Customer relationship management (CRM) is an integral part of operations for every industry and every business within that industry, from startup to scale-up to mega-corporation. Defining the CRM roles of your staff is a key component in implementation.

As an integrated suite of cloud applications, CRM software eliminates the need to use multiple apps to manage customer interactions and data. It provides a centralized platform for everything sales-related, allowing teams to sort data and prioritize activities. Features of CRM software typically include contact management, lead management, sales forecasting, marketing automation, customer analytics, and customer service and support.

So, what CRM roles do you need on your team?

Also read: Top Sales CRM Solutions of 2024

Key components of a CRM team 

CRM managers

This is the product owner for the CRM, with a full depth of knowledge on how the tool works and who can manipulate the tool for custom needs and train others on particulars.

CRM managers:

• Build custom sets for special use cases
• Build and maintain workflows for individual users or teams
• Set up and monitor information flow within CRM and with other business-critical systems
• Train users on data cleanliness, internal processes, and new features

Sales managers

A sales manager needs to oversee the activities of the entire sales team and put those into the context of the larger business goals. CRMs enable a sales manager to:

• Track individual and team metrics: productivity, revenue
• Delegate tasks to individual sales representatives
• Monitor and provide strategy for performance improvement with logged calls, performance metrics, revenue metrics
• Access data for goal setting analytics, team meetings, and reporting to executives
• Update and override account and individual contacts

Also Read: The Only CRM Integration List You’ll Ever Need

Sales representatives

The sales representative is the primary user of the CRM and will spend the most time in it. These employees should receive the most intensive training on how to use the tool, but will likely have the most restricted access.

In a CRM, sales representatives can: 

• Track customer interactions
• Keep contact information up to date
• Set tasks and reminders for follow-up with contacts
• Create and build workflows for faster task and contact management
• Identify bundling and upsell opportunities for current customers
• Produce quotes and contracts

Customer support representative

Having separate CRM systems for the support desk and sales team is not only redundant, but inefficient. Keeping all support contact information centralized in a single CRM ensures data isn’t duplicated or missed entirely. Be sure to check that the CRM you purchase integrates directly and provides two-way data sharing between the support tool and the CRM. 

Useful features for customer support representatives include the ability to:

• Manage support contacts for individual accounts
• Identify power users or high-value customers for special deals

Marketing manager

Marketing managers may arguably spend more time in a CRM than a marketing automation software as they track and improve the quality of leads gained from marketing campaigns.

CRMs allow marketing managers to: 

• Track MQL to closed to understand lead quality
• Refine strategy of marketing funnel based on lead to close conversions
• Oversee quality marketing automation to CRM workflows
• Identify customers and contacts for marketing opportunities including partnerships and advocacy

Marketing reps

While you wouldn’t normally think that the entire marketing team would need access to CRM data, it can be immensely helpful for these individual contributors. Access to potential customer advocates and recording partnerships can help everyone across the company, and individual licenses mean that these employees don’t need to bug sales every time they want to log an interaction. 

Marketing reps can:

• Reach out to current customers and partners for campaigns
• Project management for outreach (tasks, due dates, etc)
• Builds workflows for sharing information between marketing automation and CRM
• Pulling segmented lists of customers

Data analysts

Whether you use the reporting and analytics features included in your CRM or you export your data to a business intelligence software to provide context from all other business systems, a data analyst will need view and export access to data from across the system.

A data analyst can:

• Provide reporting and analysis on CRM data for c-levels
• Export data into business intelligence software for greater analysis when combined with other financials or supply chain metrics
• Audit data for cleanliness and process improvements
• Find new opportunities within data for products, sales techniques, marketing personas

CFO

The CFO needs insight into how sales and marketing efforts affect the overall revenue, supply chain, and manufacturing strategy. While this individual may not drill down into daily performance metrics, they will need access to high-level data from across the organization.

A CFO uses data from CRM reports to decide upon major policy and strategy changes company-wide.

Other C-levels and executives

Depending on the company structure, various executives will need access to data from the CRM for strategic needs. The CRM will provide insight into how individual and team work add up to revenue, and how those processes can be improved.

CRMs give executives the ability to:

• Keep tabs on strategy ROI
• Understand individual performance
• Access revenue and sales metrics (CPL, CPA, RPL) to determine strategy
• Use data for new growth opportunities, new products, and major policy changes

Benefits of defining CRM roles

The success of CRM implementation depends largely on how well employees use the software. Defining CRM roles and responsibilities is important for the following reasons:

Efficient use of the software

When different user roles are defined, it ensures each user has access to only the functions and features relevant to his or her role. This can help to prevent confusion and make the software easier to use. For example, a sales representative may not need access to customer contact information.

Streamlined processes

Tasks can be completed in a more timely manner by allowing each user to focus on a specific task. For instance, a sales manager can assign tasks to several sales representatives, who can, in turn, update the status of those tasks in the CRM. 

Improved data security

Controlled access to sensitive information is key to preventing data breaches. Assigned roles compartmentalize the flow of company and customer data. 

Also Read: Protecting Your CRM Database with Cybersecurity Solutions

Better decision-making

When users are assigned specific roles, it becomes easier to gather and analyze information. For example, a marketing manager can use customer data to create targeted campaigns. 

Accountability

When users know their specific responsibilities, they are more likely to take ownership of their tasks, resulting in more completed projects in less time. 

Delegating CRM roles and responsibilities

Once roles have been clearly defined, they must be delegated accurately to maximize effectiveness. Each team member must have the necessary skills and resources to perform their responsibilities efficiently. Some best practices for delegating CRM roles and responsibilities include:

Are you ready to build your team?

In order for any CRM to be used effectively, clear roles and responsibilities must be delegated to employees of several departments. 

The result is a significant boost in customer experience (CX), streamlined operations, and increased sales and revenue.

Looking for more specific CRM solutions? Check out our CRM Types: Which CRM Software is Right for You?

What does a CRM manager do? 

As the product owner for the software, CRM managers are responsible for overseeing the implementation and maintenance of a company’s customer relationship management system. 

What is a CRM administrator?

A CRM administrator is a technical professional responsible for the management and maintenance of a CRM system. Administrators work closely with other teams, such as sales and marketing, to optimize the system’s performance. 

The post The Different Types of Roles & Responsibilities in a CRM appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

When selecting a CRM, a number of them may seem limited in their functionality, and that’s where third-party software tools can become integral to your success. Seamless CRM integration compliments the function of your CRM with the inclusion of third-party applications that stand to enhance your software platform through intuitive integration. 

CRM integration explained

CRM integration is a process where your CRM connects with third-party software that not only compliments the functionality of your existing CRM, but goes beyond it by adding more options that will aid your business and alter how it routinely operates.

There are many tools available on the market today that target the specific needs of your business and a CRM alone may come with some limitations that can be mitigated with reliable third-party tool support. This is where CRM integration comes into play and has the potential to help your company meet its goals organically with as little setup stress as possible.

One of the most significant perks of using CRM integration is that you and your team will no longer have to bounce between systems to ensure an adequate work balance. Thanks to third-party app support, and the power of your CRM, important data is easily accessible within a consolidated system.

ALSO READ: Easy-to-Use Customer Engagement Software & Tools

What are CRM tools?

CRM tools work in a variety of ways and are fundamentally designed to support the many areas of your business, which include marketing, sales, and customer service. The main purpose for using these CRM tools together is to stay on top of customer data. Using this data will help your team track your customers and guide them through the sales process.

While CRM tools can work independently from each other, they tend to work best when used together on a shared platform. In doing so, these tools will allow you and your team members to take full advantage and improve how your business operates. Your team stands to benefit your company by targeting its unique needs and expanding the capabilities of your existing CRM software.

5 essential CRM integrations

CRM integrations can be highly valuable in streamlining business operations and increasing efficiency. Here are five essential CRM integrations that can be beneficial for your business:

Email integration

Integrating your CRM system with your email platform can help you keep track of all email communications with your customers. This integration can also enable you to automate follow-up emails, set reminders, and categorize emails based on different criteria.

Social media integration

Integrating your CRM system with social media platforms can help you track customer interactions on social media, monitor mentions, and respond to customer inquiries and complaints quickly.

Analytics integration

Integrating your CRM system with an analytics platform can help you track and analyze customer behavior, website traffic, and sales data to gain valuable insights into your business operations. This integration can enable you to make data-driven decisions to improve customer experiences and boost your bottom line.

Marketing automation 

Integrating your CRM system with a marketing automation platform can help you create and execute targeted marketing campaigns, track leads, and analyze customer behavior to optimize your marketing efforts.

Customer service integration  

Integrating your CRM system with a customer support platform can help you manage customer inquiries and complaints more efficiently. This integration can enable you to prioritize support requests, assign tasks to team members, and track response times.

What are the benefits of CRM integration?

CRM integration can yield many benefits for your business. Ideally, this form of system integration has the potential to streamline your business’s internal work processes, while allowing you and your team to accurately forecast your company’s flow of data as it relates to customer interactions and their purchase behavior.  

Ultimately, CRM integration is meant to keep your customers satisfied with the level of communication and attentiveness that they come to expect from your company. Your chosen CRM and its ability to be integrated with third-party apps can improve customer service by giving your team the means to engage in more personalized communication with the speed to do so effectively.

ALSO READ: Use This Calculation To Find Your CRM ROI

Additionally, CRM integrations will often make automation easier to implement, which gives employees the opportunity to focus on other areas of importance. Daily communication and extensive record-keeping is often very time-consuming as well and can contribute to additional work pressure. However, the option of automating these processes conserves precious time and resources, which is ideal. 

Why is a fully integrated CRM important for the success of your business? 

A fully integrated CRM system can be an important platform to drive the success of your business for a number of reasons.

An integrated CRM will allow you and your team to better understand the needs of your customers, which is a crucial component to your success. Keeping track of customer interactions while also helping your team better understand the needs of your clientele will lead to the offering of more personalized solutions, which in turn builds trust between your company and the customers it serves. 

An enhanced customer experience provides a seamless and consistent flow across different key areas, which assists with building brand loyalty and leads to repeat business.

CRM integration also has the potential to increase your team’s efficiency and productivity through the automation of routine tasks and optimized workflows. This inevitably frees up your employees to focus on more value-added activities. All this leads to an increase in productivity and focus, which translates to higher profitability. 

Better decision-making is another effect of CRM integration and can provide insights into customer behavior in real-time. This increases sales performance and other key metrics that can help your team make more informed business decisions. This can help you identify opportunities for growth and optimize your operations to improve profitability.

Choosing the right CRM

Overall, a fully Integrated CRM system can help you build stronger customer relationships, improve communication and collaboration within your organization, enhance the customer experience, and also increase efficiency and productivity. This will allow you and your employees to make more informed business decisions. These benefits will ultimately help your business achieve long-term success in a highly competitive marketplace.

Looking for the latest in CRM solutions? Check out our CRM Software Buyer’s Guide.

FAQ 

What is CRM integration?

CRM integration seamlessly connects your CRM with third-party applications, which streamlines your team’s workflow and improves system functionality. This often leads to increased productivity and optimized time management.   

Why is a fully integrated CRM important? 

A fully integrated CRM is important because it promotes focus and better organization while also streamlining your team’s workflow and adding enhancements to customer support. This is done through the incorporation of third-party app support that works in unison with your current CRM platform.

The post CRM Integrations: Everything You Need To Know (2024) appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

As a businessperson, your success hinges on knowing your customers well. You likely get to know your customers through a variety of sources, be it through forms filled out on your website, verbal conversations, or social media.

It would, of course, be impossible to remember all of this information about so many different people, so you record it across the various tools you use to operate your business. You likely store the most important details, such as name, company, and contact info, in your CRM solution and refer to your other tools for finer details. But what if there was a way to eliminate the need to flip back and forth?

The answer is CRM integrations, and they’re essential for getting the most out of your CRM platform and seeing the clearest snapshot of your customers. Here’s a definitive list of the integrations you should consider for your business.

Customer Service

How many times have you had to call a company’s customer service line only to discover that the representative doesn’t know your call or email history? Frustrating, right?

You may not be surprised, then, to hear that in a 2018 study from NewVoiceMedia, 39 percent of participants said they are likely to never do business again with a company after having a poor experience. In today’s world, where consumers have access to a variety of products and services, you can’t afford to offer bad customer experience.

Look for these customer service solutions that are integration-friendly with your CRM:

• Zendesk
• Five9
• Nextiva

Calendars

Scheduling conflicts are annoying at best. At worst, they can cost you time and money.

Let’s say you’ve been working a new lead for a couple weeks now, exchanging emails to get a sense of their needs and answering any questions they might have. You finally have a product demo scheduled only to discover the day before that you accidentally double-booked yourself. Yikes.

Communication breakdowns between your business data sources cause major frustration for customers.

If you’re lucky, your potential client will be fine with pushing the demo back an hour or so. Or you could enter the downward spiral of rescheduling — that fateful process that begins with good intentions and ends with the client deciding rescheduling is more trouble than it’s worth.

Most modern CRMs will help you avoid such catastrophes with calendar and scheduling integration.

Look for these calendar and scheduling solutions that integrate with your CRM:

• Google Calendar
• Office 365 Calendar
• Calendly

Marketing Campaigns

By now you may be noticing a common thread: Communication breakdowns between your business data sources cause major frustration for customers. And few things in life are more rage-inducing than receiving multiple emails from multiple sources containing the same basic message.

ALSO READ: Customer Segmentation: Methods, Techniques, and Real Examples

Modern email marketing is all about customer segmentation. Email marketers send different email campaigns to different groups of customers based on what they know about those specific groups. This is a wonderful benefit of automating your marketing practices, but it can present problems if the sales team also interacts with one of those customers.

Look for these email marketing solutions that integrate with your CRM to prevent repeat messaging:

• MailChimp
• Constant Contact
• Mailigen

Social Media

Thanks to the Internet, your customers are now everywhere, especially on social media sites such as Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest. Conversations happen all the time on these platforms, not only between friends and family, but also between brands and consumers. Businesses have always needed to be where their customers are, and that includes social media.

Consumers expect to be able to communicate with brands on social media now, and many brands use platforms like Twitter and Facebook to field complaints from customers. It’s essential, therefore, to see messages on social media from customers when they’re sent and to reply promptly.

Look for these social media management solutions when adding integrations to your CRM:

• HootSuite
• Buffer
• Falcon.io

Billing and Invoicing

Remember that customer service scenario we talked about earlier? It applies to billing and invoicing as well. Customers don’t like being told that your company can’t see where they’ve made a purchase or return in the past. It’s frustrating, but it also makes them feel like you simply don’t care.

Sure, you can always check with your company’s billing team or log into your billing portal to check an invoice number, but why would you do that when you could just integrate your billing and invoicing systems with your CRM?

Look for opportunities to integrate these billing and invoicing solutions with your CRM:

• QuickBooks
• FreshBooks

Performance Management

You manage a customer service team. Your VoIP system displays details about call volume and available agents, your customer service solution shows you how many tickets you have open, and your social media management platform prepares metrics on engagement. You’ve integrated these systems to your CRM so you can see overviews of all this information in one place, but what if you wanted to set performance-boosting goals for individual representatives on your team based on this data?

Integrating your performance management software with your CRM makes it easier than ever before to set data-based goals and to compare performance in real time.

Look for these performance management solutions that integrate with your CRM:

• BirdDogHR
• Trakstar
• Ambition

Inventory Management

What do you get when you mix an excited customer, an order for an item that just went out of stock, and no communication from the company? The punchline here is likely an uncomfortable phone call in a few weeks.

Thankfully, this situation can be avoided entirely if you integrate your inventory management solution with your CRM. If you haven’t already started practicing proactive customer service, this would also be a good opportunity to begin.

Integrating your inventory management solution with your CRM will keep you informed of customers who managed to place orders for items that are out of stock, presenting you with the opportunity to proactively reach out to that customer and narrow down a solution. This will not only prevent you from having to deal with an embarrassing situation, but it will show customers you care and possibly turn them into advocates for your brand.

Look for these CRM integration-enabled inventory management solutions:

• FinancialForce SCM
• Fishbowl Warehouse
• Epicor Vista for Information Services

Ecommerce

There’s nothing quite like tasteful upselling, especially when you can pull it off without ever having to leave the comfort of your CRM to frantically launch your ecommerce platform and search a product code.

Similar to the benefits you’ll realize with integrating an inventory management system, integrating your ecommerce platform with your CRM is a powerful way to improve the customer experience, land more sales, and quickly offer promotions or discounts to loyal customers.

