New payment technologies mean that the checkout experience is evolving.
In-store shoppers no longer need to contend with old-fashioned registers and tills, as technology streamlines the payments process, helping to eliminate frustrating queues.
Just as there are many different types of retail, there are many types of payments experience.
“Customer demand and behaviour differs greatly among retail sectors,” says Paul Dunne, Head of Sales in Ireland at Elavon Europe.
“A shopper might prefer to use a handset to scan barcodes as they move through the store, to track their spending and save time. “This way of shopping, with no interaction with staff, became much more popular in recent years. Alternatively, if shoppers are just buying a few items, they might prefer a self-checkout kiosk rather than queue at a checkout conveyor belt.
“The retailer might offer a number of different checkout options within the same store, giving customers the choice.”
Making the most of digital innovations
A hardware store offering advice on the best tools or products to a Professional Trade Customer or DIYer might expect more interaction between staff and customers than a supermarket. Yet that same shop could still benefit from self-checkout technology with the potential to offer places to pay in different departments within the shop, to remove the pain point of lengthy queues. Afterall, not every customer needs advice.
Mobile point-of-sale (MPOS) solutions effectively bring the till to the customer, freeing up your staff to interact with customers and give their expert advice on the shop floor, while also eliminating the need for queues.
And of course, it’s now almost impossible to ignore having an online store. That might be click-and-collect or browsing instore and ordering online. The good news for consumers is more choice and convenience. The challenge for you is having to manage several methods and processes for ordering, delivery and payment.
For further information, please contact peter.cooke@elavon.com
Elavon Financial Services DAC. Registered in Ireland – Number 418442.
Registered Office: Block F1, Cherrywood Business Park, Dublin 18, D18 W2X7, Ireland.
Elavon Financial Services DAC, trading as Elavon Merchant Services, is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.
