Will Your POS Connectivity Handle Black Friday?
Picture the scene, you’re standing in front of your customer. They’re holding a credit card, ready and willing to part with their cash in your shop.
Your card machine says waiting to connect… transaction failed. You hear feet tapping. You observe the lengthening queue of disgruntled customers with apprehension.
Let’s not get carried away with the worst-case scenario. Let’s discuss how you can set up a robust POS connectivity solution that won’t disappoint you when you need it the most. Especially during busy periods such as Black Friday.
A Working Network
Online POS systems come with a bit of paraphernalia. You might need a router, modem and relevant cables to get online. You need to decide if a wireless or an ethernet option will suit your business. If you own a big shop with a few till points, a wireless access point might be helpful to boost your signal.
And, you need a reliable backup plan for your card transactions.
There are a few additional questions you’ll want to ask yourself. Especially before Black Friday descends upon us.
- Are you maintaining regular backups?
- What’s your redundancy plan?
- Do you have a failover?
When it comes to backups you need to be saving your company data securely. You’ll know whether saving to a cloud-based drive or an external physical hard drive (or both) works for your business. And, make sure you’re doing your backups often enough.
Redundancy means using a separate, secure storage solution for critical data. Do your backups, and store the data somewhere safe.
A failover maintains an uninterrupted connection. For example, a fibre line could be your primary connection, but you have a secondary GSM. If your primary connection drops, your network switches over before you lose out on transactions.
POS Connectivity Options
So, what’s the best way to get, and keep, your POS system online? Let’s run through a few of the options.
Fibre
You might choose to connect with a fibre line. Fibre’s high speed and reliability coupled with low latency mean you get faster transactions, dependent on the size of your line of course. Definitely a plus.
4G (or 5G)
4G is a great option for data transfer speed. It also provides increased coverage if you use mobile terminals. Plus it’s more secure than an open WiFi network, because it offers secure connectivity if provided by a reputable PCI certified company.
As the up-and-coming new generation, 5G is a step above its predecessor. If you’re fortunate enough to live in an area that offers a 5G connection, and you’re in a position to upgrade, this is a great option.
WiFi
WiFi is a popular choice. A good router will provide a sure and speedy connection. The trouble with a WiFi router is that you need a UPS as a failover. This will help you process card payments when the power goes off (load-shedding… enough said).
Ethernet
Then there’s a wired connection. The opposite of a wireless connection. It’s fixed with an ethernet cable connecting your POS terminal. Your payment terminal will be stationary with a physical connection to the internet. So, if it’s unplugged it will be offline. Plugged-in means online.
SIM Connection
POS machines that use SIM cards are also called GSM POS devices. SIM cards allow for a mobile network connection. This is great if your business is in the hospitality industry and you need to take the terminal to the patron.
A mobile connection can be as quick as fibre, but it means that wherever there’s a signal you can swipe a card and transact successfully.
Another benefit, a SIM connection can work as a failover. For example, let’s say your POS system normally runs on a wired connection but your signal goes down (think cable theft.) Having a mobile connection to kick in can save your connectivity.
Transaction Successful
When POS connectivity is inefficient, challenges result. And as a business owner, the fewer challenges you have the better. Naturally, you don’t want your own systems to get in the way of customers making payments.
These are the POS connectivity challenges you don’t want:
- If a POS fails to connect, the inconvenienced customer might choose to shop elsewhere
- Poor connections create inefficiencies through delays and transaction errors
- Making customers wait for slow transactions translates to poor service
- POS failures mean weakened security, increased data loss and customer privacy breaches
You need a contingency plan in case your POS connectivity goes down but expecting your customers to pay with cash is like hopping into a safety net with very large holes. Your profits are going to fall straight through.
Don’t get caught in the dark. Give your POS connectivity a tune-up and make this Black Friday a profitable one.
If you need some help with secure POS connectivity solutions, contact the team at Huge Connect.