Look for opportunities to integrate these ecommerce solutions with your CRM:

• Shopify
• Elastic Path
• CoreCommerce

Being properly equipped with the tools you need to run your business is important, but you may be better-equipped than you previously thought if you aren’t making the most of your current tools. One of the easiest ways to do this is to integrate your existing business software with a powerful CRM.

If you’re having a hard time deciding which CRM is best for you or if you’re looking for additional integrations to maximize the utility of your current CRM, check out our CRM Software software category page for more resources.

Top CRM Software Recommendations

The post The Only CRM Integration List You’ll Ever Need appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

Customer relationship management (CRM) is a crucial sales tool for all operation levels, from small businesses to corporate enterprises. For startups, CRM software offers myriad tools to help organize and manage sales pipelines, automate various processes, and ultimately scale their business. We curated a targeted list of CRM solutions that offer straightforward pricing plans, modular platforms designed for scalability, extensive documentation for new users, and user-friendly interfaces so you can make the right decision for your growing sales teams. 

According to our experts at Technology Advice, here are the top five CRM solutions for startups in 2024:

• Less Annoying CRM: Best for straightforward pricing
• HubSpot: Best for scalability
• Pipedrive: Best for sales teams 
• monday CRM: Best for user experience
• SugarCRM: Best for predictive analytics

Less Annoying CRM: Best for straightforward pricing

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Pros

• Simple, affordable pricing structure
• Clean, intuitive interface
• Collaboration tools included
• Integrates well with Google Workspace, Office 365

Cons

• Lacks advanced features such as AI, analytics
• No mobile app
• No social media integration

Visit Website

Key features

Contact management: Users can easily store details about their contacts, and track every interaction with them. It also provides a unified view of notes, files, tasks, events, and pipeline information all on one page.

Calendar and tasks: LACRM allows users to manage tasks and events linked directly to contacts or projects. It includes a built-in calendar that syncs with Google Calendar.

Sales pipeline: The platform enables tracking of leads and opportunities in a clear pipeline report, offering a simple visual overview of potential sales.

Customization: Users can customize almost everything in the CRM to fit their workflow. This includes custom fields, pipeline setup, lead report configurations, and more.

Collaboration: The software is designed to make it easy for teams to work together, with shared contacts, notes, files, tasks, events, and pipelines.

Free customer support: LACRM offers free customer support via phone and email. They also provide a variety of tutorial videos and resources.

Cloud-based: LACRM is a cloud-based CRM, meaning you can access it from anywhere with an internet connection.

Pricing

$15/user/month

Why we chose Less Annoying CRM

While LACRM may not have some of the more advanced features of larger CRMs, its simplicity, affordability, and user-friendly design make it a popular choice among small businesses. The company prides itself on its no-nonsense pricing structure that simplifies the CRM purchasing process for teams that need to implement a CRM software and move on to the next order business. LACRM offers all of the basic features of a CRM solution, without adding complicated and often never-adopted bells and whistles—and the cost associated with them.

Less Annoying CRM (LACRM) is a user-friendly, cloud-based software solution aimed at simplifying contact and lead management for small businesses. Launched in 2009 by brothers Bracken and Tyler King, it was born out of a mission to combat complexity often found in traditional CRMs. With its intuitive interface, customizable features, and affordable flat-rate pricing, LACRM offers a “less annoying” approach to managing customer relationships.

Visit Less Annoying CRM

HubSpot: Best for scalability

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Pros

• Free version offered
• Modular-based platform for scalability
• Extensive guides, tutorials
• Seamless integration with a variety of tools

Cons

• Many features only available at higher-priced tiers
• Lacks customer service features

Visit Website

Key features

Contact Management: Centralize contacts and record every interaction automatically

Email tracking and notifications: Track email interactions and receive notifications when a prospect opens an email or downloads an attachment

Pipeline management: Visualize your sales funnel and organize your sales pipeline with drag-and-drop functionality

Deal tracking: Monitor the progress of deals, stages, and values

Task management: Set and assign tasks and reminders for your team

Live chat and bots: Engage with prospects and customers in real time on your website

Meeting Scheduling: Sync with Google or Office 365 calendar to schedule meetings

Ad management: Track and measure ad campaigns across platforms

Marketing automation: Automate marketing tasks and workflows (part of HubSpot’s Marketing Hub)

Reporting and analytics: Create detailed reports on sales activity, productivity, and individual performance

Pricing

Free plan available 

Paid plan starting at $45/user/month

Why we chose HubSpot

HubSpot is a major player in the CRM space, offering several pricing tiers with varying levels of functionality. This can be a double-edged sword, as it means growing costs as your business expands. HubSpot mitigates this effect by offering a truly modular approach to its platform. Individual tools or “hubs” can be added so your business only invests in the features it needs. Couple that with its extensive guides and tutorials, and team members will become HubSpot experts in short order, growing their CRM software skills in line with your scaling company.

HubSpot CRM is designed to help businesses streamline their sales, marketing, and customer service processes. Launched in 2014 by HubSpot, the CRM offers a wide array of features for startups, including contact management, email tracking, deal tracking, and pipeline management. Its free tier is a major draw for cash-strapped startups, while its scalable, advanced features cater to growing businesses. Despite its powerful capabilities, HubSpot can present a learning curve due to its extensive functionalities. Keep in mind that its premium tiers, while offering more sophisticated tools, may prove costly for some startups.

Visit HubSpot

Pipedrive – Best for sales teams

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Pros

• Free version available
• Sales focus
• Easily navigable interface
• Offers mobile apps for Apple and Android
• Integrates with a variety of software

Cons

• Limited functionality with free version
• No built-in email marketing
• Limited customer support and lower-tier plans

Visit Website

Key features

Sales pipelines: Visual, customizable pipelines allow users to manage their sales process with ease, tracking deals from beginning to end.

Email integration: Pipedrive integrates with various email platforms, allowing users to manage emails directly within the CRM.

Activities & goals: You can schedule activities linked to deals and track goals, fostering a more efficient sales process.

Sales reporting: Pipedrive offers insights and reports on sales data, though the advanced reporting is only available on higher-tier plans.

Lead management: Tools for tracking and nurturing leads, including a feature called “LeadBooster” which helps to capture and qualify leads.

Mobile apps: Pipedrive offers iOS and Android apps, allowing users to manage their pipelines on the go.

Customization: Pipedrive allows users to customize fields, pipelines, activities, and more to match their sales process.

Integration capabilities: Pipedrive can integrate with a multitude of other tools, enhancing its functionalities.

Pricing

Essential: $24/user/month 

Advanced: $44/user/month 

Professional: $64/user/month 

Power: $79/user/month 

Enterprise: $129/user/month

Why we chose Pipedrive

The sales team is the crux of any organization. Pipedrive keeps that team thriving by focusing on the sales pipeline first and foremost. With strong visualization features and highly customizable fields and pipelines, Pipedrive is the ultimate sales hub. Pricing is also reasonable and straightforward for startups and SMBs, but more advanced features are only available at higher price tiers.

Pipedrive CRM is a sales-centric platform established in 2010. Pipedrive’s emphasis is on providing clear visibility and easy control over sales pipelines. It offers features like customizable sales pipelines, email integration, lead management, and robust mobile apps. Pipedrive also provides integration capabilities with numerous tools. Despite its strong sales focus, startups should note that Pipedrive may fall short in areas such as marketing automation and post-sales customer management.

Visit Pipedrive

monday CRM – Best for user experience

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Pros

• Intuitive visual interface
• Strong automation features
• Highly customizable

Cons

• Some security features limited to Enterprise tier
• Limited email integration

Visit Website

Key Features

Boards: monday CRM organizes work through boards that can be customized to create a unique CRM system for your startup.

Customizable workflows: monday allows you to build your CRM workflow to match your sales process, with custom statuses and fields.

Automations: This feature can trigger an action based on a status change, date, or user assignment.

Integrations: monday integrates with tools such as Gmail, Slack, and Zoom, and allows for a seamless flow of data.

Visualizations: Multiple view options, including timeline, kanban, chart, and map views, enable startups to visualize their sales process and data.

Collaboration Tools: Centralize communication with context. Share files, mention team members, and keep conversation threads linked to tasks.

Forms: Capture leads or gather information directly into your CRM with customizable forms.

Dashboard and Reporting: Consolidate data from different boards into a high-level view, allowing for real-time insights and reporting.

Pricing

Basic Plan: $12/user/month

Standard Plan: $14/user/month

Pro Plan: $24/user/month

Enterprise: Contact monday for a customized quote

Why we chose monday CRM

monday CRM builds on many of the features that the company’s flagship software, monday work management, does well. monday work management is a project management solution, but the company takes the same approach regarding user experience in its CRM. The platform is intuitive, visually appealing, and makes customization and integrating other apps easier than some of its competitors. The blend of functionality and ease of use ensures team members will adopt many of the tools available within the software.

monday CRM is a sales-focused extension of the well-known project management tool, monday work management. Launched in 2023, it provides a customizable platform for businesses to streamline their sales and marketing processes. It is known for its ease of use and well-designed interface, offering features like activity management, sales analytics, and no-code automations. Integration with third-party solutions like Excel, DocuSign, Shopify, and Salesforce is possible.

Visit monday CRM

SugarCRM – Best for predictive analytics

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Pros

• Extensive customer support
• Easily implemented marketing campaigns
• Extensive documentation including training and tutorials

Cons

• Complicated integration process
• Complex setup that may require IT professionals

Visit Website

Key features

60-degree customer view: SugarCRM offers a comprehensive overview of each customer, which includes contact information, communication history, social media activity, and purchase history.

Sales automation and forecasting: Automate your sales process and accurately predict future sales trends with SugarCRM’s forecasting tools.

Customer journey mapping: Track and visualize your customer’s lifecycle from prospect to loyal customer. This feature allows you to provide personalized customer experiences.

Advanced workflow: Create and manage advanced business processes. This feature allows you to streamline and automate routine tasks.

Mobile CRM: SugarCRM offers a mobile app, allowing users to access CRM data from anywhere at any time.

Self-service portal: Give your customers the tools they need to manage their own account information and track issues.

Integrations: SugarCRM integrates with numerous other software, increasing its functionality.

Pricing

Sugar Market: Starts at $1,000/month for 10,000 contacts

Additional contacts start at $150/month

Sugar Sell: $49/user/month with a minimum of 3 users

Billed annually

Sugar Serve: $80/user/month with a minimum of 3 users

Sugar Enterprise: $85/user/month with a minimum of 3 users

Why we chose SugarCRM

SugarCRM can be more complicated than the other solutions on this list to figure out. But, once you do, you have opened a new world of possibilities for a more reasonable price than its competitors that offer similar functionality. Its predictive analytics capabilities are second to none, and the platform is highly customizable. What’s more, SugarCRM offers excellent customer support and resources to help teams wrap their heads around the software. 

SugarCRM is a CRM platform that helps businesses manage their interactions with current and potential customers. It’s designed to streamline customer service, marketing, and sales operations by centralizing customer data and providing tools for tracking and managing customer interactions, sales processes, and marketing campaigns.

Founded in 2004, SugarCRM offers various solutions tailored for different business needs, including sales automation, marketing automation, customer service, and an enterprise solution for businesses requiring on-premises control. The platform can be used by businesses of all sizes, from small startups to large corporations, across a wide range of industries.

Visit SugarCRM

Key benefits of using a CRM for startups

With the right CRM system in place, startups can catapult their business operations into the big leagues. Much more than just a digital rolodex, a CRM tool is the linchpin for successful customer relationship management. 

Startups have the herculean task of transforming ideas into viable businesses. In the hustle, customer relationships might inadvertently be placed on the back burner. That’s where CRM steps in, turning this potential oversight into a core strength. The power of data at your fingertips, centralized and organized, can be a game-changer. CRM allows you to track, understand, and respond to customer behaviors in real-time, fueling customer retention and loyalty.

Moreover, CRM tools empower startups to streamline their sales processes. CRM tools provide visual interfaces that facilitate easy tracking of leads and deals, enhancing the efficiency of sales teams.

Automation is another ace up CRM’s sleeve. Startups often grapple with limited resources. With CRM, routine tasks can be automated, freeing up precious time for teams to focus on strategic tasks.

Lastly, for startups eyeing growth, a scalable CRM system is a crucial ally. As your customer base grows, so does the complexity of managing relationships. A scalable CRM ensures that this transition happens smoothly, preventing any customer from falling through the cracks.

Read More: 5 Best Free CRM Software

FAQs

The post Best CRM for Startups (2024) appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

The auto insurance companies were penalized for a series of attacks that exposed the personal data of 120,000 people in late 2020 and early 2021.

The company is reverting to manual operations to make sure workers are paid on time, a spokesperson said. 

Security teams are on the alert for nation-state threats and ransomware as millions of workers break for the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.

The securities regulator also reported a record $8.2 billion in monetary remedies for its last fiscal year, driven by Terraform Labs crypto fraud settlement.

International Game Technology, which makes slot machines and other gambling technology, said it took systems offline following a Nov. 17 cyberattack.

The attack against Blue Yonder led to issues for Morrisons, a U.K.-based grocery chain, in its warehouse management system for fresh food and produce.

As the one who buys and uses software for your company, you’re likely well-versed in Customer Relationship Management, or CRM, functionality and features. You likely spent countless hours researching the best product and trying to stay under budget while evaluating your business needs. 

However, even with all that research and planning, you’re likely underutilizing some of its best tools. It’s easy for even the savviest CRM user to overlook features and capabilities.

If this is you, don’t fret. We will explore some of the most underused CRM features and functionality so you get the maximum benefits out of your investment today.

ALSO READ: Top CRM Automations for 2023

Email integration 

If you’re finding you need to make your communications more efficient and streamlined, it’s time to start using email integration, one of the top features of a CRM. 

Many businesses and people still rely on email as their most-used means of communicating. With email integration, a CRM can help you sync contacts, organize and keep emails in one place, as well as customize your CRM feed. 

Email engagement

While implementing email integration, be sure to utilize email engagement features. Email engagement is important for many reasons. For example, it allows you to see when emails have been opened and read, and it will enable you to see when someone clicks a link, opens an attachment, or sends a reply. 

Email engagement goes hand-in-hand with email integration to help you save significant amounts of time by keeping you more organized and appraised of how well your email marketing is doing. 

Email templates 

Email templates are the best way to round out your email use for CRM. While it sounds repetitive, utilizing email templates can save you and your team time. Email templates save you and your team time because templates contain pre-filled information specified by your email marketing team, so they don’t spend time re-entering information for each type of email.

Template types are dependent on specific activities or triggers. Each type of trigger has its own template type that you can personalize. For example, you can choose when you want to send it and to which type of customer. 

Template examples include global templates for any product or marketing email, personal templates for your use only, as well as generic organizational templates that anyone can use.

Predictive analytics

When dealing with customer relationships and management, it’s ideal to have an idea of the big picture and how customers behave from the initial contact all the way through the sale. Knowing customer behavior helps you and your team predict future behavior and how you can connect with them through each stage in the customer journey.

Predictive analytics help you accurately forecast sales revenue to make informed decisions. When using your CRM, remember to use the predictive analytics capabilities to help you give your customers what they want before they know they want it.

Dashboards

You probably do already use your CRM dashboard. You may refer to it daily, and your team may also depend on the snapshot of data the dashboard CRM feature uses. However, you may still need to customize your dashboard or use it in a way that can benefit your team efficiently and effectively. 

When creating your CRM, it’s helpful to consider sales goals and KPIs and a deeper dive into these insights. For example, you can include closed deal data by team or region instead of just tracking your total sales.

Dashboards can bring better team alignment due to their ability to include more flexible analytics and more granular views. Just be sure to enable easier viewing of both high-level and granular data and business goals. 

Reports

CRMs typically have at least one reporting feature, most have several. Some reporting types that people overlook in their CRMs include customer service reports, sales performance reports, pipeline analysis reports, sales activity reports, and revenue forecast reports. These powerful tools help teams track performance and identify trends and patterns to make informed decisions. 

These decisions can range from how to allocate resources to how to optimize sales efforts. The mistake some people make is assuming that reporting is a one-time thing, but reporting is a continuous process changing with customer and business needs.

Voice recording and notes

If your customer service team hasn’t yet utilized notes, it’s time—especially voice recordings and notes. While automated entry is helpful, customer service folks can offer significant insight by adding their knowledge to the record. 

