As a business owner or management, you’re more than aware that payments are the lifeblood of any company. Not only does the efficiency of your payment systems dictate your business’ survival, but they can also greatly affect how you use your time. Inadequate payment systems are a sign of your business stagnating, and in this day and age, stagnation equals death.
Payment systems, in the end, are meant to make your life as a business owner easier. They’re supposed to handle transactions and be easy to use. You don’t need your systems to add stress and hassle to your busy schedule.
So, how can you tell when it’s time to replace your payment systems? Here are seven questions that will tell you straight away!!
1. Does your payment system work everywhere?
Whether you’re a small business or part of a multi-national company, if your payment system doesn’t work everywhere, it’s time to upgrade. Unlike times gone by, customers expect more ease, efficiency, and faster service. This fast service includes processing payments quickly and accurately.
If your payment system doesn’t work in certain locations or refuses to accept certain forms of currency, then it is simply holding your business back. You’ll lose out on valuable business if you can’t cater to your customers’ ability to pay wherever they’re located!
2. Does your machine die within a few hours of use?
If your payment system crashes in the middle of a transaction more than once, then it may require more than just a change of battery. Slow payment services will only reflect badly on your business. More importantly, this gives customers a chance to back out of the transaction, which you certainly don’t want!
Payment systems are meant to make payment processing faster and easier. If your card machine dies when you need it, then it’s simply a hassle you don’t need. If your machine doesn’t and you can’t use it when and where you need it, getting a new card machine is your only option.
3. Is your payment system bulky and difficult to carry?
With the latest in mobile card machines that are lightweight and cordless, being stuck with the same wired-in, bulky system is an unnecessary hassle. Even if your business isn’t overly mobile, an upgrade to an updated, streamlined model shows that you’re keeping up with the times! Not to mention, newer systems are easier for your employees to manage.
4. Does it take you a while to train new employees to use your payment system?
Along with being bulky and unmanageable, is your payment system difficult to get the hang of? Do new employees struggle to learn the ins and outs of using this essential system? If so, it’s a sure sign you need to change your system.
Using an updated payment system is not only easier for your employees to handle, but new employees can grasp it more quickly, making training more efficient. So you won’t spend precious staff and customer time on a complex system.
5. Do your receipts take a long time to print?
If you’re standing at the till while a customer waiting for minutes after minutes for the receipt to print, it’s a sure sign to change up your payment system. The long wait doesn’t just inconvenience the customer you’re serving, but also the line of people that will form behind them.
Not to mention that excessive waiting times on receipts reduce the number of transactions you can process in a day, damaging your bottom line. Updating your system will allow you to process customers faster and improve your business’ productivity!
6. Does your payment system accept multiple forms of online payment?
Advancement in technology in recent years has led to the development of a range of different online payment methods. Customers generally don’t carrying cash or cards with them anymore, preferring to use services like Venmo and Google Pay.
These systems are more convenient for the consumer. They’re more likely to frequent your store if you can cater to their preferred methods of electronic payment. If your current payment systems can’t handle any other forms of payment, then it is obsolete and it’s time to upgrade!
7. Is it difficult to manage your current payment system?
It all comes down to one simple question, is it getting difficult for you to manage your payments? If your payment system is unmanageable, then it’s a sure-fire sign that you need to upgrade.
Unmanageable can mean anything from your system not working when you need it to, to it not processing payments on time. Installing a new system will allow you to process your payments faster and more accurately.
Endnotes
When you can have a system that functions better, you’ll spend less time battling with your old payment system and more time doing business. Your answers to the above seven questions will tell you if it’s time to change up your old, obsolete payment technology. Once you have a new system in place, you’ll soon be wondering why you ever asked yourself if you needed to switch!
