Tablet POS is huge right now. Everyone loves the idea of the tablet—commonly thought of as a less expensive alternative to a POS system. These thin, sleek tablets take up less space and certainly cost less to implement. But how do you know if a tablet-based system is right for you?

First, if space is a consideration, a tablet could be a good choice. Restaurants with limited counter space or the ever-popular food truck are good candidates for a tablet POS. Restaurants and stores can email receipts right from the tablet or have the option to print one using the right peripherals. Restaurants that want to boost their revenues by increasing table turnover should also consider tablets that will allow them to implement tableside ordering and payments.

And now comes the bad news. Tablets are not a good choice if you tend to break things easily. That less expensive piece of equipment could become a more expensive choice if you need to keep replacing it. Also consider how you will carry the tablet if it won’t be mounted. If your staff is going to put them down and forget where they last left their device, you could find yourself replacing them—a lot.

pcAmerica customers who are considering making the switch to a tablet-based POS package can make a lateral move to the tablet-ready Cash Register Express™ (CRE) and Restaurant Pro Express™ (RPE) software.

The tablet-based CRE and RPE software packages include several enhancements for working on a tablet, including on-screen signature capture that can be performed using a finger, without requiring a stylus. It automatically saves signatures in the database so they can be pulled up for future reference.

Even though the new setup is compact, its flexible setup options give users the choice of a variety of peripherals. Several scanners and magnetic strip readers are certified for use with the software for scanning bar codes and swiping credit cards.

The tablet software also includes all of the same features as pcAmerica’s complete robust stationary solution, such as inventory tracking, scheduling and time clock functions, menu planning capabilities, gift cards, mobile payments, loyalty programs, and various integrations including payroll and eCommerce platforms.

For more information about pcAmerica’s tablet solutions, please call 1-800-722-6374.

At pcAmerica, we believe that mobile payments are important. Our staff spends hours every week teaching our customers about what they are and why these types of payments are important, especially for consumers, who appreciate how fast and easy their transactions can be completed.

The question we get asked most of all is “What’s in it for me?”

Shoppers like the fast checkout, which is one answer you hear a lot. Paying with your mobile device is actually seven times faster than cash or swiping a credit card. Shorter lines are something that everyone appreciates, especially during holiday season, peak shopping days or during sales.

But, did you know mobile payments can actually save you money?

According to a recent article in Nation’s Restaurant News (NRN), LevelUp announced they would be reducing the cost of their processing fee to 1.95 percent flat.  When you consider the standard processing fee of 2.5 to 4 percent for every swipe, this is a huge savings!

NRN asserts that businesses spend about $50 billion each year on processing fees. If you can reclaim some of that revenue, it’s worth it to consider mobile payments.

pcAmerica’s Restaurant Pro Express™ and Cash Register Express™ work with LevelUp’s mobile payment and loyalty solution and ISIS Mobile Wallet, an ultra-secure mobile payment functionality that includes several safeguards against theft or fraud.

pcAmerica customers can choose from four applications that work with the company’s POS packages. Restaurant Pro Express and Cash Register Express also accept payment through Paydiant and Google Wallet, a mobile payment system that stores credit cards, loyalty information and gift cards.

Mobile payments are not just for big companies like Starbucks, which has garnered a lot of attention for its mobile payment platform. Why shouldn’t you be saving money? Start accepting mobile payments to help cut your processing costs. Please call your pcAmerica account manager for more information at 1-800-722-6374.

In a recent “Socially Speaking” article in RSPA connect magazine, pcAmerica CEO David Gosman talks about reviews and why they matter to your business. In the column, he writes that more than “75 percent of people use online reviews to help pick a local business to patronize.” More than half of these people trust what they read online and more than 70 percent of people have as much faith in online reviews as they do personal recommendations.

Online reviews serve a few purposes. First, positive reviews usually mean more business. People who have never been to your store or restaurant before are more likely to visit if they see others had a good experience.

The other reason is visibility. If your business is frequently mentioned on the internet—be it social media sites or other internet sites, Google will rank you higher in the searches. Lots of people talking about you online basically means your business is something they want to know about—so Google makes it easy by boosting you closer to the top of the page.

There are some websites that are better to focus on then others. Yelp is a great site for restaurants and retail stores. Google Places and Yahoo Local are growing sources of reviews that have influence on search rankings. TripAdvisor is also an important source of information, especially when planning a vacation or hotel stay.

Every business should encourage their customers to write a positive review online. Don’t be afraid to ask them at the checkout, or offer an incentive to get them to go online. A discount, loyalty points or another perk can go a long way!

