Maas Global Blog: The Latest News & Trends in Payments

Regular point of sale (POS) terminals have come a long way over the last couple of decades, but in the ways that matter, they really haven’t changed much.  Merchants like them because they’re easy to use and dependable but they’re still very limited, single purpose devices.  Comparing a virtual Point of Sale terminal to a traditional terminal is like comparing a traditional telephone to a smart phone; you can make calls on either one, but a telephone is just a one trick pony.

Here are the top 10 reasons why virtual POS terminals (VPOS) are better for business:

1. Card on file. Merchants have a secure way to store credit/debit card and checking account details so they can charge their regular customers without requiring them to present a card or check.
2. Email receipts.  With a VPOS email engine, merchants can send receipts their customers can easily store electronically.
3. No extra hardware to maintain. Why have multiple devices to manage and pay for when most businesses have personal computers on site already?
4. Unlimited users who can log on from anywhere.  With the merchant's express permission, their bookkeeper can log in from their office to get transaction reports, clerks can log on from the front desk to process payments and merchants can log in from any Internet connection to check on the business from anywhere in the world. 
5. PCI Compliance. Most VPOS terminals are continually updated to remain fully PCI compliant while most existing POS terminals simply aren’t PCI DSS compliant.  After the massive recent data breaches with Sony et al., this issue will become increasingly important as the card associations start cracking down on non-compliance.
6. Customer Data at your fingertips.  VPOS terminals generally support loading customer information which gives the merchant a great way to communicate with their customers for promotions and loyalty.
7. Consumer “Push” Payments.  Some VPOS terminals support a consumer payment portal that allows them to push a payment to the merchant.  This keeps all of the consumer’s payment details secure and private and gives the customer the convenience of paying online or via their smart phone.
8. Doesn’t tie up a phone line.  Standard POS terminals use phone lines to communicate with the processor which requires merchants to either lose their line while the transactions process or get a second phone line which is often times more expensive than the monthly fee for a VPOS.
9. Rental/lease fees.  Merchants often pay $30-$40/month to rent or lease their POS terminals which is more expensive than simply using a VPOS terminal.
10. Marketing.  With a VPOS, receipts can be printed on preprinted sheets that market the Merchant’s business. They are larger than normal receipts so a consumer will be more inclined to keep them and respond to a marketing message than if it’s printed on a small POS terminal receipt.   What a great way to incent your customers to save your marketing message.  With a VPOS, you can actually turn your credit card processing into a great new way to make grow your business!