Having customer service teams enter their note data helps them deliver better support and also helps sales and marketing teams. For example, sometimes your customer service teams are the only people privy to customer preferences and unique requirements. Having notes in an easily accessible place where all can view their insights will prove invaluable for your business by creating personable service clients expect.

ALSO READ: The Only CRM Integration List You’ll Ever Need

Choosing the best CRM

CRM software solutions are improving and expanding at a rapid rate. As a result, more and more companies are offering CRM products. You can find the best CRM by following a few steps.

1. Define your business needs. Do you need better access to data, or do you need to increase your team’s efficiency? Do you need to increase leads or convert more? Answering questions like this will help narrow down what CRM tools you need to meet your goals. 
2. Identify your must-haves. What tools you need will depend on how you define your business needs in step one. Make a list of your absolute musts, and then your “nice to haves.” 
3. Identify which teams will use and access your CRM. Ask them what tools and features they’d like to have access to. 
4. Consider your budget. Determine how much and how often (monthly, yearly, etc.) you’d like to pay. Take a look at all options and plans. Make sure there are no hidden fees. 
5. Deduce if you want a cloud-based or an on-site CRM. 
6. Make sure the CRM is compatible with your current software. 
7. Find a reputable supplier who will offer customer service should you need it.

Once you work through all or most of the above steps, you’ll have a clearer idea of the type of CRM solutions and the functionality you’ll need.

Still looking to expand your knowledge in CRM solutions? Check out our guide on CRM Integrations: Everything You Need To Know.

FAQ

The post Top 7 CRM Functionality & Features You’re Not Using appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

CRM software centralizes and analyzes business and customer data, aiding sales, marketing, and customer service teams. Cloud-based CRM stores this data on the provider’s servers, allowing users to access it online. This eliminates the need for enterprises to host the software on-site, saving on resources. CRM cloud providers ensure data security in their data centers, and their systems offer automation, contact management, and valuable customer insights.

Our top five cloud-based CRM software picks offer a wide range of benefits for businesses with different CRM software needs. 

Our picks for the best cloud-based CRM software

Salesforce: Best for improving sales functions

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Pros

• User friendly
• Easy to customize
• Navigating within the software is intuitive
• Wide range of integrations
• Easy-to-use, flexible reporting and dashboarding functionality

Cons

• Configuration/setup is complex, time consuming
• Add-ons cost extra
• Customer support has a bad reputation

Visit Website

Key features

Account and contact management: The account and contact management feature gives sales reps and sales teams all the information they need to track the people and organizations they do business with. This data includes each customer’s activity history, communications with these customers, key contacts, etc. 

Opportunity management: With this feature, companies can easily manage all their sales deals and enable sales reps to be more productive by keeping them connected to the people and information they need to close deals.

Lead management: With lead management, companies can measure the effect their marketing activities are having on their sales pipeline across all channels.

Quote management: This feature allows companies to show their customers the prices of the products and services they offer. And it enables them to sync quotes and opportunities to ensure their information stays up to date.

Pricing

Starter: $25/user/month

• Basic CRM for up to 10 users.

Professional: $80/user/month

• Complete CRM for any size team.

Enterprise: $165/user/month

• Deeply customizable CRM for complex sales processes.

Unlimited: $330/user/month

• Unlimited CRM power and support.

Why we chose Salesforce CRM

With Salesforce CRM, sales teams can access customer data in one place in real time as well as pull insights from reports and dashboards. Salesforce also offers a suite of products that work seamlessly with its CRM cloud. For example, Sales Cloud, the sales module in Salesforce, helps salespeople close more deals faster. The Marketing Cloud allows marketers to get personalized messages to the right customers at the right times through their preferred channels.

Salesforce can be used by companies in any industry that want to streamline or enhance their sales functions. A customizable CRM available via cloud or local, Salesforce helps sales teams manage contacts and opportunities, track leads, forecast sales, and get insights into how they are performing. 

However, configuring and setting up Salesforce is complex, so it would be worthwhile for organizations that opt to use Salesforce to ensure that their leadership has experience with the application and understands what a good implementation looks like.

Also Read: Best CRMs for Small Business

Microsoft Dynamics 365: Best for enterprises

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Pros

• Integrates with other Microsoft Office 365 products
• Easy to customize
• Aligns sales and marketing teams with planning and tracking tools

Cons

• Requires a lot of training
• Rigid configuration is difficult to change after setup
• User interface may be difficult to navigate for users not familiar with Microsoft products

Visit Website

Key features

Sales: Dynamics 365 CRM Sales lets organizations keep all their business contacts in one system, which can be accessed by authorized employees in any department. The application speeds the sales cycles by offering suggested next best actions. It also connects sales reps with customers through their preferred channels. 

Marketing: Dynamics 365 Marketing enables marketing teams to design, predict, and deliver personalized content to customers. Using AI-driven recommendations, salespeople can turn insights into relevant action.

Customer insights: Customer Insights combines data from transactional, behavioral, and demographic sources, giving companies 360-degree views of their customers so they can deliver personalized experiences to them.

Pricing

Professional: $65/user/month

Enterprise: $105/user/month

Premium: $150/user/month

Microsoft Relationship Sales: $177/user/month

Why we chose Microsoft Dynamics 365

Because Microsoft Dynamics allows organizations to efficiently integrate management software across locations, divisions, and departments, it’s a popular choice for large and growing companies. Using Dynamics 365 API capabilities, organizations can integrate the application with their other key systems.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 is Microsoft’s CRM group of five cloud-based applications: marketing, sales, customer service, field service, and project operations. Customers can buy individual applications or the entire suite, depending on their needs. Dynamics 365 also integrates with Microsoft Office 365 products, including Teams, Word, Outlook, and Excel.

Dynamics 365 offers companies performance metric tracking, real-time analytics, multi-channel relationship management tools, and artificial intelligence-based recommendations. Microsoft Dynamics offers advanced tools not offered by other CRM software vendors.

Also Read: FreshSales vs. amoCRM

HubSpot: Best for teams new to CRM

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Pros

• Free version is free forever
• Easy to set up and use
• Keeps client records in one place
• HubSpot’s App Marketplace offers more than 1,000 integrations

Cons

• Adding premium features is expensive
• Customer support only available with paid versions
• Companies can only assign one email per contact record

Visit Website

Key features

Contact and lead management: Sales teams can add contact records, automatically log their sales activities, and keep their records up to date. Sales reps can view every interaction they’ve had with contacts and use this data to develop campaigns that help them close more deals.

Sales: Organizations can use meeting scheduling as well as email tracking and email automation to get greater insights into prospects, automate tasks, and close more deals faster. The click-to-call tool lets salespeople make appointments more quickly. Robust website tools help sales reps better understand when prospects or customers are active on their websites.

Task management: HubSpot CRM helps customers more easily manage their tasks by enabling them to sort and create deals in the application. With task management, sales reps can schedule and track their tasks as well as call, send emails, and schedule meetings with customers. These things simplify the sales process and allow sales teams to develop long-lasting relationships with customers.

Pricing

Free plan available

Starter: $30/month for all products – billed annually; $50/month for all products – billed monthly *** includes 2 paid users in Sales and Service Hub  

Professional: $1,600/month for all products – billed annually; $1,781/month for all products – billed monthly *** includes 5 paid users in Sales and Service Hub  

Enterprise: $5,000/month for all products – billed annually only.  *** includes 10 paid users in Sales and Service Hub 

Why we chose HubSpot CRM

The free plan enables unlimited users to access its contact management, marketing, sales, and customer service tools. As companies get more familiar with using HubSpot, they can add tools or migrate to the paid tiers as necessary.

HubSpot CRM allows salespeople to organize, manage, and track contacts to help them develop better relationships with their clients. HubSpot is great for sales teams that are new to CRM, particularly if they’re looking to leverage the application’s email marketing capability. HubSpot’s free plan is ideal for new businesses that need a simple platform for sales, marketing, and customer service.

Also read: Top Construction & Contractor CRM Software

Oracle NetSuite: Best for e-commerce businesses

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Pros

• Customizable
• Great tracking, reporting, and forecasting capabilities
• All-in-one commerce solution for marketing, sales, and operation

Cons

• Not available as a stand-alone CRM solution
• Companies must subscribe to Oracle’s flagship ERP

Visit Website

Key features

Sales force automation: NetSuite’s sales force automation functionality gives sales teams visibility into every aspect of their customer relationships. And the dashboard provides sales reps with actionable insights into lead, prospect, and customer activities so they can better prioritize their daily and weekly activities.

Marketing automation: NetSuite CRM’s marketing automation software automates the entire marketing process. It aligns campaigns and programs with sales teams and generates qualified leads that are ready to engage with sales reps.

Customer service management: NetSuite CRM assigns, manages, and routes customer support across multiple channels and provides time tracking functionality so salespeople can see just how much time they’re spending with customers.

Pricing

Contact Oracle Netsuite for a customized quote.

Why we chose Oracle NetSuite

NetSuite CRM organizes, automates, and syncs customer interactions across different departments, including sales, customer service, marketing, and technical support. As part of its core functionality, NetSuite CRM offers customer service, marketing automation, and sales force automation.

Oracle NetSuite CRM, built on Oracle’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) platform, is well suited for e-commerce businesses that want to provide top-notch customer experiences. The NetSuite CRM module gives organizations of all sizes complete 360-degree views of their customers in real time. 

However, it is particularly well suited for midsize e-commerce companies that need a CRM system to help them better understand the shopping habits of their customers.

Zoho CRM: Best for remote and hybrid sales teams

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Pros

• Easy to use
• Offers a free plan
• Integrates well with other Google/Zoho apps

Cons

• Zia AI is only available with Enterprise and Ultimate plans
• Limited set of custom fields

Visit Website

Key features

Sales force automation: Companies can automate marketing, routine sales, and support functions, enabling teams to focus on their customers. With this feature, teams can create enhanced workflows to help reduce manual data entry, eliminate redundancies, and speed up the overall sales process.

Motivator: This feature builds team spirit and encourages healthy competition by enabling employees to participate in games and targets together no matter where they’re located.

Artificial intelligence: Zoho CRM’s AI-powered assistant Zia helps teams gather customer information, write documents, or find helpful data, such as sales numbers, to make employees’ jobs easier. Zia analyzes when customers usually answer calls, open emails, or visit the company’s website, then proposes the best time to contact customers.

Pricing

Free plan available for up to 3 users

Standard: $14/user/month – billed annually; $20/user/month – billed monthly

Professional: $23/user/month – billed annually; $35/user/month – billed monthly

Enterprise: $40/user/month – billed annually; $50/user/month – billed monthly

Ultimate: $52/user/month – billed annually; $65/user/month – billed monthly

Why we chose Zoho CRM

Companies can create games between individual sales reps or teams, no matter where they’re located. Zoho CRM’s AI-powered assistant Zia predicts leads and deals, identifies potential customers ready to convert, and helps large sales teams boost productivity by focusing their efforts.

Zoho CRM allows organizations with remote and hybrid workforces to easily increase leads, accurately measure performance, and efficiently speed up the sales cycle. Zoho CRM is a good system for organizations with remote and hybrid workforces because it offers a gamification feature that fosters friendly competition.

Also Read: Zoho vs Salesforce

Pipedrive: Best for visual sales pipeline tracking

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Pros

• Automatically tracks calls and emails
• Clear visual representation of the sales pipeline
• Users can operate in remote and hybrid environments

Cons

• Costs increase for added features and integrations
• Becomes more complex to manage as teams grow

Visit Website

Key features

Visual sales pipelines: Pipedrive provides a clear visual interface that allows users to move deals through distinct stages.

Email integration: Users can send and receive emails directly within Pipedrive.

Activities and goals: Pipedrive allows users to set activities and goals.

Sales reporting: With comprehensive sales reporting tools, users can get insights into sales performance, track revenue, and analyze sales metrics.

Custom fields and pipelines: Pipedrive offers the flexibility to customize fields and pipelines according to specific business needs.

Mobile apps: Pipedrive provides mobile apps for both iOS and Android.

Contact and deal management: Users can easily manage contacts and deals, ensuring all relevant information is organized and easily accessible.

Pricing

Essential: $14/user/month – billed annually; $24/user/month – billed monthly

Advanced: $29/user/month – billed annually; $39/user/month – billed monthly

Professional: $49/user/month – billed annually; $64/user/month – billed monthly

Power: $64/user/month – billed annually; $79/user/month – billed monthly

Enterprise: $99/user/month – billed annually; $129/user/month – billed monthly

Why we chose Pipedrive

Users consistently praise Pipedrive’s intuitive visual interface tailored for sales teams. Of particular note is its customization capabilities, allowing teams to adapt it to their unique sales processes without requiring coding. Its integration with tools like Zapier and other plugins offers a cohesive ecosystem for businesses. Additionally, the active Pipedrive community and excellent support, available directly via chat, further enhance the user experience. The feedback underscores Pipedrive’s practicality, ease of training, and onboarding, making it a top choice for sales pipeline management.

Pipedrive is a cloud-based CRM predominantly tailored for sales teams, emphasizing visual sales pipeline management. Its strengths lie in its user-friendly interface, automation capabilities, and seamless email integration. 

Compared to platforms like Salesforce, Pipedrive offers a more streamlined experience, making it ideal for businesses that want simplicity without the bells and whistles. However, unlike more comprehensive CRMs such as Microsoft Dynamics 365, it might lack certain advanced functionalities. While it’s excellent for tracking sales and managing contacts, larger enterprises with complex needs might find it limiting. 

Pipedrive is akin to HubSpot in its ease of use but doesn’t quite match the depth of features found in more extensive CRM systems.

Choosing the best cloud-based CRM solution

CRM cloud software is a valuable tool for businesses of all sizes in any industry that want to track sales, follow up with prospects, and manage customer relationships. 

Cloud-based CRM platforms come in all sizes, and they can be complicated and expensive to implement. The right solution depends on a company’s biggest CRM needs. For example, large e-commerce companies would do well to consider Oracle NetSuite CRM, while organizations that want to boost their sales functions would be better off opting for Salesforce.

Also Read: CRM Software Guide

More CRM resources

CRM Types: Which CRM Software is Right for You in 2024?

ByDoug Tull November 18, 2024November 18, 2024

CRM Automation: Overview & Examples for Business in 2024

ByChris Mellides November 14, 2024November 14, 2024

What is Call Center CRM? A Complete Guide in 2024

ByAron Vaughan November 7, 2024November 19, 2024

The post Top Cloud-Based CRM Software of 2024 appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

Square and PayPal are two popular names in payment processing. Both are great for quickly launching startups and accepting a wide variety of payment methods at a low cost. Not surprisingly, these similarities often result in a recurring Square vs PayPal debate over which is best for different business types.    

Below we take a closer look at Square and PayPal, how they work, what sets them apart, and when to choose one over the other.

Square and PayPal are just two of the many POS software providers in the industry. Check out other POS systems options on our list.

For the best value all-in-one POS and payment system, choose Square

For an easy-to-use, versatile online and mobile payment solution, choose PayPal

Square: Best for small businesses needing an all-in-one POS solution

Visit Website

Overall Score

4.34/5

Pricing

4.25/5

Hardware

4.5/5

Payment software

4.17/5

Support and reliability

3.75/5

User experience

4.69/5

User scores

4.67/5

Pros

• Instant merchant account approval
• Free industry-specific POS software
• No monthly fee for payment processing
• Free basic website builder
• Waived chargeback fee of up to $250/month

Cons

• Payments exclusive to Square POS
• Flat-rate fees are not the cheapest
• Account stability issues

About Square

Square is an all-in-one POS solution popular among businesses for its affordability and ease of setup. The system includes a proprietary payment processing service built into the POS software with a variety of card and digital payment methods ready to use after signup. With its free basic software plan, Square users can set up a POS and start accepting payments within the day with little to no upfront cost. This makes Square the ideal payment processor for startups and businesses on a budget.

With Square’s ecosystem, users can easily scale their business with ready integrations and optional paid add-ons. This includes everything from online platforms and invoicing to employee management and marketing. Square also offers industry-specific free and paid POS software that users can upgrade at pace with their business needs. Square’s proprietary hardware is also among the most reliable and affordable on the market.

For enterprise-level businesses, Square recently launched its advanced POS system tools that support custom, developer-based integration and upgrades similar to Stripe’s. Custom rates for large-volume transactions are also available.

Gallery

Square’s merchant dashboard is easy to set up and use. (Source: Square)

Square’s customizable invoicing tools let users include various payment methods. (Source: Square)

Square’s website builder uses a drag-and-drop function for easy setup. (Source: Square)

Key features

Fully integrated POS and payments solution

Square’s POS system comes with a built-in payment processor, Square Payments. There is no extra monthly cost for using the service, just the transaction processing fees. 

