Although the retail year runs on a predictable cycle each year, wrapping up with back-to-school, Halloween, and the holiday shopping season. However, holiday shoppers are beginning their search and making selections earlier. Statista research found in 2022 and 2023, 50 percent or more of shoppers intended to start their holiday shopping by October or sooner.
If consumers aren’t thinking about the holidays earlier, it’s a mistake for retailers – and the VARs and ISVs that support them – not to do the same.
Make Changes Now for a More Successful Holiday Shopping Season
To help retailers get ready for the holiday shopping season, offer these solutions and services now:
- Omnichannel gift
Since more than half of shoppers spend more than their face value, gift cards will likely bring in extra revenue this holiday shopping season and beyond. Omnichannel gift card solutions give consumers a consistent, convenient way to purchase and load gift cards across all channels. Additionally, gift card features that will mean more value to your clients include alternative gift payments like text-to-pay, fraud mitigation, and promotions with expiration.
- E-commerce integration
Online customers set records during the 2023 holiday shopping season by spending over $222 billion last year. Retailers with a strong online presence can position themselves to capture some of that wallet share this year. An e-commerce platform integrated with an in-store point of sale (POS) system allows retailers to maintain visibility over their entire businesses, including sales, inventory, and customer engagement. A fully integrated system is the most efficient way to manage an omnichannel business.
- Mobile POS solutions
Mobile POS solutions increase retailers’ ability to increase shopping convenience. Sales associates with mobile POS devices can eliminate lines, running transactions wherever and whenever customers are ready to buy. Furthermore, when the mobile POS system gives sales associates access to customer data and analytics, they can meet customer demands for personalized service and make relevant upsell or cross-sell offers that boost revenues.
- Promotions
Retailers can now plan to leverage technology to manage promotions with expiration, build excitement, accurately track loyalty programs, and even gamify their promotions with a holiday giveaway or contest. Analytics are also important to help retailers see what’s working and what isn’t so they can invest in promotions that build traffic and help them hold onto the most margin.
- Subscriptions and recurring orders
More people are giving subscriptions as gifts, which is good news for retailers who want to build a predictable revenue stream all year long. However, they need solutions to help them set up and manage recurring payments. One solution that can streamline processes and control costs is Account Updater, which automatically checks and updates payment card information.
- Electronic payments
During the holiday shopping season and throughout the year, customers factor in payment choice when they decide where to make purchases. In fact, The 2023 Global Digital Shopping Index: U.S. Edition reported that over 60 percent of consumers said payment choice was either the “most important” or an “extremely important” factor in choosing where to shop. There’s time in the summer to assess payment methods a retailer offers and add options, like contactless and mobile wallet payments or text-to-pay solutions, that can enhance customer experiences.
Success Now and in the Coming Months
Getting a POS system in shape for great customer experiences is beneficial at any time of year. However, Q4, when retailers are occupied with the busy holiday season, isn’t the time to make changes and retrain employees. Consult with retailers now to help them plan how to increase engagement and make the most of opportunities that are on the horizon.
To learn more about expanding the payment methods retailers accept and offering value-added services, contact us.