Business Solutions Magazine recently conducted a survey of several tablet POS packages, including pcAmerica’s Cash Register Express. The software was lauded for its support of multiple mobile wallets, including Paydiant, LevelUp, Google Wallet and ISIS. The tablet version was also commended for its built-in loyalty functions and the ability to integrate with third-party platforms.

pcAmerica’s Cash Register Express (CRE) and Restaurant Pro Express (RPE) have both been optimized for use on several tablets. The tablet editions of the POS software still support a full peripheral set including pole displays, weight scales and pin pads.

The tablet-based CRE and RPE software packages include several enhancements for working on a tablet, including on-screen signature capture that can be performed using a finger, without requiring a stylus. The software automatically saves signatures in the database so they can be pulled up for future reference. It also includes the ability to email receipts, or alternatively route printed receipts to a nearby printer. The enhanced version has been tested with additional mobile peripherals from pcAmerica’s partners, which are expected to be released to market in the near future.

The tablet software also includes all of the same features as pcAmerica’s complete robust stationary solution, such as inventory tracking, scheduling and time clock functions, menu planning capabilities, gift cards, mobile payments, loyalty programs and various integrations including payroll and eCommerce platforms.

For more information about how you can implement either of pcAmerica’s tablet-based solutions, please call your sales representative at 1.800.722.6374

Omnichannel shoppers who use social media to communicate with the brands they love are more likely to look online for customer reviews, conduct price comparisons or check to see where the item is in stock before heading out to the store to make a purchase.

Retailers that want to make sure they are reaching these customers in the most effective way should consider employing a multi-channel approach to their marketing. This will help ensure you retain high value customers—those who consistently spend the most money in your store—by addressing their issue right away, regardless of the medium they present it in.

It pays—literally–to cater to these customers through social media marketing and the information that can be gleaned from these direct interactions. A RIS News article cited a recent study that “multi-channel customers often spend three to four times more on retail purchases than their single-channel counterparts.”

These customer service experiences matter. According to RIS News, 70 percent of customers will buy an item from a retailer they had a positive experience with, even if it’s cheaper elsewhere, while a bad experience will lead 31 percent of shoppers to abandon the purchase or buy it from a competitor. Even worse, if the customer decides to share the negative experience on Facebook or Twitter it could make any of their hundreds of friends and acquaintances think twice before visiting your store.

Social media communications should be fully integrated with your customer service team for a maximum impact, whether you are reinforcing a positive relationship or taking care of a customer issue. Failing to do so could result in lost customers or damage to your store or restaurant’s reputation.

pcAmerica has acquired San Diego-based MobiMagic, a software platform that extends POS capabilities onto mobile devices, enabling line busting in quick service restaurants, as well as tableside ordering and payment in table service environments.

“pcAmerica’s Restaurant Pro Express™ Mobile is powered by MobiMagic, so it was a natural progression to acquire the company and add it to our product lineup,” said David J. Gosman, CEO of pcAmerica. “At pcAmerica, we believe in cost-effective solutions that are user-friendly, so we are pleased to be able to offer our clients the opportunity to easily integrate mobile technology into their current operations.”

MobiMagic integrates a restaurant’s existing POS menu items into a simple, elegant and powerful app used on Apple iPhone®, iPod Touch®, and iPad Mini® devices. The interface empowers end-users with mobile technology without spending a tremendous amount of time and money on the development, design and integration with their current POS system.

pcAmerica’s Restaurant Pro Express™ Mobile empowers clients with fast tableside ordering and payments using an Apple® iPod touch®, iPhone® or iPad Mini®. Using Restaurant Pro Express™ Mobile, servers can take orders tableside and securely process credit card transactions through an attached encrypted credit card reader.

Payments are processed in front of patrons and their credit cards never leave the table, virtually eliminating the possibility of theft from card skimming. Wait staff may print receipts with Epson’s Mobilink™ wireless mobile printer or email diners a paperless receipt. The mobile ordering system also supports various taxation rules, discounts and happy hour pricing.

pcAmerica has partnered with Granbury Solutions to give users running Restaurant Pro Express the ability to accept web and mobile orders via Granbury’s LetsGet online ordering and mobile app technology.

The partnership enables pcAmerica customers to expand their ordering capabilities to include customized online ordering sites and branded mobile apps. Restaurants can use the new technology without making major changes to their daily operations—there are no buttons to press or additional clicks required–online orders flow seamlessly into the POS system and print to kitchen printers automatically.

The partnership comes at a critical time for many small restaurant owners as growing fast-casual and pizza chains are dominating the market. Household names such as Dominos and Pizza Hut are reporting that more than 40 percent in their total sales come from online orders.