Payment methods

Square allows you to accept credit cards, ACH, and digital wallet payments. It supports multiple payment services, such as invoicing, recurring billing, and MOTO payments, with its virtual terminal. Square has its own buy now, pay later (BNPL) service (Square AfterPay) and a peer-to-peer payment service (Cash App) that can process cryptocurrency payments.  

Native e-commerce platform

Square provides its own e-commerce platform with a free plan that allows users to create and personalize their business website. The website builder uses a drag-and-drop function that makes it easy to complete without any coding knowledge. 

Omnichannel payments

Square Payments is fully integrated into the POS system, so sales and customer data are accessible online, on mobile, and in-store.

Proprietary hardware

Square offers a range of proprietary hardware. Its mobile card readers are divided into magstripe (for swipe payments) and contactless (for EMV chip and NFC payments). Square’s POS hardware includes iPad stands that can be set up either as a countertop or kiosk, a standalone POS terminal, and an all-in-one register. Businesses can purchase hardware in installments and the first magstripe reader comes free with every sign-up.   

Read more: Top Square alternatives

PayPal: Best for businesses looking for versatile online and mobile payment services

Visit Website

Overall Score

4.21/5

Pricing

4.25/5

Hardware

4.25/5

Payment software

4.17/5

Support and reliability

3.33/5

User experience

4.69/5

User scores

4.60/5

Pros

• Compatible with most ecommerce platforms
• Fast merchant account approval
• Proprietary POS software
• Instant access to funds
• Trusted consumer brand

Cons

• Complex fee structure
• Poor customer support
• Account stability issues

About PayPal

PayPal is a pioneer and a trusted name in the payments industry. Like Square, PayPal is easy to set up and lets users start accepting payments within the day. PayPal’s online checkout service can be easily added to any e-commerce platform, and having the PayPal brand is proven to boost conversions. At present, there are around 400 million active consumers with a PayPal account who readily use the service to make purchases on websites that offer a PayPal checkout. This means you get the same number of opportunities to make a sale with a PayPal payment option on your checkout. 

Previously, upgrading to Braintree was the best option for setting custom upgrades to use PayPal for business. Today, PayPal offers an enterprise solution that provides users with advanced checkout solutions to integrate with other custom e-commerce websites and mobile POS systems. This includes features such as accelerated guest checkouts, global payment processing, dispute automation, and payment orchestration. Developer documentation is also available for those who prefer custom-built solutions.

Early this year, PayPal launched new features that harnessed artificial intelligence (AI) to improve customer checkout experience. This includes smart receipts, product recommendations, better Venmo integrations, and shoppable cashback offers. 

Gallery

PayPal Checkout with customizable product and shipping data. (Source: PayPal)

PayPal offers highly custom digital invoices that’s easy to set up. (Source: PayPal)

PayPal Zettle features an easy tiled menu for product catalog. (Source: PayPal)

Key features

Payment methods

PayPal allows users to accept credit card, digital wallet, and eCheck payments and supports invoicing, cross border, and virtual terminal transactions. Like Square, PayPal also has its own BNPL, Pay in 4, and peer-to-peer payment service, Venmo.  

Checkout integrations

The PayPal Checkout is a customizable payment platform that users can add to their website as the main checkout service or as an additional payment method. PayPal Checkout can also be used without a website through a payment link that can be embedded on emails, digital invoices, and social media platforms.

Trusted consumer brand

PayPal is a trusted brand among online consumers and is well-known for boosting conversions on websites with a PayPal checkout.

Proprietary POS software

PayPal Zettle is PayPal’s free mobile POS software for in-person sales. The system can be used on a tablet and paired with the Zettle mobile card reader for an in-store setup or a smartphone for mobile sales. 

Fast access to funds

One of PayPal’s unique features is its ability to provide businesses with fast access to cash. While both PayPal and Square can process same-day funding for a fee, PayPal merchants can already access their sales proceeds through their PayPal balance in PayPal’s digital wallet — PayPal’s pioneer service. Businesses can spend their PayPal balance to pay bills, pay employees, or purchase assets online.  

How are Square and PayPal different?

Software type

POS with built-in payment processing

Online payment processing; optional simple POS

Fee structure

Flat rate

Flat rate

Contract type

Free/Pay-as-you-go

Free/Pay-as-you-go

Payment service integration

Exclusive to Square ecosystem

PayPal Zettle

Some POS systems

Most e-commerce platforms

For larger businesses

Custom pricing for industry-specific POS system

Advanced features in PayPal Enterprise

Square and PayPal are both small business favorites mainly for their ease of set up, free merchant account, and pay-as-you-go plan. That said, the two are popular for different reasons: 

Software type

Square is the go-to provider for all-in-one POS with built-in payment services. PayPal, on the other hand, is well-known as an online and mobile payment services provider. PayPal also has a POS software, but the system is simpler and lacks the versatile features of Square’s POS. Meanwhile, Square also offers online checkout, but the use is limited within Square’s e-commerce platform. 

PayPal’s mobile app doubles as a digital wallet and provides more functionality than Square’s; for example, it allows accepting and storing cryptocurrency and instant access to funds. The contrast between Square and PayPal’s primary software and use also makes the two providers cater slightly to two different types of small businesses. Square is more ideal for a brick-and-mortar setup while PayPal is the better choice for businesses that require mobility and wider online integrations.

Compatibility with sales platforms

Square is easy to set up because all the components are already integrated; even the hardware is configured and ready to use out of the box. The downside to this arrangement is that all the features only work with other Square products, so business growth is limited to Square’s capabilities. Square Payments, for example, is not available if you want to switch to Shopify’s e-commerce platform or Clover’s POS software.   

Meanwhile, PayPal’s advantage is that its payment services are designed to work with most online e-commerce platforms and some POS systems. This way, users can choose and replace e-commerce and POS platforms based on their business needs without giving up their PayPal account.  

Read more: Types of POS systems

Scalability

For large, enterprise-level businesses, Square focuses more on better in-house POS software capabilities combined with volume discounts for sales greater than $250,000/year. PayPal, on the other hand, offers support for wider payment processing functionalities such as global payments, payment optimization and orchestration, and network compliance.

Square vs PayPal: Pricing

Monthly account fee

$0–$89

POS software

$0–$30

Payment services

Includes POS

Full POS

Optional Mobile POS

In-person transaction fee

2.6% + $0.10

2.29% + $0.09

Online transaction fee

2.9% + $0.30

2.59% + $0.49 to 3.49% + $0.49

ACH/ eCheck:

1%, Min $1 (ACH)

3.49% + 49 cents, $300 cap (eCheck)

Discount for nonprofits

✓

✓

Same-day or instant funding

1.75%

For same-day or instant

1.5% Instant access to funds via PayPal Balance

Hardware

$0–$799

$29–$699

Chargeback fee

Waived up to $250/month

$20 (for guest checkouts)

Volume discounts

> $250,000 sales volume/year

N/A

When comparing PayPal vs Square fees, it’s important that we first make a clear distinction as to what is covered in their monthly account fees. 

Square’s monthly account fee is for its POS system. The built-in payment services feature is free, so users only have to pay the transaction fees every month. Meanwhile, PayPal’s monthly account fee is for its payment services. The mobile POS app Zettle is free but optional, and there are no available upgrades. 

This distinction, again, highlights the difference between PayPal vs Square target users. It also helps to better compare the two for cost-effectiveness. 

PayPal clearly offers slightly cheaper rates. However, unlike Square, PayPal’s payment processing fees are complex and include additional monthly charges for features, such as $30/month for using its virtual terminal and $25/month when using PayPal checkout with a third-party payment processor. 

Between the two, only Square users can upgrade to a paid industry-specific (retail, restaurant, and appointments) software plan. Only with Square can users get a volume discount, which, again, makes it the better choice for small businesses with steady sales.

Related reading: Best retail POS systems and best restaurant POS systems

Square vs PayPal: Payment services

Credit/Debit cards

✓

✓

Digital wallets

✓

✓

ACH/eCheck

ACH

eCheck

Payment gateway

✓

✓

Invoicing/Recurring billing

✓

✓

International

✗

✓

Virtual terminal

✓

+$

Microtransactions (<$10)

✗

✓

HIPAA compliance (healthcare)

✓

✗

BNPL

✓

✓

Peer-to-Peer

Cash App

PayPal app & Venmo

Cryptocurrency

In Cash App

✓

Square and PayPal are equally outstanding in terms of payment services, so the choice ultimately boils down to which provider matches a user’s business needs better.

When to choose Square

Choose Square if you determine that its POS system, e-commerce platform, and other business management tools meet your business needs. This ensures that you can maximize what Square has to offer and avoid compatibility issues. Because while Square supports independent payment links that can be added to invoices, social media, and instant messaging platforms, its online checkout only works with the Square ecommerce platform. 

You should also choose Square if you need niche POS and payment services. For example, Square is compatible with healthcare services because it signs business associate agreements to ensure Health Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPAA) compliance. Users planning to sell some form of CBD products can process sales via Square’s CBD program.

When to choose PayPal

Choose PayPal if you want more flexibility with integrations. PayPal offers a more flexible payment gateway than Square because PayPal’s online checkout service can be integrated with most e-commerce platforms and POS systems like Hike and Clover. Users who often process microtransactions, eChecks, cross-border, and cryptocurrency payments will do better with PayPal.

Does Square accept PayPal?

The quick answer is yes. Merchants using Square’s e-commerce platform can add PayPal payment methods without extra cost. PayPal charges its standard fees for Payflow Pro payment gateway, which includes a $25 monthly fee. 

Note that this feature will no longer be available to Square merchants in Canada after October 29, 2024.

Read more: Best credit card processors

Square vs PayPal: Point of sale

POS Software

Proprietary POS

Proprietary POS

Integrates with some POS systems

Mobile POS

Free mobile POS app

Free mobile POS app

Ecommerce integration

Exclusive to Square ecommerce platform

Integrates with most websites

Hardware setup

Mobile and in-store

Primarily mobile

Square is clearly miles ahead of PayPal in both POS software and hardware. While both Square and PayPal offer a free POS software plan, Square can be upgraded to a paid plan that offers industry-specific features. It also comes with optional products such as payroll, marketing, and loyalty functionalities. 

Read more: Toast vs Square

Square’s POS hardware is also significantly more extensive than that of PayPal, as it offers both mobile and in-store countertop setup. Each proprietary Square countertop hardware comes with a built-in credit card reader/payment terminal.

When to choose PayPal POS

Choose PayPal if your priority is simple in-person sales and significantly lower transaction rates. The PayPal POS system is mobile-based, which can be downloaded onto a smart device and paired with PayPal’s mobile credit card reader. The POS software itself supports simple inventory management along with employee and customer management, as well as reporting tools. 

PayPal also offers better in-person rates and great discounts for the first mobile credit card reader, making it more ideal than Square for businesses looking for a simple mobile POS setup.

Read more: Best POS hardware

Square vs PayPal: Customer engagement

Omnichannel sales

✓

For enterprise-level business

Multichannel sales

✓

✓

Loyalty and Rewards

✓

Integration

Email

✓

✓

Social Media

✓

✓

CRM feature

Great

Good

Building a customer base and keeping them engaged is a key factor for growing businesses. Square and PayPal’s customer engagement capabilities are different. Square has a more rounded set of features that allows users to connect with in-person and online customers, while PayPal excels in keeping online customers engaged. 

Both Square and PayPal offer multiple platforms for selling and accepting payments—on a website, on social media, via instant messaging, online invoicing, and in-person via mobile or in-store. However, only Square offers a fully integrated omnichannel selling feature for small businesses, primarily because it has a more defined in-person POS functionalities to work with its e-commerce platform.

When to choose PayPal

Meanwhile, PayPal’s checkout services can be integrated with a couple of POS systems (Hike and Clover), but PayPal’s POS software, Zettle, does not integrate with online stores that use PayPal checkout. Omnichannel features are available for larger businesses through developer coding and integrations.

Square also offers native loyalty management and rewards programs, while PayPal requires third-party integrations. Either option will require users to pay extra, so users looking for the easiest setup may prefer Square, but those that have a preferred third-party loyalty and rewards platform may opt for PayPal’s integrations. 

Read more: Lightspeed vs Shopify

Square vs PayPal: Risk management

Square and PayPal offer similar industry-standard risk management features. Both are Payment Card Industry (PCI) Level 1-compliant payment platforms equipped with machine-learning fraud protection tools and customizable filters.  

When to choose Square

For businesses on a budget, choose Square. Square Risk Manager is free to use and provides users with an array of customizable fraud monitoring and prevention tools. This includes 3D secure that routes the customer data to the card issuer for identity confirmation and a block list that can be used to flag future payments from suspicious card information, emails, and IP addresses. 

Square also provides a chargeback management platform where users can get notified and respond to customer chargeback claims from the merchant dashboard. 

Read more: Best POS Inventory System

When to choose PayPal

Choose PayPal if your business needs a more scalable solution. PayPal offers two risk management options. The basic fraud protection is free and is designed to stop potentially fraudulent transactions based on a set of fraud filters such as purchase price and item ceiling, shipping and billing mismatch, AVS and CVV fails, and IP address velocity. 

Advanced fraud protection that costs $10/month includes additional filters for international payments, USPS address validation, IP and email service provider validation, account number velocity, geolocation, and chargeback management platform.

Clearly, PayPal provides more custom fraud protection filters that are ideal for midsize to large businesses, particularly those that accept cross-border payments. However, these advanced tools, including chargeback management, cost an additional monthly fee. 

Square vs PayPal: Ease of use

Both Square and PayPal are popular for their ease of use, earning an identical user experience score of 4.69/5 in our evaluation. Both offer easy sign-up (with no merchant account application process required), easy setup (where users can start accepting payments in minutes), and easy-to-use interfaces. 

What makes Square stand out, however, is that most of the features needed to run a business are available within the Square ecosystem, and it offers hardware that can be readily used out of the box. Omnichannel sales are automatic for users intending to sell in-store, online, and on mobile.  

On the other hand, PayPal readily integrates with most online platforms, and its mobile app can accept more alternative payment methods. This makes PayPal a far better option for users selling online and on mobile.

Read more: How to use a POS system

Which is best?

Square and PayPal are both exceptional business platforms that are similar in a lot of ways but also distinct in some features. 

Square’s all-in-one platform makes it easy to launch any business, but the exclusivity of its features can limit the system’s ability to grow and keep up with business requirements as it grows.

PayPal’s versatile payment services platform gives users the flexibility to expand their business online; however, its POS software is basic and can be easily left behind by businesses with a growing demand for better POS functions. 

Related reading: Stripe vs Square and Stripe vs PayPal

Making your choice

When choosing between PayPal vs Square, it’s important to first consider your type of business. If your goal is to create and expand online sales, with or without an e-commerce website, then PayPal will likely be the right choice. However, if you have a brick-and-mortar business that requires a quick and cost-effective POS setup, then Square is the better option.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

The post Square vs Paypal: Which Should You Choose in 2024? appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

A point-of-sale (POS) transaction is the process by which a customer pays a business for goods or services, from the initial payment prompt to the final fund transfers. Put simply, POS transactions are business-to-consumer (B2C) payments. 

POS transactions can take place in person through a card reader or POS system or online through a payment gateway. 

Learn more: What Is a POS System?

Types of POS transactions 

There are three different types of POS transactions, each requiring a different setup:

• In-person (card-present transactions): Customers pay using a physical credit card, debit card, or smart device. You’ll need a card reader or POS terminal. 
• Online (card-not-present transactions): Customers pay via your website or online portal. You’ll need a payment gateway. 
• Returns and refunds: These transactions reverse the original in-person or online transaction and typically use the same tech that was used for the initial sale. 

Key elements of a POS transaction

A successful POS transaction depends on both hardware and software components:

POS Hardware

The hardware for in-person POS transactions typically includes:

• Card readers
• Cash registers
• Receipt printers
• Barcode scanners
• Mobile devices (for mPOS) to accept payments on the go

Online transactions don’t typically require hardware. 

POS Software

You’ll need at least a basic point-of-sale system or virtual terminal to enter payments for in-store and in-person sales. 

For online transactions, businesses rely on e-commerce platforms, website builders, and payment gateways. 

You’ll also need:

• A payment processor that can accept multiple payment methods
• The customer’s source of funds used to purchase the products 

How a point of sale transaction works

A POS transaction begins when a customer checks out items they intend to purchase and ends when the sale is finalized. 

