6 Essential items for your retail store’s checkout

When you buy a TV for your home or even a new smartphone, you never just buy the item on its own. There are always peripherals that go with your purchase and the same is true for your retail store’s checkout equipment.

Whether you sell jewelry, clothes, shoes, technology or something else, your store’s checkout is one of the most important parts of your customer’s journey with your business. Long queues, delays when making payments, limited payment options or lack of payment options other than cash – all these can affect your customer’s experience, causing them to not support your business in the future.

Catching every sale is important for your store and it would be wise to consider some of the equipment and peripherals that you’ll need to create a seamless checkout process. So, what items should be included in the retail POS system equipment list? Let’s take a look at the 6 most important ones.

1. A cash register

Traditionally, a cash register was a machine used in shops that had a drawer for money and totals, and which displayed and recorded the amount of each sale.

Over time, this “machine” or piece of hardware has evolved into Cash register software or apps that help manage inventory, sync products, apply discounts, accept and administer different payment options, and many other functions.

Today, your cash register can come in the form of a piece of technology with software that enables all these functionalities to help you run your business better.

2. A cash drawer

Although it may seem as though we’re moving towards a cashless society, cash still plays an important role in many people’s lives. This is why you also need to have a special drawer for cash payments.

Available in different sizes and with different storage arrangements, you also need to consider the issue of safety and security and make sure that this cash register will not be easy to break into by thieves or other undesirable entities.

3. A receipt printer

A receipt printer is connected to your cash register and it prints out the items, corresponding amounts per item and the total values of each sale.

In most jurisdictions, providing a receipt to your customers is a legislative requirement. It requires ink and thermal paper and can be branded and personalised to give your customers a comprehensive payment experience, proof of payment and act as a voucher should your customers wish to return or exchange the product at a later stage.

4. A card machine for retail payments

It is known by many names but it all boils down to the same thing – a POS device, POS terminal, card machine, card reader, payment device, PDQ machine etc. whatever the name, this machine is used to accept contactless prepaid, debit and credit card payments, payments via mobile wallets as well as NFC wearables.

With a growing trend in cashless payments, every retail store needs to be equipped with a card machine to cater to their cashless clientele. Remember that your POS device needs to be able to accept contactless, Chip&PIN and magstripe payments to cater to a wide range of card payments.

Most devices these days come with some form of Internet connectivity, enabling them to be mobile and not fixed to the counter, thereby reducing the use of valuable retail space. POS devices can be traditional or smart and can come with a paper printer or be paper free, enabling you to send your customers digital receipts via SMS or email.

5. A customer-facing display

As a merchant and retail store business owner, you have an obligation to clearly display your prices. This includes a price display at the checkout. This piece of hardware enables your customers to see each item being scanned through the checkout and also visualise the final price of all the items added together.

Some pieces of technology such as the myPOS Hub+ device, has a customer facing display in addition to being a POS terminal that prints paper receipts. It’s also always connected to the Internet and has access to Cash register apps that help you manage your inventory with ease – making it an all-in-one payment solution for your retail business.

6. A barcode reader and printer

Retail stores with multiple products in their inventory need to be prepared to have each product marked with a barcode to ease inventory operations, stock taking and reduce theft.

This can be done with a barcode printer after which the printed barcodes are read by a (wireless) barcode reader, which inputs information into your cash register, enabling you to manage stock simply, easily and quickly.

The story of LCDLC and myPOS

– Learn what La Casa de las Carcasas is
– Understand their approach in the smartphone retail niche
– Find out why they chose myPOS

Learn more

Final thoughts

In order to give your customers the best checkout experience, your checkout hardware and software needs to be chosen carefully. From a cash register system that manages your inventory to your POS device, or even a barcode printer and scanner – you need to ensure that all your peripherals work optimally to provide your shoppers with all they need for a smooth and secure checkout, while enabling you to take care of your inventory and the payments you receive.