Turning your smartphone into a mobile POS can be a convenient solution for business owners.
Today’s consumers typically use their debit or credit cards to tap and buy instantly. While tap-enabled card machines (which come with a rental cost) are the norm in stores, there is an even easier and more affordable way to collect payments.
By downloading a mobile POS app onto your NFC-enabled Android Smartphone, your customers can tap your phone screen with their cards and pay in real time, wherever you are. Customers conveniently also receive their receipts via SMS or email.
“Innovations in the POS space are gaining pace, making it easier than ever for customers to pay electronically. Mobile POS apps make it easy for payments to be made anywhere. This is really handy for contractors such as plumbers and electricians who are always on the move, but also for those who have pop-up shops in malls or stalls at markets. Just a quick tap and the purchase is complete,” comments Cheslyn Jacobs, Chief Commercial Officer at TymeBank.
Furthermore, with load-shedding and regular power outages it pays to have a POS solution that is not fully reliant on an electricity source.
“As long as your cellphone is always charged, you have a payment method that works even when the lights don’t. This could mean the difference between securing that sale or not,” adds Jacobs.
Create a transaction history
Jacobs goes on to say that cash-only businesses can cause real issues for the merchant, particularly if they want to secure funding. “To apply for working capital, a merchant must be able to show their sales / income trends. Running a cash business has its advantages, but besides limiting growth it can also create a security risk. With a mobile POS SMEs can get a complete picture of their sales trends from monthly transaction reports – all via the app on their phone.
“To make the experience that more seamless for their customers, while also saving on costs and increasing convenience, a mobile POS is a viable payment method for any business that is on-the-go and whose income relies on being where their customers are. All you need is a strong internet connection and a smartphone and you’re ready to trade, instantly,” concludes Jacobs.
