Explosion In POS Software Means Opportunity For Developers

By John Nicola, SVP, Integrated Solutions, First Data

BIG DATA OFFERS EVEN THE SMALLEST BUSINESS A COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
Merchants are moving away from stand-alone payment systems and looking for a more comprehensive business solution. Smart POS systems amass valuable information about customers, purchase patterns, inventory, and staff. Integrated systems offer a distinct competitive advantage, which is why merchants are flocking to smart devices. As hardware and software become more affordable and cloud-based solutions grow, stand-alone payment systems are quickly becoming obsolete.

Point of sale software enables merchants to create loyalty programs, and gift cards, generate business analytics, schedule employees, pay taxes, send customer promotions, engage in social media, track inventory, and more. Consider Booker in Clover’s app marketplace. Not only will this integrated software simplify daily activities like setting appointments online, it helps merchants fill slow days and uncover new opportunities. All this and it accepts payments from almost any device securely. Other apps help businesses see aggregate data from other local businesses to identify customer buying trends based on industry and locale to see how the businesses are faring.

Merchants can choose apps tailored to their needs while staying within their budget. The ability to collect, analyze, and capitalize on real-time data offers even the smallest businesses valuable insights. All that are required are talented software developers with vision.

DEVELOPERS WIN BIG
The explosion of entrepreneurism and big data means extraordinary opportunities for developers. In two years, the Money20/20 Hackathon has become a premier venue for the world’s best developers. This year’s event gathered top hackers in Las Vegas for 24 hours of intense competition and collaboration. Teams battled for $125K in cash prizes and international notoriety as they were challenged to showcase their skills and vision using the APIs, SDKs, and other tools.

At First Data, we’re excited about the creativity these software developers demonstrated. Clover, a subsidiary of First Data, owns one of the largest B2B app markets in the world with 180+ apps. Our platform is the most advanced open platform architecture for businesses of all sizes. Whether through a POS, online, mobile, and connected commerce — we help small businesses engage with their customers. Because of our robust apps market, merchants can adapt cutting-edge technology to their needs, grow their business, and stay within budget.

Collaborating with the software developer community is critical for First Data. We recognize breakthrough innovation comes by having an open platform for developers and compelling solutions for the VAR community to take to market. We also bring developers scale, with unrivaled distribution channels, which means that our innovative products actually get into diverse marketplaces.

NICHE MARKETS OFFER MISSED OPPORTUNITIES
Events like concerts, festivals, and sports also represent an incredibly underserved market. From 2008 to 2015, the NFL alone saw an average of more than 17.6 million attendees during the regular season. The more ways a venue can accept payments, the more revenue they can generate — for merchants and developers. Our recent partnership with Bypass Mobile equips food and beverage vendors at the Seattle Seahawks’ CenturyLink stadium, speeding up concession lines and providing secure, convenient payments to 2 million fans throughout the stadium leveraging Bypass’s integrated software.

We’ve learned from owning Clover that an open platform attracts more merchants than we ever could serve on our own. It attracts a broader range of merchant types, too. There are all sorts of niche markets where new apps can potentially provide great payment revenue. The service industry alone has more than 10 million SMBs including salons, gyms, healthcare, or spas — all with unique needs.  Smart POS systems represent a revolution in small business. We at First Data look forward to being part of this revolution.

First Data
225 Liberty Street, 29th Floor
New York, NY 10281
PH: (866) 965-8330
integratedsolutions@firstdata.com
www.firstdata.com/integratedsolutions