Here’s how it works: 

1. Customer selects products/services: The transaction starts when a customer clicks the “buy” button online or presents their items to the cashier for checkout. 
2. Customer enters payment information: For in-store transactions, customers swipe, dip, or tap a card, smartphone, or smartwatch. For online sales, the customer enters payment details using a digital wallet like Apple Pay or by manually entering the information. For online transactions, the payment gateway also encrypts the customer’s payment details for added security.
3. POS system or payment gateway processes the payment: The POS system (if in-store) or payment gateway (if online) communicates with your payment processor to verify and approve the transaction.
4. Transaction completion: Once the payment is approved, the POS system finalizes the sale, updates inventory, and adjusts the sales records.

Related: What is Payment Authorization?

Reconciling POS transactions

Updating records to reflect changes in sales, inventory, and revenue is a key part of any POS transaction. These records are usually housed in a POS, payment processing, accounting, or inventory system. 

Particularly, POS software typically reconcile:

• Inventory: Decreasing on-hand stock counts based on the transaction
• Sales records: Updating register or sales reports to reflect the transactions  
• Expense reports: Logging any cost of goods sold (COGS), taxes, and other fees 

For the easiest and most accurate POS transaction reconciliation, integrate your accounting software with your POS system. 

Accounting best practices for reconciling POS transactions

To further ensure accuracy and efficiency when managing POS transactions, keep the following accounting best practices in mind: 

• Establish a cash handling policy
• Create a regular schedule for reconciling POS records
• Consider the payment method used for the transactions
• Conduct inventory counts

Learn more: How to Use a POS System

Modern POS transaction methods

Just a few years ago, cashiers would simply ask, “Cash or card?” Nowadays, modern POS systems support a range of payment methods designed for customer convenience and security.

• Contactless payments (NFC): Near-field communication (NFC) enables customers to tap their chip-enabled card, phone, or smartwatch to complete the payment. NFC payments are quick and extremely secure.
• Digital wallets: Popular digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay allow customers to make purchases using their smartphones or smartwatches. 
• EMV chip cards: Chip cards offer enhanced security by generating unique transaction codes for each sale.

These options are highly secure (more so than swipe payments) and are popular with today’s consumers. 

Learn more: How to Accept Payments Online

POS transaction challenges & solutions

Businesses have been using POS systems and processing POS transactions for decades, and their benefits have long been established. However, even as technology advances, there are still challenges to using the system.

Compliance 

• Legality: This includes managing POS transactions where certain products are heavily regulated. It also refers to certain payment methods that involve additional compliance requirements such as surcharging. 
• Security: Merchants are expected to maintain Payment Card Industry (PCI) compliance to protect customers’ personal, financial, and sensitive information (such as PIN codes).
• Taxes: Local government expects merchants to file accurate tax returns on their POS transactions on time. 

The solution: Work with a payment processing service that can assist you with PCI compliance. Integrate your account software with your POS to improve record keeping and report-generating automations and minimize human error.

Related: What Is Payment Security?

Accuracy 

• Manual errors: POS transactions are repetitive and susceptible to human error. This can come anywhere from reconciling daily transactions to adjusting sales and inventory.
• Timeliness: The sheer volume of transactions that businesses need to record and manage can take time. Some records may not be updated, especially if you sell on multiple channels or locations.

The solution: Use POS software that maximizes automation for record keeping. You should also use a cloud-based system that can update business records in real time.

Cost

• Upfront investment: Some POS systems can require a significant investment in software, hardware, and payment processing. Physical setups for a POS system can also be costly.
• Ongoing cost: As your business grows, you will need software and hardware upgrades for your POS system, which can stack up and become expensive. This includes additional monthly fees for upgraded software and payment processing, as well as maintenance fees for your hardware.

The solution: Start your business with an all-in-one POS system that offers a free plan. You should be able to find feature-rich, even industry providers developed on a mobile-based platform such as iOS and Android that can cost significantly less. Also, look for providers that offer hardware payment plans or subscriptions that bundle hardware and or payment processing to get the most out of your upfront investment. 

Finally, look for a provider that scales their plans so you have the option to pay only for features you currently need while also having add-ons available that seamlessly integrate with your basic setup as your business grows.

Learn more: POS System Costs

Transaction fees and costs

POS transaction costs can vary based on the type of payment processed. Here’s a quick overview:

• In-person transaction fees: Merchants pay a small fee for each in-person transaction, typically a percentage of the sale, between 2% and 3%. 
• Online transaction fees: Online POS transaction fees are higher than in-person ones and typically range from 2.5% to 4%. 

Learn more: Complete Guide to Credit Card Processing Fees

FAQs

The post What is A POS Transaction? Detailed Guide for Merchants appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

Top 32 interview questions to ask candidates

The average time-to-hire across industries in 2024 is around 44 days from job posting to the candidate’s offer acceptance. That’s likely propelled by the fact that recruitment teams are under tight deadlines when filling open positions, even if they use contemporary strategies like social recruiting to increase their candidate pool. 

However, the focus on sticking to a short timeline can pull focus from what really matters during the interview process: effectively evaluating candidates for a role and limiting the chance for unconscious bias. 

That’s why I suggest using the following questions as a framework for getting started. Be sure to adapt to the questions to your specific company and industry.

Situational questions

Situational questions help you assess how the candidate responds to a hypothetical situation. Try to keep these prompts as relevant to the actual role as possible so you can give the candidate a more detailed picture of the role’s day-to-day.

1. Imagine you’re leading a project that’s falling behind schedule. How would you handle the situation? This question assesses the candidate’s prioritization and project management skills, as well as their ability to solve problems under pressure.
2. Suppose a client is unhappy with a product or service we’ve provided. What would you do?  Discover how the candidate behaves in client-facing situations in addition to their problem-solving skills.
3. If you were given a task outside of your area of expertise, how would you approach it? This tests the candidate’s adaptability and willingness to learn when faced with an unfamiliar challenge.
4. What would you do if you were tasked with implementing a new process you believe is flawed? See how well or how often the candidate exercises critical thinking skills and if they can constructively challenge new ideas.
5. If you realized a mistake in your work had negatively impacted the team’s results, what would you do? This is designed to test the candidate’s integrity and explore how well the candidate can take accountability.
6. Imagine you’ve been asked to give a presentation on a topic you’re not entirely familiar with. How would you prepare? I encourage you to make this question as specific as possible for your industry or company. This helps you identify the candidate’s research skills and ability to learn quickly.
7. If you were assigned to lead a team where one member is consistently underperforming, how would you address it? Get a better understanding of the candidate’s approach to performance management and ability to provide constructive feedback.
8. Imagine if you have conflicting deadlines for two important projects. How would you handle that? Discover how the candidate communicates and manages expectations, as well as their prioritization skills.

Behavioral questions

It’s easy to confuse behavioral questions with situational questions, but here’s the main difference: Behavioral questions tend to focus on scenarios in the past, while situational questions tend to be hypothetical “what ifs” designed to see how the candidate can think on their feet. Use these nine behavioral questions to encourage the interviewee to think critically about how their previous work experience has impacted them as a professional today.

9. Talk about a time when you were asked to do something you had never done before. How did you respond?  This question helps interviewers assess how well the candidate does outside of their comfort zone and how open they are to learning from failure.
10. Describe a time when you had to adapt to rapidly changing technology or industry trends. What was your approach? This is extremely relevant with the recent explosion of AI, but it also invites the candidate to demonstrate their industry knowledge.
11. Can you share an example of a project where you had to collaborate with a cross-functional team? This tests the candidate’s ability to work with diverse stakeholders and understand how their work contributes to a greater whole.
12. Can you talk about a time when you were communicating with a team member and they didn’t understand you? If you’re hiring for a managerial role, this type of question is particularly important as it helps you assess how the candidate adapts to different communication styles.
13. Can you describe a time when your manager wasn’t around, and a pressing problem arose? This is key to understanding the candidate’s ability to rise to the occasion and fill a manager’s shoes.
14. Can you tell me about a time when a coworker came to you with concerns about your team’s processes? This gives you a sense of how well the candidate functions and communicates as part of a team.
15. Can you share a situation when you had to work under a tight deadline? This helps you assess the candidate’s prioritization skills.
16. When was the last time you had to delegate an important task? See how the candidate communicates instructions, deadlines, and expectations, as well as how ready they are to answer clarifying questions.

Technical questions

These questions aim to determine a candidate’s knowledge of the hard skills needed for the open role. For instance, a payroll specialist might be asked about how shift differentials affect overtime calculations, an HR specialist might be asked about measuring employee engagement, and a nurse might be asked to interpret doctor’s notes and codes. I tried to keep these questions non-specific so you can apply them to virtually any role.

17. How do you keep your technical skills current?  This is a broad question, but it helps you assess how invested the candidate is in their own development.
18. Can you describe a troubleshooting process you’d follow for a crashing program? This is a key question for software engineers and developers who are so often tasked with problem-solving in a crisis.
19. What is your field of expertise, and what would you like to learn more about? Here, the candidate should talk specifically about the technologies, innovations, trends, or world events that will impact their role in the future.
20. Can you talk about a time when you had to explain something technical to a non-technical audience? See how well the interviewee can communicate and collaborate with a cross-functional team that isn’t entirely composed of technically skilled professionals.
21. How would you troubleshoot an issue with a process or system that’s currently in use? For instance, you can test the software developer’s understanding of debugging techniques that don’t disrupt active systems. However, you can also adapt this question to any role requiring candidates to think more strategically.
22. Have you implemented improvements to an existing process? What were they, and how did you implement them? This helps you understand candidate initiative and their own process for suggesting and making improvements to company procedures or systems.
23. Where do you place most of your focus when reviewing someone else’s work? This question can test job-specific knowledge as well as prioritization abilities and attention to detail.
24. How do you handle tight deadlines? See how well the candidate works within the constraints of the agile or scrum frameworks, which help them push projects over the line more efficiently.

Culture-add questions

A solid company culture is the engine that drives collaboration and facilitates healthy work experiences, which is why it’s so important to include culture-related questions in an interview. Still, it’s important to be clear about your intentions for asking these questions. If you’re looking for a culture fit only, you’re looking for a candidate whose beliefs, behaviors, and values align with those of your organization, and that can stifle diversity. That’s why it’s important to expand beyond culture-fit questions to assess if the candidate is a culture add, someone who brings new perspectives and enriches the culture with diverse and new ideas. 

25. What does your ideal work environment look like? This prompts the candidate to talk about work style preferences, team dynamics, and their philosophy on leadership and management.
26. How do you prefer to be managed? Invite the candidate to be a bit more specific about positive experiences they’ve had with managers in the past.
27. What attracts you to our company? Rather than expecting the candidate to give you the “right” answer here, approach this question with genuine curiosity. Assess how deeply the candidate thinks about what they can bring to the table.
28. Which aspects of our culture resonate with you? Encourage the candidate to explore your company values on their own terms.
29. How do you collaborate with individuals who have different perspectives? If the candidate shows excitement about working with a diverse team, that’s a good sign.
30. What distinctive viewpoints can you contribute to our team? This invites the interviewee to be more direct about how they can impact your team culture.
31. Describe a situation where you challenged the status quo. What was the result? See how the interviewee talks about values like innovation, critical thinking, and being proactive in their communication.
32. How would you contribute to making our workplace more inclusive? It’s important the candidate is thinking about how they can improve on your current culture, especially if they’re interviewing for a managerial position.

Breaking down bias: Why strategic interview questions matter 

I understand why recruitment stakeholders want to make the job interview process feel like an informal conversation. It puts the candidate at ease and encourages them to speak more honestly and extemporaneously, gently urging them to think on their feet, which is an essential soft skill. While the intention is admirable, this informal interview practice is a breeding ground for bias. Let’s break down how that looks in practice with a few statistics:

• Research from the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology found that employers have a tendency to overemphasize “gut instinct,” putting too much stock in their ability to evaluate a candidate based on a casual, unstructured conversation. 
• 42% of women say they’ve encountered gender-biased or inappropriate questions during a job interview, and 41% of women said they’ve felt discriminated against due to gender, according to a report from Muse and RecruitmentMarketing.com. 
• In the Unpacking Name-Based Race Discrimination study of all 50 U.S. states, researchers found that candidates with names perceived as Black were less likely to even get an interview, highlighting how strong a role bias can play even at the application screening stage.

That’s why I recommend “sticking to a script” by using a structured hiring technique. It keeps your biggest priority front and center—hiring a candidate who’ll excel in the role, regardless of their personal background. Putting a list of strategic interview questions also makes it easier to loop other stakeholders in the process so they can help you, the interviewer, develop questions that truly test the candidate based on skills, not the character or physical traits that are out of their control.

The best interview practices, according to experts

Structured interviews are vital to combating bias and making the interview process more efficient. But how can you get the best candidates energized about working for your company and attract top talent? Follow these expert practices:

Be prepared for the next time you screen candidates. Learn from this comprehensive guide on How to Conduct a Job Interview.

Interview questions FAQs

The post Best 32 Interview Questions to Ask Candidates appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

If you run a small business, manage a team of freelancers, or sell at events, having a reliable credit card readers for your iPhone can make all the difference. You want to take payments easily without worrying about complicated hardware, downtime, or hidden fees. 

After evaluating ten of the top solutions on the market today, we narrowed our list down to the five best credit card readers for iPhone that cover all the bases: 

This guide will walk you through the best iPhone credit card readers. You’ll get a breakdown of how these readers connect to your iPhone, what apps they work with, and what fees you can expect.

Best credit card reader for iPhone compared

Company

Our Score (out of 5)

Card Reader

Key Features

Square

Visit Square

4.53

Easy setup, no monthly fees, free versatile POS

Stripe

Visit Stripe

4.35

Developer-friendly API, low transaction fees

SumUp

Visit SumUp

4.33

Flat-rate pricing, easy portability

Shopify

Visit Shopify

4.29

Seamless Shopify integration, multichannel support

Clover GO

Visit Clover GO

4.16

Fast payouts, flexible payment options

Square: Best overall credit card reader for iPhone

Visit Website

Overall Score

4.53/5

Pricing & contract

4.25/5

Payment processing

4.5/5

Hardware features

4.5/5

Security & stability

4.25/5

User reviews

5/5

Pros

• Clear pricing model with no monthly fees
• Supports all major payment types
• Longer battery life than previous generations
• Works seamlessly with Square POS app
• Accepts offline payments
• Positive user reviews

Cons

• Contactless and chip reader doesn’t support swiped magstripe payments
• 1.75% fee for immediate transfers 
• Not compatible with all business types

Why I chose Square

If you want an iPhone credit card reader that is affordable, has great features, and is hassle-free, Square is the best choice. It’s ideal for businesses that need more than basic payment processing but don’t want to deal with complicated setups or high fees.

Setting it up with your iPhone is simple — just connect the reader via Bluetooth, and you’re ready to accept chip cards, contactless payments like Apple Pay, and even old-school swiped cards with Square’s free magstripe reader.

You only pay 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction for swiped, dipped, or tapped payments, which is competitive and keeps things simple.

If you’re comparing Square to SumUp, which is later on this list, Square wins in terms of overall features and ease of use. While SumUp charges 2.6% per transaction with a $54 card reader, it doesn’t offer the same range of business tools that Square’s app does, like in-depth sales reporting or seamless integration with other business software. Plus, with Square, you get your first magstripe reader free, and their contactless and chip reader is just $59. SumUp may look more affordable at first glance, but Square’s broader functionality makes it more versatile, which speaks to its scalability.

Another advantage is that your money gets deposited into your bank account the next day, or you can use instant transfers (for a 1.75% fee) if you need the cash right away.

Finally, with APIs and a huge range of integrations, it connects easily to other business software like accounting tools or eCommerce platforms, giving you more control over your operations.

Gallery

The Square Reader for contactless and chip is portable for mobile use, and can be docked for countertop setups.

The Square Reader for contactless and chip connects wirelessly to your iPhone or iPad via Bluetooth, allowing you to accept secure chip cards and contactless payments like Apple Pay without the need for a headphone jack or adapter.

Card reader pricing

Free tier (magstripe reader)

Price: Free

Features:

• This tier includes a simple magstripe reader that plugs into the headphone jack or Lightning port of your iPhone.
• It supports Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover.
• Transaction fees: 2.6% + $0.10 per swipe.
• No Monthly fees: There are no recurring monthly fees, making it great for businesses just getting started.

