Retail IT Featured Editorial

After two long years, it appears the pandemic may be coming to an end. As retailers devise post-pandemic strategies, they must consider changes in customer behavior. The pandemic accelerated digital transformation in retail and helped reshape customer expectations. There is no going back.

The cannabis market is expanding rapidly and is creating substantial opportunities to sell cannabis cash management, cash drawers, and cannabis dispensary POS solutions.

These are trying times for restaurants and retailers. You’re dealing with supply chain issues and a labor shortage. Frustration is running high among customers, who too often are lashing out at retail and restaurant workers.

When we were kids, shortcuts were celebrated. Hearing from a buddy, “You want to go play at that new field? I know a shortcut,” was met with a smile. That get-there-as-fast-as-we-can mindset is often avoided in business because we assume the time-consuming, complex way is the best way. This is especially true with content marketing. Instead of focusing on creating quality content as quickly as possible, VARs and ISVs get bogged down in extraneous details, bloating the project to a point where the planned content never sees the light of day.

While the cashless movement gained momentum during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, advocates of the right to use cash are taking their fight to Congress. In July, Rep. Donald M. Payne Jr., D-NJ, introduced a bill to prohibit businesses from rejecting cash payments for in-store transactions.

From account takeover to friendly fraud, phishing, spoofing, counterfeiting, chargebacks and more, there are many ways for fraudsters to disrupt and derail ecommerce. This is a major thorn in the side for retailers and honest customers alike. However, despite some depressing trends in fraud, this is not a doom-and-gloom situation. There are many robust solutions and services available to retailers. We’ll take a look at some current fraud trends and explain the best ways to safeguard against those threats.

The COVID-19 pandemic raised safety concerns over cash handling, but those fears dissipated as the pandemic dragged on. By October 2020, cash had rebounded and reasserted itself as “the top way to make a purchase throughout 2020,” according to a report by Javelin Strategy & Research for ATM operator Cardtronics.

The COVID-19 pandemic caused a sudden 8.5% decline in adoption of mobile POS systems, but implementation will accelerate in the next four years. By 2025, the mPOS installed base will grow by 20%, according to an IHL Group projection.

As the number of vaccinated people increases, states are lifting pandemic restrictions to restore some sense of normalcy. Even the most stringent cities and states are in the process of returning stores and restaurants to full capacity -- a welcome move for business owners.

The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated “cashless society” efforts around the globe. Understandably, consumers grew concerned over the possibility of contracting the virus by handling cash. Meanwhile, retailers had to scramble to continue operating even when they had to temporarily close brick-and-mortar stores. Many turned to curbside pickup, BOPIS (buy online, pickup in store), and touchless payments.