As you’re getting your business, marketing, and other initiatives ready for fall in the Northern Hemisphere, there’s one thing you shouldn’t forget: upgrading your POS system to accept mobile payments and chip cards.

You might think lack of time is what’s stopping you, but rest assured that upgrading your POS is actually much faster and cheaper than you believe. You can set up a contactless reader in a few minutes, making sure your business will be ready for the upcoming busy season. Here are 5 reasons to upgrade your POS – now.

1. Avoid Costly Data Breach

Microsoft stopped offering support for their Windows XP operating system, which many top pos systems for small business are using. This lack of support means that you will be out of luck when it comes to an official patch or fix from Microsoft if a hacker finds a new security flaw, exploit or bug in Windows XP that allows them to access your system.

You risk a costly data breach in the wake of the fact that Microsoft has now abandoned XP. Typically, they released a new security patch every week to address recently discovered gaps in their operating systems. This way, they are also abandoning the patches needed to keep the system safe.

2. More Reliable

POS hardware and software is just like any other technology you use. It can break. Are you rebooting it all the time? Does some of the functionality leave something to be desired? Although many of the basics of what a POS does haven’t changed too much in the past years, it’s like having to text on a flip phone. It can be done, but it’s annoying as heck.

A great advantage of cloud-based technology is not needing a traditional server in your back office. What is more, terminals don’t have as much hard-wiring or they have none at all. They can be mounted in places where it previously wasn’t possible.

This could mean less time spent walking back and forth between servers. This saves not only effort, but also energy costs. All in all, going to the cloud has a lot of benefits.  Having a server means having a higher energy bill compared to using a cloud based server.

Prevent Loss of Money

Upgrading your POS could also prevent you from being faced with unwanted fraud charges. Fraudulent purchases result in disputes of payment, meaning loss of money to you. Modern POS systems use AI to look at payments from across ecosystems and adjust algorithms to account for new fraud trends.

A lot of payment processors will charge you a fee when your customer files a payment dispute, but not all. For example, Square is a processor that doesn’t. This processor takes care of the time-consuming, stressful work of dealing with your client’s bank. This, in turn, lets you turn attention to your next sale during the upcoming season.

3. Improved Marketing

Businesses outside the restaurant industry use customer relationship management software (CRM). CRM allows you to track your customers and document their likes and dislikes. A POS can do the exact same thing, as many of us are aware. In the past, only a few POS systems supported loyalty programs.

Today, it has become a standard. A POS can keep track of each client by name, phone number, or credit card details. You can use your POS to send a current customer walking by your location a text with your latest offer. You’ll have the newest in payments security technology. Mobile and chip card payment transactions are protected by the most sophisticated fraud detection technologies available.

As fall approaches and your transactions increase, there’s no better time to adopt a payments solution featuring all relevant security advancements. Always choose a provider who does everything in their power to make accepting cards as fast, painless and secure as possible.

4. Easier for Clients

Most businesses would describe this as “omni-channel,” which it is, but it’s really giving the customer new and improved ways to interact with your establishment and empowering them in the process.

A recent survey of millennials showed that more than 50% prefer to not just order food online, but order via their mobile devices. Does your restaurant have an online menu? Is it dynamic and connected to the POS system to reflect any changes you make, or is it a static menu that you’ve forgotten all about? It should have a responsive design so that it’s viewable on any device.

5. Sift through Data More Easily

The tech industry has been using the term “big data” for a number of years now. It refers to the increasing quantity of data that is being collected on a constant basis. This mass of data is growing every day and the ability to sift through all that data and find uses for it is important to every business.

Generally, this has only been a concern among big corporations. In the modern world, it also represents opportunities for smaller retail and hospitality businesses.

For instance, the amount of data available to you today can include everything from the smallest details surrounding who your customers are, when they come in, what they buy, and how often they buy the same items to most basic elements of sales, costs and cash flow.

In a nutshell, collecting all this mass of data on the preferences of your customers and your potential customers can be extremely time consuming. If you manage to do it, it can be hard to know how to use all that data. That’s the downside of Big Data.

The upside is that modern POS systems are equipped with state of the art software that can sift through all that information and give you actionable insight you may never have imagined possible. Having this information easily accessible empowers you to take actions that will improve customer satisfaction and loyalty.

Conclusion

It’s easy and affordable to set your business up to accept chip cards and mobile payments. This will keep it up to date, make sure payments are secure, and guarantee a better customer experience.