Contactless & chip reader

Price: $49.99

Features:

• Allows for contactless payments via Apple Pay, Google Pay, and NFC-enabled cards.
• Supports EMV chip cards and has Bluetooth connectivity for a wireless experience.
• Transaction fees: 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction.
• No monthly fees: Like the free tier, there are no monthly charges after purchasing the reader.

Payouts 

• Free 1-2 day payouts
• Instant or scheduled same-day payouts for a 1.75% fee 

Card reader specs

Here are the specs for Square’s Contactless & Chip reader: 

Accepted payment types: EMV chip cards, contactless cards, and digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay.

Transaction speed: Depends on the network connection; contactless transactions are quickest

Connectivity: Bluetooth Low Energy (LE). Supports USB-C connections for Android

Battery life: Not specified. Automatically enters “Sleep Mode” after 2 hours of non-use to conserve battery. 

Charging time: 2 hours approx. 

Charging option: Micro USB or USB-C port 

Also read: Best Cloud POS Systems

Stripe M2: Best for online businesses

Visit Website

Overall Score

4.35/5

Pricing & contract

3.8/5

Payment processing

4/5

Hardware features

4.8/5

Security & stability

4.5/5

User reviews

5/5

Pros

• Top-tier security
• End-to-end encryption (E2EE)
• Accepts EMV chip cards, contactless payments and traditional magstripe cards
• Highly portable, weighing just 85 grams and measuring under 3 inches in width
• Developer-friendly API

Cons

• Only allows tipping through digital receipts
• High fees for international transactions
• No free POS hardware

Why I chose Stripe M2

With effortless integration with your e-commerce operations, a smooth connection to your iPhone via Bluetooth, and the ability to accept EMV chip, contactless, and magstripe payments — all in one compact, lightweight device — Stripe M2 iPhone credit card readers can hang with the best of them. The setup is simple, and if you’re already using Stripe to handle online transactions, the Stripe M2 fits perfectly into your existing payment flow.

The real advantage Stripe M2 has over competitors like Square lies in its deep integration with online payments. Stripe M2 allows you to consolidate both your in-person and online transactions into one system. Its unified API means all your payment data is synced, allowing you to track everything from customer analytics to revenue. This type of integration is something Square, while strong for in-person payments, doesn’t quite match. 

When it comes to pricing, Stripe M2’s reader costs $59, similar to Square’s Contactless and Chip reader. 

Stripe charges 2.7% + $0.05 for in-person transactions, which is slightly higher than Square’s 2.6% + $0.10. However, if your business primarily operates online, Stripe’s 2.9% + $0.30 per online transaction fee remains competitive across the board and allows you to scale your online business easily.

Another benefit is Stripe’s payout flexibility. You can receive your funds in as little as two days, with an Instant Payout option for a 1% fee, ensuring quick access to cash flow when needed. Square offers a similar Instant Deposit feature but at a 1.75% fee, making Stripe the more affordable option for immediate payouts.

For businesses focused on online sales, the Stripe M2 offers a unique advantage: it consolidates your payment processing tools under one umbrella, helping you stay organized without juggling multiple platforms. Square’s POS system offers great tools for retail businesses, but Stripe’s ability to handle complex e-commerce integrations with minimal fuss makes it ideal for companies that live in the online world.

Also read: Top Stripe Alternatives

Gallery

Caption: With a compact design, the Stripe Reader M2 is lightweight and portable, offering up to 28 hours of active use on a full charge.

Caption: Enhance your Stripe Reader M2 setup with the optional dock for stable countertop use and a mount for secure, portable transactions.

Pricing

Hardware costs

• Stripe M2 card reader: $59
  This compact, Bluetooth-enabled reader accepts EMV chip cards, contactless payments (Apple Pay, Google Pay), and magstripe payments.

 Payment processing fees

• Card-present transactions: 2.7% + $0.05 per transaction

 Payout Times

• Standard payout: 2–7 business days
• Instant payouts: Available for a 1% fee (minimum $0.50 per transaction). 

Card reader specs

Here are the specs for the Stripe M2: 

Accepted payment types: accepts EMV chip cards, contactless payments (Apple Pay, Google Pay), and magstripe payments.

Transaction speed: Exact speed details aren’t listed; however, Stripe M2 supports a high volume of transactions per charge, which points to efficient processing times​.

Connectivity: It connects to your iPhone via Bluetooth

Battery life: The battery supports up to 800 NFC transactions or 1200 contact transactions, up to 42 hours of standby time and 28 hours of active use on a full charge.

Charging time: About two hours, it’s recommended to charge overnight for heavy use.

Charging option:  Charges via a USB connection​

SumUp: Best PIN-enabled readers

Visit Website

Overall Score

4.33/5

Pricing & contract

4.25/5

Payment processing

4.75/5

Hardware features

4.63/5

Security & stability

3.5/5

User reviews

4.33/5

Pros

• Send payment links via text or messaging apps
• Easy to set up, takes just a few minutes 
• Free basic inventory tools synced across channels
• Competitive flat-rate fees

Cons

• Longer payout times
• Doesn’t offer comprehensive employee management features

Why I chose SumUp

SumUp caters to businesses of all sizes by offering a diverse selection of card readers, allowing business owners to pick the device that best fits their specific needs. The options include the SumUp Plus, a sleek Bluetooth-enabled reader, and the SumUp 3G, which operates independently of any phone connection, offering unmatched portability.

SumUp’s pricing model is simple and transparent. You pay 2.6% +  $0.10 per transaction for card-present payments, putting it in line with Square’s transaction fees. However, SumUp doesn’t charge any monthly fees, keeping operational costs low for small businesses and sole traders. While Square offers a larger ecosystem with its POS features, SumUp stands out for offering PIN-enabled mobile readers. 

SumUp’s app, though more basic than Square’s, still provides essential features for tracking sales and managing inventory. However, Square’s app is more advanced, offering integration with third-party tools and more detailed reporting features, which makes it better for businesses looking for in-depth analytics. Where SumUp excels is in keeping things simple — its app is focused on ease of use and quick transactions.

It also offers hardware options that adapt to your business needs at lower processing fees, making it a very valuable iPhone credit card reader for businesses looking to save on costs without sacrificing mobility.

Also read: Best Free POS Systems

Gallery

SumUp’s iPhone card readers are compact yet versatile, including options to accept PIN-secured transactions.

SumUp’s POS system on iPhone, tablet, and the connected card reader.

SumUp’s dashboard and reports viewable via browser or the iPhone POS app.

Pricing

SumUp card reader ($39)

• Accepts chip cards and contactless payments.
• Includes a free mobile app for easy payment tracking and reporting.
• Simple setup process via Bluetooth connection to your iPhone.
• No monthly fees, making it ideal for seasonal or part-time businesses.

SumUp pro card reader ($99)

• Offers all the features of the basic reader but adds support for magstripe transactions.
• Includes a larger battery for extended use — approximately 100 hours of standby time.
• The device is designed for higher transaction volumes.

Transaction fees

Regardless of the chosen reader, SumUp charges 2.6% per transaction, which applies to all card types.

Card reader specs

Here are the specs for SumUp’s entry-level card reader, SumUp Plus: 

Accepted payment types: Magstripe, EMV chip, and contactless payments like Apple Pay and Google Pay​

Transaction speed: Rapid transaction speed

Connectivity: Connects via Bluetooth

Battery life: Over 500 transactions on a single charge

Charging time: Approximately 2 hours

Charging option: Charges via micro USB

Also read: Lightspeed vs. Shopify: Best POS Systems

Shopify: Best for multichannel selling

Visit Website

Overall Score

4.29/5

Pricing & contract

3.94/5

Payment processing

4/5

Hardware features

4.5/5

Security & stability

5/5

User reviews

4.33/5

Pros

• Day-long battery life
• Sync in-person payments with your existing Shopify online store
• Supports multiple currencies

Cons

• Exclusive to the Shopify POS & ecommerce ecosystem
• No free plan 
• Limited offline features

Why I chose Shopify

The core reason Shopify outshines competitors like Square in e-commerce integration is its deep synchronization between the Shopify card reader and its online store. Whether you make sales in-person or online, Shopify automatically updates your inventory, customer data, and orders in real time across all platforms. This integration makes it the ideal choice for retailers with both a physical and an online presence, allowing you to manage all transactions from a single system without needing third-party apps.

Square, while a highly versatile and user-friendly option, its online store offerings are relatively basic compared to Shopify’s sophisticated e-commerce tools.

When compared to Square’s hardware, Shopify’s Tap & Chip Reader is similarly priced at $49 for the reader, though Shopify offers a charging dock for an additional $39, which can add convenience for businesses running multiple transactions in a day. Shopify’s hardware also integrates directly into its broader POS and e-commerce ecosystem. Square offers this functionality too, but many users find the Shopify integration experience to be more user-friendly. 

The Shopify app is designed to work hand-in-hand with the Shopify card reader and is iPhone-compatible, ensuring that all data is instantly available at your fingertips. The app also makes it easy to customize taxes, add discounts, and manage loyalty programs directly from your iPhone.

Shopify’s card reader is ideal for retailers who need to seamlessly manage both their online and in-person sales.

Gallery

Shopify’s sleek chip and contactless card reader has glowing lights to indicate battery life.

Shopify’s iOS POS app features customizable tiles on the main screen.

Shopify’s POS app can be used to accept Tap to Pay payments directly from your iPhone – no hardware required.

You can also track online orders from your Shopify ecommerce store and their status from your iPhone.

Pricing

Basic Shopify Plan ($39/month)

Processing Fees for In-Person Payments: 2.6% + 10 cents per transaction.

Key Features:

• Access to Shopify POS Lite (included at no extra cost).
• Full integration with Shopify’s online store and inventory management.
• Automatic updates between online and in-store inventory.
• Discount codes and customer profiles.
• Basic reporting and analytics.
• 24/7 customer support.

 Shopify Plan ($105/month)

Processing Fees for In-Person payments: 2.5% + 10 cents per transaction.

Key Features:

• All Basic Shopify features, plus:
• Advanced reporting and analytics, including retail-focused insights.
• Professional marketing tools such as advanced discount options.
• Integration with more sales channels (e.g., Facebook, Instagram, etc.).
• Enhanced shipping discounts.

Advanced Shopify Plan ($399/month)

Processing fees for in-person payments: 2.4% + 10 cents per transaction.

Key features:

• All features from the Shopify Plan, plus:
• More detailed reporting, including custom reports.
• Lower transaction fees for in-person and online sales.
• Advanced shipping settings and real-time carrier shipping.
• Support for third-party calculated shipping rates.
• Priority customer support.

Card Reader Hardware Costs:

• Shopify Tap & Chip Reader: $49
• Optional Dock: $40

Card reader specs

Here are the specs for the Shopify Tap & Chip reader: 

Accepted payment types: Shopify card readers support all major credit cards, including Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover, plus mobile wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay.

Transaction speed: Transactions process quickly within a few seconds, depending on the type of connection. (Bluetooth).

Connectivity: Connects via Bluetooth, There are also versions that connect through the audio jack or lightning port.

Battery life: Up to 400 transactions on a full charge.

Charging time: Around 1-2 hours.

Charging option: Charges via a USB cable and is compatible with a charging dock for stationary use.

Also read: Square vs. Shopify: Which is Best for Your Business

CloverGo: Best user reviews

Visit Website

Overall Score

4.16/5

Pricing & contract

3.44/5

Payment processing

3.44/5

Hardware features

3.88/5

Security & stability

4/5

User reviews

5/5

Pros

• Offline payment processing 
• Choice of merchant account on Fiserv network 
• Next-day payouts 
• Positive user reviews

Cons

• Compatibility with third-party hardware (like printers) is limited.
• Although Clover Go can process payments offline, there is a higher risk of transaction failure when syncing once the connection is restored.

Why I chose CloverGo

Clover Go is engineered specifically for mobile use, offering Bluetooth connectivity that pairs effortlessly with iPhones. Its portable design, combined with a powerful rechargeable battery, ensures that users can accept payments on the go without worrying about battery life. 

Clover Go is widely available through major retailers and merchant account providers operating on the Fiserv network, making it a popular and widely-used solution. Though Square can also be purchased through retailers, Clover is the only option on this list that can work with many different processors. 

In contrast, Square Reader, Clover Go’s closest competitor, offers similar functionality but lacks some of Clover’s advanced security features, such as end-to-end encryption. And, of course, Square’s hardware can only be used with Square’s payment processing. 

Overall, the app itself is extremely highly rated, with a current 4.8 out of 5 rating on the Apple App Store. Only Square rivals Clover’s positive user reviews.

Gallery

Clover Go pairs seamlessly with the Clover POS iOS app for smooth payments on-the-go.

Accept payments directly from your iPhone via Tap to Pay on Clover’s POS app.

Clover’s mobile card reader is compact, lightweight, and easily portable.

Key-in payments on any browser or the Clover POS app with Clover’s virtual terminal feature to take payments anywhere, whether in-person or over the phone.

Pricing

Clover Go Basic Plan

Cost: $49 for the card reader

Transaction Fees: 2.6% + $0.10 per transaction for swiped, dipped, or tapped payments

Features:

• Bluetooth connectivity with iPhone
• Accepts all major credit cards, including Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express
• Supports EMV chip, magnetic stripe, and contactless payments (like Apple Pay)
• Real-time transaction monitoring via the Clover Go app
• Next-day payouts at no extra cost
• No long-term contracts or cancellation fees
• Basic reporting tools to track sales and transaction history

Clover Go Register Lite Plan

Cost: $9.95 per month

Transaction Fees: 2.7% + $0.10 per transaction

Features:

• Includes all features from the Basic Plan
• Enhanced inventory management features within the Clover Go app
• Access to customer tracking and basic loyalty programs
• Ability to track discounts and offer promotions

Card reader specs

Here are Clover Go’s specs: 

Accepted payment types: Clover Go supports chip (EMV), swipe, and contactless payments, including Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Samsung Pay. It also offers Tap-to-Pay functionality on iPhone devices

Transaction speed: Exact transaction speed details are not specified

Connectivity: Connects to iPhones via Bluetooth

Battery life: Battery supports around 160 dips, swipes, or 130 contactless transactions per charge

Charging time: Precise times aren’t available

Charging option: Uses micro-USB for charging, and an optional Go Dock can enable continuous charging while mounted for countertop use

Key features of iPhone credit card readers

When choosing the right credit card reader for your iPhone, you’ll want to focus on a few key features that can make your life easier and ensure smooth transactions. Here are some fundamental points to consider:

Payment types: Look for readers that accept a variety of payments, including chip cards (EMV), contactless payments like Apple Pay and Google Pay, and magstripe cards (though these are becoming less and less common). 

POS app: The app should handle transactions and offer business tools like inventory management, invoicing, and customer engagement features (e.g., Square POS, Shopify POS). Additionally, many corresponding POS apps have Tap to Pay, so you can accept contactless payments even without hardware. If you take orders over the phone, you may also want to check if the app allows you to manually key-in payments. 

Connectivity: Most readers connect via Bluetooth for wireless use, though some budget options may require a plug-in format like a headphone jack or Lightning connector.

Battery life: Bluetooth-enabled readers generally last all day on a single charge, while plug-in readers don’t require charging. Either way, most card readers list how many transactions they can run on a single charge and how long it takes to charge the battery. Make sure the option you choose can handle your typical transaction volume, and/or has a portable charger that works with your setup. 

Transaction fees and costs: Expect to pay a flat fee per transaction, around 2.6% + $0.10 for card-present payments, with most providers offering no monthly fees. However, it’s always a good idea to shop around for the lowest rates. And, of course, consider contract terms and whether the card reader comes with an annual contract, or if you’ll be able to use it as-needed with no obligations. 

Choosing which solution is best for your business

Square is a go-to option for a versatile, all-in-one solution. Its easy-to-use hardware, competitive pricing, and POS app make it ideal for small businesses that need flexibility and scalability. 

If your focus is on e-commerce, especially if you’re using Shopify, the Shopify reader is a seamless choice for managing both in-person and online sales in one system.

For businesses on a budget, SumUp offers an affordable option without sacrificing reliability. Meanwhile, Clover Go and Stripe M2 are excellent for those who need fast payouts or already use specific payment processors. 

When choosing the right card reader for iPhone for your specific business needs, remember, your decision will depend on your payment volume, types of transactions, and integration needs. By evaluating these factors, you’ll find the solution for you and your team.

FAQs

The post 5 Best Credit Card Readers for iPhone appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

What is open enrollment for benefits

Open enrollment is an annual period when your employees can elect or make changes to their benefit plans, such as health, dental, vision, pet, or life insurance. Employees may also enroll or change retirement, short-term disability, or long-term disability benefits. 