Restaurant owners around the nation using LetsGet have seen a boost in revenue thanks to LetsGet’s unique graphical ordering and powerful suggestive selling features. Giving users the ability to browse the menu without the pressure of keeping someone waiting to take their order, combined with LetsGet’s suggestion features, encourages customers to try new items or add on additional ones.

As an added bonus, pcAmerica customers that utilize LetsGet can also collect customer information for marketing purposes, generate detailed performance reports, create customizable discount options and employ integrated card processing.

LetsGet Online ordering is now available as an option for pcAmerica customers for an affordable monthly fee. For more information about how you can incorporate LetsGet into your business, please call your pcAmerica sales representative at 1.800.722.6374.

Since the Target data breach, we’ve been reading about the other companies who have been victims of breaches, too. Although it’s mainly larger companies making the news, don’t think medium and small businesses are immune.

Any business can suffer from a breach and this is not anything you want to make headlines about. And with all of the competition out there and online, brick-and-mortar stores don’t need to give shoppers another reason to take their business elsewhere, so making sure your POS system is secure will help shoppers feel safe swiping their card at the checkout.

How can your business protect itself against these types of breaches? You may be surprised to hear that the solutions are relatively simple to implement.

First, make sure your computers are equipped with antivirus software. You probably wouldn’t consider allowing your home computer to go unprotected, so there’s no reason your Windows-based POS system should be either. Having the antivirus software isn’t enough though; you need to update the definitions frequently to ensure maximum protection. It’s also easy to set your computer to require an administrator password to download and install new programs, which will help prevent employees from installing malware or other potentially harmful applications.

Second, set up your network so your employees cannot go online and surf anywhere they please. Not only does this open your POS system up to viruses and other threats, it also gives employees unfettered access to upload data into cyberspace. A firewall or network set up to block information being uploaded will help prevent someone from sending out the data if they are able to bypass the antivirus program or if the definitions haven’t been recently updated.

By adding layers of security, you ensure that data theft can be prevented even if one of the safeguards can be circumvented. For more information about how you can secure your point of sale system, please call your pcAmerica sales representative at 1.800.722.6374.

During the holiday shopping season, Target suffered one of the largest security breaches in history, seeing the theft of 40 million accounts and 70 million customer records containing personal information. In the month following, Target’s customer traffic hit the lowest point in three years, according to a March story in USA Today. The company’s sales fell more than five percent and its net income tumbled to $520 million, as compared to $961 million during the same period in 2012.

The company has since worked diligently to restore its customers trust and people are returning to the chain, although some promise to never use their credit or debit cards in the store again.

The damage from data breaches like Target’s, (which was only 1 of 600 reported breaches in 2013, according to Business Solutions Magazine) is fast, far-reaching and sometimes irreparable. So how can a company protect itself from these types of incidents?

A point of sale system can help ensure compliance, protecting a business from breaches and the costly fines and damaging investigations that accompany them. Systems running on the Windows platform can achieve PA-DSS (Payment Application Data Security Standard) certification.

However, iPad-based solution users beware: it’s impossible for tablet POS systems running on iOS or Android to achieve PA-DSS because the standards have yet to be developed by the PCI Council. This means the onus falls on the merchant to ensure his software is compliant and keeps customers’ payment card data secure.

pcAmerica’s point-of-sale solutions Cash Register Express™ and Restaurant Pro Express™ are PA-DSS certified. For more information about how you can ensure your business is protected, please call your pcAmerica sales representative at 1-800-722-6374.

In February, the Merchant Customer Exchange (MCX) added Paydiant, a software-only, cloud-based solution that gives restaurants and retail stores the ability to accept mobile payments and offers using their existing POS infrastructure, to its custom-developed mobile commerce infrastructure. Paydiant’s technology will allow MCX member merchants to leverage existing smartphones, point-of-sale (POS) and payment terminals.

MCX merchants represent more than 70 prominent brands with 110,000 locations that process more than $1 trillion in payments annually. Its members include Dunkin’ Donuts, Chili’s Grill & Bar and Sears and MCX’s owner-members include leaders in the big box, convenience, pharmacy, fuel, grocery, quick  and table service dining, specialty retail, and travel categories.

If all of these restaurants and merchants are signing on to accept mobile payments, isn’t it time you did as well? There are several mobile payment platforms available, and pcAmerica customers can choose from four applications that work with the company’s POS packages.

Restaurant Pro Express™ and Cash Register Express™ accept payment through Paydiant and Google Wallet, a mobile payment system that stores credit cards, loyalty information and gift cards.

pcAmerica’s POS packages also work with LevelUp’s mobile payment and loyalty solution and ISIS Mobile Wallet, an ultra-secure mobile payment functionality that includes several safeguards against theft or fraud.

Don’t get left behind when mobile payments take over. Please call your account manager for more information at 1-800-722-6374.