How Retail Business Is Changing Through Advances in Mobile Technology

The in-store retail experience has had some significant changes as a result of mobile technology advancements. It’s now a world where customers can pay via SMS, and selfies can authorize credit card payments.

Does your business need to join the digital revolution? We’ve rounded up four practical mobile technologies that you can implement in your retail store.

Diversifying Payment Types With Mobile Wallets

Tools like Apple Pay and Google Pay allow customers to make purchases simply by holding their phones up to a contactless reader on your credit card terminal.

While this mobile wallet technology might seem like a minor efficiency gain, reviewers have drawn comparisons to how product barcodes transformed the checkout process in the 1980s.

Additionally, accepting payment via mobile wallets makes your business accessible to the younger generations, who are forgoing credit cards for digital money tools.

Increasing Customer Engagement With Retailer Mobile Apps

There are many ways that you can turn your small business into a smart business. Digital-savvy retailers are increasingly deploying their own mobile apps as a way to keep customers connected to their brands even when they’re not shopping. In fact, mobile retail apps have earned widespread adoption among consumers, with 78 percent having at least one such app installed on their smartphone.

While apps vary widely from business to business, the key aspect of app development is for the tool to go beyond customer marketing. You need to provide customers with value for the app to be useful.

Depending on what type of products you offer in your store, consider implementing these useful functions: reminders, special discounts, product information, inventory tracking, loyalty points, geolocation tools, or providing useful content.

Check Out Anywhere With Mobile Credit Card Readers

Instead of using traditional credit card machines that require an electrical outlet and telephone line, retail shops are switching to mobile credit card readers, such as Square. With these add-on readers attached to smartphones or tablets, clerks can bring the checkout system to the customer, thus avoiding the need for customers to wait in a single checkout line to use one credit card machine.

Plus, the wire-free devices make mobile card readers perfect choices for retail situations such as farmer’s markets, pop-up shops, or businesses that have cut the cord.

Professional Business Phone Service Via a Free Mobile App

It is no longer necessary for retail shops to spend big bucks on a business-class phone system or lose out on critical features by trying to run a business from personal mobile devices.

With Ooma Office’s business phone service, your cell phone can double as your work phone without the need to give out your personal number for work calls. When using Ooma Office’s free calling app (iOS, Android), you can transfer calls to other staff members, check your voicemail, and access more than 35 other advanced calling features.

Ooma has been a quality choice for business phone service for many years, and PC Magazine has named it as the #1 VoIP business phone for the past nine years.

Not only is Ooma a high-quality business phone system, but it’s also contract-free and affordable at a monthly cost of only $19.95 per user. Businesses with three users report average savings of $6,185 over three years after switching to the service.

We know that deciding on the best phone system for your business can be tricky, so if you need some help deciding, here are seven things to consider before switching to VoIP.