This applies to benefits offered through your company or on the insurance marketplace through the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Further, the ACA requires covered employers to offer health insurance to employees working full-time (defined as 30 or more hours per week). It also sets up a public marketplace where people can shop for coverage and receive subsidies based on their income level.

Outside of open enrollment, employees are generally only allowed to modify their core benefits, such as health insurance, when they experience a qualifying event. Qualifying events include getting married, having a child, or starting a new job.

Who is eligible for open enrollment?

You’ll want to cover any employee who is eligible for benefits in your open enrollment process, including those who are currently enrolled in benefits such as health insurance through your company. The exact eligibility guidelines will depend on your company policies and applicable laws. For example, employees may need to work a certain number of hours per week or be employed for a specific amount of time before becoming eligible for benefits.

Applicable large employers (ALEs) need to follow the ACA, which requires offering affordable health plans to employees who work an average of 30 hours a week after one year. Employers must also provide health coverage to eligible employees under state laws. Otherwise, your company determines eligibility criteria (such as waiting periods or employee roles). Whatever you decide needs to be applied equally to all employees in the same situation.

Open enrollment dates and deadlines for 2025

Employer open enrollment deadlines can vary. Check with your healthcare brokers or providers to see if they have any specific deadlines for annual open enrollment. While most employers conduct open enrollment towards the end of the year, some also follow their fiscal year and conduct open enrollment mid-year. This may be beneficial for budgeting purposes, such as working new benefits offerings into your annual budget. 

However, it is generally better for employees if you schedule open enrollment during the traditional end-of-year period so that they can evaluate all of their options, such as their spouses’ employer-sponsored insurance or marketplace plans.

You’ll typically want to schedule your open enrollment around the same time period as your state’s ACA marketplace open enrollment window so employees can evaluate all of their options for coverage. The ACA enrollment window also often coincides with health insurance providers’ open enrollment periods since many insurance companies provide coverage through the public marketplace and employer-sponsored coverage. Review the key dates below for each enrollment type and state.

• Medicare coverage enrollment: November 1 to January 15 (for most states).
• Medicare Advantage plan enrollment: January 1 to March 31.
• ACA marketplace: November 1 to January 15 (for most states).

The ACA marketplace and Medicare open enrollment period takes place from November 1 to January 15, as listed above. For some states, below are the special open enrollment period dates.

Employees will also need to pay attention to deadlines for coverage to begin on January 1st. In most states, you’ll need to enroll by December 15 for coverage to begin on January 1. Later registrations will result in coverage starting on February 1. 

Preparing for a successful open enrollment

Here are some key things to do to set yourself up for success during your open enrollment period. 

Plan ahead

Try to prepare as far as possible for open enrollment, particularly if you’re planning to add benefits offerings or change brokers. Larger companies often start planning three to six months out to allow plenty of time to assess their options and set up contracts with benefits providers.

Review legal changes

Before open enrollment, check in and see if there are any legal changes or compliance issues that may impact your open enrollment period. If you’re running a smaller, growing business, this is a good time to tally your employee headcount, as that may impact the resources and requirements that will apply to you in terms of ACA compliance.

You’ll also want to consider any new regions where you’re employing people. Offering global benefits in new territories or even in new states can come with fresh legal considerations. 

Understand employees’ priorities

Every employee group is different, so it’s important to tailor your benefits package and healthcare coverage options to your employees’ unique needs and priorities. You’ll want to survey employees and collect feedback on their priorities and which fringe benefits will be most impactful to them. For example:

• New families may appreciate learning about benefit plans with extensive pediatric coverage or Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs) that cover childcare expenses. 
• Workers nearing retirement may care most about retirement savings plans and financial wellness benefits that can support them in planning ahead.
• Those in cities may appreciate commuter benefits to help them cover transit expenses or higher parking costs.

You can use employee survey tools like SurveySparrow or Zoho Survey to easily collect this data digitally and then analyze it to decide what benefits to offer. Keep in mind that priorities will vary, and it’s alright to choose a few voluntary benefits tailored to different portions of your employee base. If someone doesn’t need fringe benefits like a dependent care FSA, they can decline the benefit. These voluntary benefits can still strengthen your benefits package and improve employee satisfaction and retention while often costing less due to lower participation.

Explore coverage options

Before employees make their selections for benefits during the enrollment period, you’ll need to select what health insurance plan types and other benefits you want to offer.

One of the best things that you can do to improve your employee benefits package and open enrollment process is to offer a wider range of plan options for health insurance coverage. There are a variety of plan types to choose from, including different tiers within each category. Health insurance coverage options include:

Open enrollment tips

An effective open enrollment process can mitigate the confusion surrounding benefit choices for your employees and increase engagement. By following the tips below, employers can get a jumpstart on their open enrollment policies and procedures. 

Communicate benefits options effectively

It’s important to properly educate your employees on key benefits changes and open enrollment deadlines. Even employees already enrolled in benefits should still be made aware of any new offerings and have the opportunity to change their selections for the upcoming plan year.

Employers should use communication methods that best target their workforce. Communication strategies include:

• Virtual benefit fairs or webinars: Reach remote employees with online benefits overviews from your team or the vendors. 
• One-on-one sessions with HR: Give workers with complex life concerns the opportunity to discuss benefit options that cover their particular circumstances with individual sessions. 
• Information packets: Give employees written overviews, comparisons, and benefit explanations to help those who learn best through reading or need materials to take home to look at with their spouse.

It’s important to communicate clearly and offer plenty of opportunities for employees to get more hands-on assistance. Also, give employees a heads-up on whether they’ll be automatically re-enrolled in their current plan if they don’t make a new selection. Many employers and HR software programs will automatically carry over the employee’s prior plan selections if they don’t submit any changes.

Streamline the process with benefits administration software

Your benefits administration software and other decision support tools can make the open enrollment process easier for you and your employees. Benefits administration software reduces the time needed for employers to manually enroll employees in benefit programs by allowing employees access to online self-service portals. Further, benefits software can better guide your employees through their benefits selections and paperless enrollment. Platforms like Rippling also make it easier for employees to review their options and compare costs and coverage.

Lastly, benefits software also makes it easier to track employee participation and send out notifications to those who have not made enrollment selections yet. This reduces the headache of manually tracking who has turned in their enrollment forms or dealing with employees coming to you after the deadline saying that they forgot to submit their selections.

Also read: 7 Questions to Consider Before Choosing a Benefits Administration System

Open enrollment FAQs

The post What is Open Enrollment? Tips & Strategies for Employers (2025) appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

Over the years, I’ve seen Android POS systems evolve into some of the most adaptable and accessible business tools on the market. Today’s Android POS offers straightforward setup, seamless connectivity, and compatibility with most smart devices, making it appealing to both new entrepreneurs and seasoned business owners.

Here are my recommendations for the best Android POS systems of 2024:

Note that all providers on this list are highly rated on Google Play by real life users and compatible with most Android POS hardware.

Best Android POS systems compared

Our Score (out of 5)

Software Plan Starts at

POS Software on

Compatible POS Hardware Add-Ons

Payment Processing Options

Square

Visit website

4.37

$0

Android Smartphone/Tablets

Square mobile card reader, Square & third-party peripherals*

In-house

Loyverse

Visit website

4.31

$0

 Android Smartphone/Tablets, Third-party Android POS Hardware

Third-party mobile card reader and peripherals

Third party integrations

Shopify

Visit website

4.22

$5

Shopify Tablet Stand, Android Smartphone/Tablets

Shopify mobile card reader, Shopify & third-party peripherals

In-house

Clover

Visit website

4.19

$14.95

Android Smartphone/Tablets

Clover mobile card reader, third-party peripherals

In-house or reseller

Vagaro

Visit website

4.12

$30

Vagaro Tablet Stand, Android Smartphone/Tablets

Vagaro mobile card reader, Vagaro peripherals

In-house

* Such as barcode scanners, cash registers, receipt printers, weighing scales, customer display, and kitchen display systems that run on an Android operating system.

Did you know? The Android operating system (OS) is built on an open-source platform that developers use to create proprietary business systems. So, there are many POS software that run on Android. For example, the popular restaurant POS software Toast is Android-based, though you can’t download the software for free on Google Play. 

Many POS hardware peripherals are also built using the Android OS and are, by default, compatible with any POS software that runs on an Android device. 

Read more: Types of POS systems

Square: Best overall (best value for small and new businesses)

Visit Website

Overall Score

4.37/5

Pricing

5/5

Management tools

3.96/5

Register features

4.58/5

Support & reliability

4.06/5

User experience

4.32/5

Pros

• Best value
• Free POS plan
• Industry-specific POS software
• Native ecommerce platform
• Fast and easy set up

Cons

• Tied to Square payment processor
• iOS version is rated higher 
• Limited support hours

Why I chose Square Android POS

Launched in 2009, Square is one of the first POS providers to harness the power of mobile software for a payment app. And to this day, its mobile software is among the most highly rated in both Apple Apps and Google Play. Square is well known for its ease of setup and ease of use, primarily because of its mobile deployment. 

What I like most about Square is that it provides the most feature-rich all-in-one POS system of all the providers on our list, allowing small and new businesses, even those on a tight budget, to get started with little upfront cost. You can download Square’s Android POS app for free on Google Play, sign up for an account, and set up your store on your smartphone or tablet. You also get a free magstripe reader to connect to the app, but you can also manually enter payments right into the app.  

I recommend Square if you want to launch your business with minimum fuss. Note that as your business grows, you will eventually want to sign up for a paid Square plan to upgrade your business management tools. You will also need to purchase hardware adaptors to keep using your Android tablet with Square’s barcode scanners and cash drawers.

Related: What is Square

Gallery

Download Square’s POS software on your Android tablet and connect with the contactless mobile card reader (Source: Square)

Build your countertop POS with Square’s contactless card reader and compatible Android tablets and POS hardware peripherals (Source: Square)

All of Square’s POS systems are available on iPads, Android, iPhone, and Square’s proprietary hardware.

Square’s inventory management feature supports variant tracking, low stock alerts, product images, and more. (Source: Square)

Access all your business data at a glance with performance summaries on your Square merchant dashboard. (Source: Square)

Set up your order fulfillment features with Square’s pick up & delivery management options. (Source: Square)

Pricing

• Monthly account fee: $0–$89 (includes POS software)
• In-person transaction fee: 2.6% + $0.10
• Online transaction fee: 2.9% + $0.30
• Keyed-in transaction fee: 3.5% + $0.15
• Custom pricing: Sales volume greater than $250,000 annually
• Virtual terminal fee: $0
• Chargeback fee: Waived up to $250/month
• Hardware cost: $0–$299
• Application/set up fee: $0
• Cancellation fee: $0

All Square users receive a free magstripe reader for swipe card payments.

Key features

Android POS app: The Square mobile POS app is available for Android devices and can connect seamlessly with Square’s mobile credit card readers. Square is the most reviewed POS software in our list, scoring 4.1 out of 5 from around 233,000 reviews on Google Play

Android POS hardware: You can run the Square POS app on any Android smartphone or tablet and connect it to a Square magstripe and/or contactless mobile card readers. The magstripe reader (first is free) is separate from the contactless and accepts all types of in-person payment methods, including tap-to-pay on iPhone.

Supported Android hardware accessories: To complete your POS set up, connect your Android tablet to Square’s USB receipt printers, receipt printers with Ethernet interface, Impact kitchen ticket printer, barcode scanner (with a USB OTG adaptor), cash drawer (with a USB OTG adaptor). You can also choose from Square’s long list of third-party POS hardware peripherals. 

Free all-in-one POS plan: Square offers the most comprehensive free POS plan with industry-specific software, ecommerce platform, payments, and even a magstripe reader included.

Free online store: Square’s basic website builder is free and easy to use. It features drag-and-drop functions for setting up every page of your website. You can also integrate your website with social media platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, and Google product listings.

Native payment processor: Each Square account comes with a built-in payment processor, Square Payments, which offers simple flat rate fees and waived chargeback claims up to $250 per month. No additional monthly fee or application process is required to set up a merchant account.

Loyverse: Best for quick-service restaurants and food retailers

Visit Website

Overall Score

4.31/5

Pricing

4.69/5

Management tools

3.96/5

Register features

4.38/5

Support & reliability

4.06/5

User experience

4.48/5

Pros

• Flexible payment processing options
• Wide range of complete Android POS hardware
• Free and affordable POS software plan
• High ratings from real-life Android users

Cons

• 24/7 support for paid plan users
• Will have to purchase hardware separately
• Add on monthly fee to access integrations

Why I chose Loyverse’s Android POS

Loyverse (Loyalty Universe) started in 2014, developing app-based POS software for various industries but with a particular focus on restaurant needs. The system is compatible with both iOS and Android operating software, making it a versatile and user-friendly option. While most experts recommend Loyverse for quick-service restaurants, I also find the system very useful for food-based retailers.

Loyverse comes in a close second on this list, and with good reason. Compared to Square, Loyverse offers more flexibility with your choice of payment processor and hardware. I love that Loyverse allows you to choose between an Android tablet stand setup and a complete Android POS terminal, so it fits any type of budget. Best of all, its free basic POS software already comes with a built-in kitchen display system (KDS) and loyalty features, which would cost you extra when using popular POS alternatives like Square 

In addition to the free kitchen display system and loyalty features, Loyverse’s advanced inventory management features for restaurants also offer better value. Around 14,000 Android users on Google Play scored Loyverse significantly higher than Square. 

That said, Loyverse does come with a few trade-offs. For one, the company lists recommended hardware on the website but doesn’t offer any assistance in purchasing. Nor does Loyverse help you sign up with a payment processor (though the website can redirect you to a Loyverse-SumUp landing page to apply for a merchant account). 

What’s more, since you are purchasing hardware and your merchant account through other vendors, that means customer and technical support for those services will also be through those other vendors, and not Loyerse. This lack of seamlessness cost Loyverse points for ease of use and setup. 

Related: Best Free POS systems

Gallery

Loyverse supports a variety of Android-based POS hardware and peripherals. (Source: Loyverse)

Loyverse POS app can be used on full-scale Android POS terminals. (Source: Loyverse)

Access your POS software from any Android-based smart mobile device (Source: Loyverse)

Loyverse’ fully functional kitchen display system is compatible with Android-based tablets and comes free with every Loyverse account. (Source: Loyverse)

Loyverse’s advanced inventory management feature is equipped with FIFO, expiry date tracking, and other tools for managing perishables. (Source: Loyverse)

Loyverse provides merchants with a free loyalty program integrated to its built-in customer relationship management feature. (Source: Loyverse)

Pricing

Software plans:

• Monthly basic POS software: $0/month
• Advanced inventory management: $25/month (14-day free trial)
• Access to integrations: $9/month
• Employee management: $5/month per employee
• 24/7 customer support: for customers with a paid plan

Payment processor options:

• SumUp card reader: $54 fast set up, zero monthly fee, no long-term contracts
• PayPal Zettle card reader: $79 (first card reader discounted at $29), fast set up, zero monthly fee, no long-term contracts

Please note: Loyverse does not sell POS hardware directly. 

Key features

Android POS app: The Loyverse POS app is free to download and compatible with both iOS and Android OS. The free basic software comes with a customer display, KDS, and loyalty program. It is the highest-rated Android POS app in our list, with a score of 4.9 out of 5 from around 14,000 reviews on Google Play

Android POS hardware: You can run the Loyverse POS software on any Android-based smart device and set it up on third-party tablet stands. Alternatively, you can opt for a Loyverse-supported Android-based POS terminal (Sunmi, Bematech, and iMin). Loyverse also supports integrated third-party payment processors that offer compatible mobile card readers.  

Supported Android hardware accessories: To complete your countertop POS set up, Loyverse offers a list of compatible Android-based receipt printers, label printers, barcode and ID scanners, scales, and cash drawers.

Flexible payment processing: Loyverse allows you to choose from among its third-party payment processing partners. For US and Canada-based merchants, Loyverse works with SumUp and PayPal, which offer low rates, zero monthly fees, no long-term contracts, and fast setup. 

Advanced inventory management features: Loyverse’s advanced inventory management tools provide robust product tracking features that restaurants and food-based retailers need, such as expiry date and bottle deposit tracking, mobile inventory count, and stock transfers. Purchase and vendor management is also included.

Loyalty program: Loyverse offers free loyalty program features that allow you to create custom loyalty and rewards programs. You can even create loyalty cards with unique barcodes that customers can present at the checkout counter.

