Having a customer-friendly Point of Sale (POS) system for your business is crucial. However you handle your transaction, every part of the process that involves the customer needs to be easy for them, smooth, and fast.
Unfortunately, traditional POS systems leave much to be desired in terms of usability for both customers and employees. In recent years, it’s become more common for businesses to use iPads and sometimes iPhones instead of standard cash registers, and in this article, you’ll learn why.
What’s wrong with standard cash registers?
To understand why iPads are popular POS systems, you need to know the problems they solve. A typical POS system consists of a physical cash register with some kind of digital screen, software to run the program that processes the sale, and a separate, yet connected payment terminal, like a credit card machine. All of these components work together to process customer transactions.
However, there are several major inconveniences:
- Cash registers are big and clunky. Cleaning around and under traditional cash registers is hard, and most employees won’t bother.
- They’re expensive. You can count on spending around $1,000 for a good cash register, and another $200 per month or $2,000 to $10,000 for a lifetime license.
- POS software is not user-friendly. Most applications require far too many clicks and taps to get to the right menu screen to ring up an item.
- Cashiers often need to perform workarounds to known programming deficiencies. For example, a store that runs 20% off sales every Wednesday will need to process glass bottle returns separately because there’s no way to separate the 20% discount from the bottle return.
- POS software is hard to program. If you need to change something, like add a category or move an item, there’s a sharp learning curve.
- POS applications are ugly. Aesthetically-pleasing visuals are part of a user-friendly interface. Unfortunately, most POS applications were designed solely by programmers with no design experience, and the visuals reflect this reality. This is how you get buttons that are just big rectangles with brown backgrounds and white text.
- A bad POS application increases training time. Registers should be intuitive enough that employees don’t need much training to figure it out. Traditional POS systems can take months to learn because employees have to memorize menu labels and placements that aren’t logical or intuitive.
As you can see, these are some serious problems, but using an iPad for your POS system can eliminate these issues when implemented correctly.
There are some downsides to using an iPad for a cash register, but not many. For example, if it’s not tethered to anything, it might get stolen or damaged if dropped on the floor or in a sink full of water. If you’re concerned about handing a mobile device to a customer, you don’t have to worry too much. Whether it’s an iPad or a new iPhone 16, all you need is a durable case to protect it against drops and shocks. Most customers won’t drop your device, but just in case, it’s easy enough to protect it.
How an iPad solves typical POS problems
Using an iPad as a POS system brings so many easy features to your customer transactions, and you can even use them at a drive-thru. For starters, most people are already used to using an iPad, so swiping and tapping a screen to complete their payment will be a familiar experience, especially when you implement Apple’s Tap to Pay system. However, no matter what payment options you offer, the learning curve is small. Once a customer uses it once, they’ll remember how it’s done for next time.
Another huge benefit is that the POS applications built for iPad are designed by designers who keep the user experience in mind. The visuals are nice and the entire interface is easier to navigate, not to mention the administrative back end is easy to customize. For instance, with a traditional POS system, you can only program it at the physical cash register terminal. However, with iPad POS applications, you can program your menus, buttons, and settings from your account on the web using any device.
When your POS system is easy to use, employees will learn faster, be more efficient, and be less stressed throughout the day. This translates to smoother transactions and happier customers.
iPad POS systems are more cost-effective
Last, but not least, using an iPad for your customer transactions will be less expensive. You’ll still need to pay for a terminal base and software application, but those made for iPad tend to cost far less. All in all, using an iPad for a POS system is the best way to go when your goal is to prioritize the customer experience.