer experience and several other advantages as discussed above. Here are some useful suggestions:-
- Installing a Card Swipe Machine– If you haven’t implemented any kind of digital technology in your store so far, getting a card swipe machine is the first step you should take. Based on the frequency and volume of your transactions, and the range of debit/credit cards you wish to accept, you can approach a POS service provider to give you the best swipe machine price and model.
- Providing a Smart Vending Machine– In case your store layout and products range permit the installation of a smart vending machine, this can really ease out your operations. If you are promoting a new line of products, a vending machine is also a great way of providing free sampling to boost your sales when you eventually display the new products line-up.
- Mobile EPOS to eliminate queues– Given how the current global pandemic has necessitated social distancing, using a mobile EPOS device can prevent lengthy queuing at the checkout counter. You can easily go from customer to customer and receive payments with a handheld EPOS device that accepts digital payments.
- Adopting a full-fledged EPOS System – Based on the type of your shop or retail establishment, installing the right EPOS system can prove to be a game-changer in your day-to-day retail operations. Short for Electronic Point of Sale System, an EPOS system comprises of a computer, EPOS software, and peripheral devices like a bar code scanner, QR code scanner, invoice printer, and so on. There are EPOS systems that have been customized as per the specific requirements and transaction volumes of different businesses. For large-scale retail operations, this modern-day POS system is also a one-point system for efficient employee management and inventory management,
- Installing a QR Code Scanner– If you want to make your business future-ready, installing a QR code scanner or an EPOS device that accepts QR code payments is the best way forward. A 100% contact-free mode of payment that merely involves scanning of QR code using your smartphone, this has been best-voted amongst all digital payment modes.
Conclusion
Breaking the traditional mould of your business to embrace digitization can feel perplexing. But it is the only way of retaining your customers and garnering a loyal customer base today. With multiple stores and retail chains competing to draw the attention of the same market segment, digitization is the only way to ensure business continuity and success.