Ecommerce integrations: Loyverse integrates with a number of website platforms, including the popular WooCommerce and Shopify. These integrations, in turn, give you access to numerous local delivery and shopping apps.

Shopify POS: Best for omnichannel point of sale

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Overall Score

4.22/5

Pricing

4.38/5

Management tools

4.17/5

Register features

4.58/5

Support & reliability

3.13/5

User experience

4.26/5

Pros

• Strong omnichannel features
• Full Android POS hardware setup
• Smart inventory tools
• Free POS software

Cons

• Connectivity issues for Android users
• Limited offline mode capabilities
• High transaction fees for basic POS plan

Why I chose Shopify’s Android POS

Launched in 2006, today, Shopify has around 5.6 million active stores worldwide, making it one of the top multi-channel POS providers on the market today. Like Square and Loyverse, it offers free mobile-based POS software for iOS and Android users. 

There are two things that I like most about Shopify. First, its omnichannel features are top-notch. It provides everything you need to sell products on multiple channels (including social media platforms). And, it includes native local delivery and shipping functionalities.

Second, it offers tablet stands that support both iOS and Android systems. Square, on the other hand, only offers an iPad stand. Other POS hardware accessories are also available directly from Shopify, so you can build an Android-based POS countertop setup without having to deal with third-party resellers.

Note, however, that transaction rates for Shopify’s Starter POS plan ($5/month) are nearly twice the processing fee of the higher Retail plan ($89/month). Both allow you to sell in-person and online, but the Retail plan offers a better value with advanced inventory features, lower processing fees, and multichannel selling tools. 

Related: Best tablet POS systems

Gallery

Shopify offers a wired countertop hardware bundle for Android users at $999. (Source: Shopify)

Shopify offers a POS terminal counter kit for USB-C tablets ideal for Android users priced from $459. (Source: Shopify)

The Shopify POS register is easy to use and customize with quick access buttons for the most used functions or sold products. (Source: Shopify)

Use Shopify’s built-in payment processor or third-party payment services. (Source: Shopify)

Shopify’s outstanding omnichannel features include the ability to track and manage inventory for multiple store locations. (Source: Shopify)

Pricing

• Monthly fee:
  • Starter plan: $5/month
  • Retail plan: $89/month

You can also opt for an ecommerce plan from $29 per month, which includes the basic Shopify POS. 

• Transaction fees: Starter plan
  • In-person: 5%
  • Online: 5% + 30 cents
• Transaction fees: Retail plan
  • In-person: 2.6% + 10 cents
  • Online: 2.9% + 30 cents
• Chargeback fee: $15
• Hardware: From $49 

Key features

Android POS app: Over 500,000 users have downloaded Shopify’s Android POS app. With its omnichannel features, your sales, inventory, and customer data are updated in real time. While it has historically above-average reviews, many users claim that the app’s May 2024 update has been causing connectivity issues. The app is currently rated 3.5 out of 5 from over 2,400 reviews. 

Android POS hardware: You can download Shopify’s POS app on a smartphone and connect it to a mobile credit card reader for a mobile setup. Alternatively, Shopify also supports tablet stands for Android that you can connect to the mobile card reader or payment terminal. 

Supported Android hardware accessories: Shopify also sells POS peripherals, receipt printers, label printers, barcode and ID scanners, and cash drawers to add to your tablet stand for a countertop setup.

Omnichannel selling: Shopify’s Android POS software comes with built-in omnichannel selling tools, which allow you to manage multichannel inventory and sales from a single platform. You can track real-time data and update stocks, communicate with employees, and configure sales reports from your Android device.

Built-in payment services: Shopify offers native payment processing, Shopify Payments for seamless acceptance of various credit card payment methods. You can also accept ACH and B2B payments for both in-person and online transactions.

Ecommerce features: Shopify’s core product offering is its ecommerce platform, which comes with robust checkout, inventory, and order fulfillment features. Shopify also allows you to integrate your website with Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest.

Clover Go: Best for overall flexibility

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Overall Score

4.19/5

Pricing

4.06/5

Management tools

3.86/5

Register features

4.58/5

Support & reliability

4.69/5

User experience

3.92/5

Pros

• Card reader that connects with Android smart devices
• POS and hardware available from various payment processors
• Industry-specific POS software
• Offline payment processing available

Cons

• Hardware cannot be reprogrammed
• Little oversight on third-party vendors
• Unable to upload images to inventory (only for online menu)

Why I chose Clover’s Android POS

Clover is a popular all-in-one POS solution owned by Fiserv, a global fintech and payments company. What’s unique about Clover is that aside from using Fiserv directly as a payment processor, the Clover hardware and POS system can be purchased through any of Fiserv’s resellers or independent sales partners (ISOs), which includes payment service providers Stax and PaymentCloud. 

I chose Clover for this guide, but I only recommend this to seasoned entrepreneurs who have enough experience dealing with POS providers to get the most out of the system. Because while Clover does not tie you to a single payment processor like Square, you will need to be familiar with POS and payment subscription plans to effectively compare your current payment processor’s fees against what’s available in the market.

I like how you don’t have to stick to Clover’s hardware to upgrade. Online marketplaces such as Amazon have a long list of Clover-compatible cash drawers, barcode scanners, and thermal printers to complete your countertop setup. However, again, you’ll need to have an idea of what to expect in terms of pricing.

Clover has little oversight on how resellers price their software and hardware. This may be an advantage or disadvantage (even for savvy business owners), depending on how you look at it. On one hand, you may get better all-in-one POS system deals; on the other hand, you may find it difficult to get support in case of software and hardware issues. It is also important to note that Clover hardware cannot be reprogrammed to work with a different processor once purchased from a reseller, so choose wisely.

Related: Best mobile POS systems

Gallery

Connect your tablet to a Clover mobile card reader and add an optional tablet stand for a simple Android countertop setup. (Source: Clover)

Clover’s mobile credit card reader, Clover Go, can be paired with Clover’s app-based mobile POS app (Source: Amazon)

Clover’s POS software is easy to use and can be customized with useful shortcuts to products and functions. (Source: Clover)

Clover allows you to upload and manage product inventory by bulk or individually. (Source: Clover)

Pricing

• Monthly fee: $14.95–$69.90
• In-person transaction fees (Fiserv direct): 2.3%-2.6% + 10 cents
• Online transaction fees (Fiserv direct): 3.5% + 10 cents
• Hardware Cost (Fiserv direct): From $49

Note: Subscription, transaction fees, and other contract terms will vary depending on where you purchase your Clover system. 

Key features

Android POS app: The Clover Go dashboard and POS is available for Android users on Google Play. You can download the software on a smartphone or tablet and connect the mobile card reader to accept credit card and signature debit card transactions. The Clover Go card reader and app has the second highest rating on this list after Loyverse with a score of 4.7 out of 5 from around 6,000 reviews.

Android POS hardware: Clover does not have its own tablet stand, but you can get one from third party sellers and marketplaces. Connect your tablet to the Clover Go mobile card reader and add the optional Clover Go dock (with built-in USB charging port and security lock) for a countertop setup.  

Supported Android hardware accessories: You can purchase Android-compatible cash drawers, barcode scanners, and thermal printers from third-party vendors and marketplaces

Flexible payment processor: The Clover hardware and POS software is available through third party payment processing resellers that partner with Fiserv, allowing you to shop for the best rates and more savings.

Built-in loyalty program: Clover’s loyalty program is included in all of its POS plans. It provides you with a free customer-facing mobile app (available for iOS and Android). The app allows you to track your customers’ reward points and update their records in real time.

Customer engagement: Clover allows you to create real-time promotions, which you can launch via email, text, or social media. 

Scalability: Large businesses with their own custom Android-based POS system can program Clover’s hardware via Clover Connector API.

Vagaro: Best for appointment-based POS software

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Overall Score

4.12/5

Pricing

4.38/5

Management tools

3.96/5

Register features

4.17/5

Support & reliability

3.44/5

User experience

4.36/5

Pros

• Proprietary Android POS terminal
• Easy-to-use calendar and scheduler
• 24/7 support with free training
• Fully HIPAA compliant

Cons

• No free plan
• Tied to built-in payment processor
• Limited hardware options

Why I chose Vagaro Android POS

Launched in 2009, Vagaro is a cloud-based, fully HIPAA-compliant POS software provider for professionals in the beauty, wellness, and fitness industry. The software is popular for its robust booking and marketing features. Vagaro then added a proprietary payment processing service in 2016 and recently launched a set of sleek POS hardware to its lineup. 

Today, around 83,000 businesses use Vagaro’s all-in-one POS system for appointments, online sales, customer, inventory, marketing, and employee management. While many POS apps have high ratings for their iOS version and lower ratings for their Android version, Vagaro is highly rated by both iOS and Android users. 

What I love most about this provider as an Android POS system is that, like Shopify, Vagaro’s POS terminal is compatible with Android tablets. You can purchase hardware directly from their website, so you’re assured an easy setup, seamless integration, and full support.  

While you can download the POS software for free on Google Play, you’ll need to spend at least $30 per month to use one calendar. That said, Vagaro is one of the most popular software in the appointment scheduling space, with predominantly positive reviews. And while the choice of hardware is limited compared to other popular options like Square, you won’t have problems adding compatible scanners, printers, and cash drawers to build your countertop setup.

Gallery

Vagaro PayPro POS offers a range of POS hardware from handheld to countertop terminals. Starts at $370 (Source: Vagaro)

Purchase your POS hardware peripherals from the Vagaro website (Source: Vagaro)

Run Vagaro’s appointment POS system on an iOS or Android device (Source: Vagaro)

Vagaro’s appointment POS includes an inventory catalog for businesses that also sell merchandise (Source: Vagaro)

Pair your Android tablet with a Vagaro mobile credit card reader to start accepting payments (Source: Vagaro)

Pricing

• Monthly POS fee: $30/month for one calendar, + $10 for each additional bookable calendar.
• Monthly payment processing fee: $0 (small merchants), $10 (large merchants)
• In-person transaction fee: 2.75% (small merchants), 2.2% + 19 cents (large merchants)
• Online transaction fee: 3.5% + 15 cents (small merchants), 3% + 19 cents (large merchants)
• Tap to pay transactions: + 5 cents per transaction
• Hardware: Starts at $0 (free credit card reader), countertops start at $370

Key features

Android POS app: Vagaro’s POS app is compatible with both iOS and Android. It consistently receives above-average ratings, though this is a small percentage of feedback considering the app has over a million downloads. It is currently 4.3 out of 5 from nearly 9,000 Android users. 

Android POS hardware: Vagaro offers a choice between a simple tablet stand that you can connect to your mobile card reader or a complete POS terminal with a built-in card reader compatible with Android tablets, plus an optional customer display.

Supported Android hardware accessories: Vagaro offers proprietary POS hardware peripherals such as barcode scanners, thermal printers, and cash drawers

Robust business management features: On top of bookable calendars, Vagaro’s POS software comes with robust management features. This includes invoicing, inventory, reports, and payroll management, plus premium tools such as rent collection, membership/subscriptions, and ecommerce tools. 

HIPAA-compliant POS software: HIPAA compliance means you can use Vagaro to securely store patient health information, ideal for clinics and other medical practices.

Native payment processor: Every Vagaro account comes with a built-in payment processing service plus a free mobile credit card reader to start accepting payments.

Customer-facing appointment app: Vagaro’s customer-facing scheduling app helps users set up and manage their appointments from their smartphones. Information is updated in real-time on your Vagaro calendar. 

Key features of Android POS systems

The nature of the Android OS provides users with a simpler setup, better connectivity, and easier management than other operating software, which is why the two main features of Android POS systems are flexibility and mobility. That said, it’s also important to consider value-for-money features tailored to different business types. 

So when choosing an Android POS system, be sure to look for the following key features:

Software compatibility

By default, Android POS software should be able to work seamlessly with most Android-based POS hardware. That said, you should still make sure to choose one that’s compatible with the Android operating software version installed on your smartphone or tablet. Because while you may be able to run the current platform on an older Android device, there is a big risk that software updates may not be supported.

Card reader reliability

While Android systems are highly compatible, some providers still experience frequent failed transactions due to faulty hardware. Before choosing a provider, research card reader feedback from real-life users on the Google Play Store and other third-party review sites. 

Seamless payment processing

Like any top-tier POS system, Android POS software offers seamless payment processing, whether as a built-in feature or a third-party integration. Choose a provider that supports most payment methods, including contactless payments from Android-based smart devices.

Offline mode

Customer checkout should not be interrupted in cases of temporary internet downtime. The system can keep a record of transactions that will be processed once connectivity is restored.

Business management features

The system supports key POS features such as inventory, customer management, marketing, and reporting tools. It should also be compatible with third party business platform integrations built on an Android OS to help scale the POS system as the business grows.

Regularly updated software

The POS software is regularly updated with little to no downtime to business operations. Updates are also properly documented and available for feedback on the Google Play platform.

Read more: How much do POS systems cost?

Choosing the best Android POS system

The Android operating system is built on an open-source platform, so it’s no surprise that there are many payment and POS software built on Android. That said, the best Android POS for your business should match your business model and fulfill your specific goals.  

In general, your Android POS should be able to: 

• Run on your Android smartphone or tablet
• Provide a card reader that seamlessly connects with your Android smartphone or tablet
• Offer both a mobile and countertop setup
• Integrate seamlessly with other Android-based POS hardware peripherals
• Easily update with no additional cost and little to zero downtime

With this in mind, I recommend the following:

Square is the all around best value Android-based POS system for small and new businesses. It offers the most feature-rich free plan that includes industry-specific software plus hardware you can build around your Android tablet and card reader. 

Loyverse is a standout for quick service restaurants and food retailers. It provides an impressive set of inventory management tools, plus free loyalty and kitchen display system. Loyverse also supports a full list of Android-based hardware. 

Shopify POS is the best choice for ecommerce retailers. It offers excellent omnichannel management tools and supports full Android-based POS hardware. 

Clover is an excellent alternative for business savvy entrepreneurs who want better control of business costs. The system is available from a number of popular payment service providers with varying rates to choose from. Third party vendors offer Android compatible hardware peripherals to build around your Clover card reader and tablet.

Vagaro is my top recommendation for Android-based appointment and scheduling POS software. The system offers a complete suite of software, hardware, ecommerce, and payment services, plus marketing, payroll, and order fulfillment tools for an easy all-in-one setup.

FAQs

The post The Best Android POS Systems appeared first on TechnologyAdvice.

As businesses use their point-of-sale (POS) system, the software becomes a significant source of business information. Today’s POS software includes analytics features that transform this raw information into insights on consumer behavior, sales trends, inventory management, and even employee performance.

This article covers what POS data is, how it works, and how to generate insights from analytics to stay on top of business goals. 

What is POS data?

Point of sale (POS) data captures transaction details within POS software, including customer information, inventory movement, and employee performance. Additional business management integrations, such as marketing, loyalty, shipping, and payments, can collect additional data, adding to this holistic view. By default, POS software is equipped to generate reports for this data. 

Types of POS data

Key types of data available from POS software include: 

• Sales data: Reveals what items are getting sold or left behind. It tracks sales trends over time, helping you understand seasonal patterns, product popularity, and even the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns.
• Customer data: Includes information about who is buying your products or services. This can range from basic demographics to more detailed purchasing histories. 
• Inventory data: Records available inventory and its movement. It shows what inventory you have, what you need, and what you could do without. 
• Payment data: A record of all payments processed for every transaction. This encompasses different payment methods like cash, credit/debit cards, or digital wallets. 

Related:What is a POS system?

How to analyze point-of-sale data 

Unlike basic reports that only produce a consolidated list of similar data, POS analytics combines different data sets to help paint a bigger picture. 

Turning these analytics into actionable business strategies involves several steps:

1. Defining clear objectives and KPIs: Start with clear goals and key performance indicators to guide your analysis.
2. Gathering and measuring data: Choose relevant reports and filter them by criteria like date ranges. Analyze this data over time to establish benchmarks and identify patterns and trends.
3. Applying context to data: Consider contextual factors like seasonal changes, competitor actions, and market trends to understand the story behind the numbers.
4. Utilizing advanced technologies: Embrace technologies like big data analytics and predictive modeling to enhance the depth and accuracy of your analysis.
5. Creating strategies based on insights: Use the insights from your analysis to inform various business strategies, including inventory management, marketing efforts, and operational improvements.

Challenges in gathering data

Gathering data for POS analysis does not come without difficulties. Below are a number of challenges plus solutions to consider: