Charles Darwin once said:
“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, not the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.” And this still holds true today when we talk about successful organisations in dynamic markets.
Over the past few years, the Point of Sale terminal Market has gone through a tremendous amount of change, ranging from the design and look-and-feel modifications to more stringent certification and security requirements. Fuelled by the pandemic and the desire of people to reduce human contact, the market for PoS terminals is enjoying unprecedented growth and development and the successful organisation will be able to adapt to the change that is coming.
So, to give you a hand, we have put together some key market trends of the PoS industry, so that you’re prepared for the ride.
Is integration the key?
Have you ever heard your boss say, “I want the terminal to have this A/B/C functionality, we need to pass certification, it should look user friendly, and it should have the smallest BOM and form factor possible”? If yes – then we are on the same side of the trend, which pushes PoS manufacturers to integrate more and more functionalities into more and more compact devices.
Chip&Pin mobile PoS with displays and touchpads, Chip&Sign terminals without a display – these devices tend to get smaller and smaller while the performance requirements keep growing. At the same time, the market for such mPoS devices is growing – they enable small retailers to conduct EMV transactions, help their customers avoid carrying cash and provide more accurate reporting.
While it is true that such devices are becoming more and more popular, their deployment is yet still limited. But it is only a matter of time until these devices become a world-wide sensation.
Are traditional PoS becoming obsolete?
In German there is this funny word, “jein” – which means yes and no at the same time. Traditional and bulky Point of Sale terminals as we know them will become steadily replaced over time. Or better said – they are going to evolve and transform into the modern day Mobile Smart PoS.
Mobile Smart PoS systems are yet to replace the traditional POS, but already now we know the features that they are going to possess. First and foremost, the industrial design is going to look quite different from how the PoS terminals look . The touchpad is going to be replaced by a bigger touch screen and the entire device would look more like a smartphone or PDA. They will carry multiple payment channels, such as QR code, Wechat, digital and crypto currency. Mobile Smart PoS would also allow for the integration of CRM, customer analytics, logistics and stock management systems , bringing marketing analysis in a more convenient way to the retailers on a single platform.
When will this happen?
To give you some insights to where the PoS market is going, let us show you some numbers, they are quite representative!
