Get the Most Out of Your PIN Pad in the New World of Commerce

Small businesses need a strategy that not only helps them survive but thrive. Their strategy for success in the new world of commerce must include meeting consumer expectations for convenience and personalization. It must also help merchants operate more efficiently and cost-effectively. Within that framework, businesses need the agility to create unique processes and customer experiences that help their brands stand out in competitive markets and capture wallet share. To achieve those business goals, small merchants’ business strategies will vary. However, there’s one common but somewhat overlooked tool available to help them execute their strategies successfully: the PIN pad.

Tap the Untapped Potential of the PIN Pad

Every merchant that accepts payment cards has a device that reads cardholder data and sends it with transaction information for approval. It’s typical for merchants to call it the “PIN pad” (the part of the device that allows customers to enter their personal identification numbers), “card reader” or “payment device.” A PIN pad certified by the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI SSC) performs essential functions, allowing merchants to accept digital payments while protecting cardholder data, including the PIN, during transactions.

But is that all a PIN pad can do? The fact is that the right payment device can do so much more.

PIN pads designed as part of an Android-based payment technology platform can expand to provide new functionality, help SMBs operate more efficiently, and enhance customer experiences to build loyalty.

Android makes it possible to run business applications on the terminal while maintaining payment data security. So, merchants can run loyalty rewards software, gift card management, and even an inventory management solution right from the PIN pad. All those features and functions in one place can enhance customer experiences, but it also helps merchants operate more efficiently. Acquirers who provide payment technology to merchants can also use an Android-based platform to create packages or bundles of solutions and services for specific markets, like an offering tailored specifically to restaurants, specialty retailers, or service providers.

Additionally, PIN pads designed to work with an Android-based operating system enable creating smart point of sale (smart POS) devices. PIN pads operating on these platforms can communicate with administrators that they need service, provide real-time location data, and even allow a technician to take control of the device to troubleshoot while masking sensitive data.

Overall, Android-based payment technology allows merchants to get the most return on their investment in the computing power that their PIN pads have.

How a Next-Gen PIN Pad Can Change a Business for the Better

Merchants who expand the functionality of their PIN pads can benefit in several ways that positively impact the bottom line.

• Accept more payment methods

Consumers rank payment choice as the most important factor when deciding where to make purchases. The PIN pad that many merchants now use to accept payments accepts EMV credit and debit cards and it may be configured to accept contactless cards and mobile wallets. Android-based payment technology allows merchants to expand those options to accept, for example, buy now, pay later (BNPL) payments. Allowing customers to split payments into installments with BNPL can help merchants capture sales from consumers looking for ways to afford high-dollar items.

• Deliver customer experiences like larger competitors

When consumers turned to e-commerce in 2020 during pandemic shutdowns, they experienced the ease of interacting digitally with a business. With just a few taps, they could access inventory information, check pricing, apply their loyalty rewards, complete transactions, and even participate in short surveys. The right PIN pad allows merchants to provide those same experiences in-store, meeting customers’ expectations and keeping up with larger competitors with IT systems designed to provide those experiences.

• Increase employee productivity

A malfunctioning legacy PIN pad can take employees away from providing customer service or performing other essential functions so they can troubleshoot and correct the problem. The right PIN pad allows employees to request service directly from the device, connect with a technician, and allow the tech to correct the issue so employees can focus on customer experiences and maximizing sales.

What’s Your Next Step?

Whether you’re a merchant looking for a practical way to meet customer expectations and operate more competitively or a solutions provider or acquirer interested in more payment technology flexibility, evaluating PIN pad capabilities is a good place to start.

Reach out to Ingenico to explore your options.