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  • Star’s Christine Duffy Is Honored With RSPA’s W2W 2022 Leader Of The Year Award

    Star’s Christine Duffy Is Honored With RSPA’s W2W 2022 Leader Of The Year Award

    Christine Duffy, Director of Distribution Sales at Star Micronics America, has been honored with RSPA’s W2W 2022 Leader of the Year Award!

    Orlando, FL – July 25, 2022 – Star Micronics, a leading manufacturer of mobile, point-of-sale (POS), and customer engagement technologies, is proud to announce their very own Christine Duffy, Director of Distribution Sales, has received the great honor of RSPA’s W2W 2022 Leader of the Year Award!

    With over thirty years of industry experience, Christine Duffy has worked with the RSPA for over fifteen years, participating in many committees to help move the organization forward. She was appointed board director for two terms. She set up the Star Micronics Distribution Channel for the United States, Canada, and Latin America, receiving “Highest Distribution Sales” recognition from Star Worldwide for multiple years.

    Christine, a channel advocate for decades, has been honored with numerous awards from distribution partners for outstanding partnership. She has recently reached the highest sales growth of all Star Micronics territories for three years in a row.

    As a forward thinker, Christine has always been interested in the tech industry. The immense opportunities it holds and the constant drive for change have been the focal points of her career. Christine’s unwavering dedication, loyalty, and value are recognized and respected in the industry, where she has had the great fortune to build lifetime friendships.

    Star Micronics has allowed Christine to be visible, grow, and adopt a leadership position. She firmly believes that if you want something, don’t hesitate.

    As one who has lived by her values, Christine Duffy is truly a Star.

    “Thank you. I’m very humbled to receive this award. It is certainly an honor to be recognized in this industry.”

    Christine Duffy, Recipient of W2W Leadership of the Year Award

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    About Star Micronics

    Star Micronics, a world’s leader in point of sale, has designated a portfolio of printing, secure cash management, scanners, scales, stands, and customer engagement solutions for any retail or hospitality establishment in POS and mPOS environments. Embracing the mobility wave, Star’s complementary SDKs allow users to utilize Star in tandem with Android™, iOS, iPad®, and iPhone® devices to generate receipts, Chit, and labels for its printers. In addition, Star Micronics is always leading and innovating, enabling web-based printing solutions, including remote cloud printing, wireless cash drawer solutions, proximity-based printing, and secure cash management. For more information, visit www.starmicronics.com or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, or LinkedIn.

    Media Contact:

    Christin Dorner

    Star Micronics America, Inc.

    cdorner@starmicronics.com

    848-216-3318

  • How To Build A Self-Service Experience You’re Proud Of

    How To Build A Self-Service Experience You’re Proud Of

    Self-service, or “unattended” environments, are the new expectation, and 2022 will officially be the watershed moment for self-checkout technology, adoption, and innovation. Let’s break down some key pieces you’ll want to consider when building out your strategy.

    Self-Serve Is So Self-Serving

    Consumers now expect payment solutions that both anticipate and address their needs no matter where, when, or how they choose to shop. The same rules apply to unattended retail and contactless payments, including “just walk out,” buy-online-pickup-in-store (BOPIS), self-order kiosks, self-scan kiosks, and in-store mobile, along with the rest of your traditional in-person or online payment journeys.

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    The buyer’s journey – once envisioned as a fairly straight path from the first point of contact between the retailer and the customer to the eventual purchase – now resembles nothing so much as a spiderweb. Customers enter, leave, and re-enter the “journey” from multiple touchpoints, zipping along threads from app to social to in-store to website to AI-driven kiosks and more, with the entire process seamlessly focused on one central goal: an invisible checkout. 

    Your payment solution must provide consumers with as many options as possible to make purchases on their terms, whether that’s via mobile wallets, a mobile app, a QR code, traditional credit cards, or more.

    Autonomous Retail Is Not Just For Big Players

    Once considered a “high-tech” experiment, autonomous retail is the future of retail. 

    Amazon’s “Just Walk Out” technology set a new bar for frictionless consumerism. We like to help brands like Nourish + Bloom adopt this high-tech business model and level-up the experience by adding hybrid features like 24/7 availability, a bistro, and robotic delivery to the mix. 

    With these solutions, customers scan their phones to walk in, grab their items and walk out (see more on this UST solution here). Customers can also order food from the bistro and pay by scanning a QR code that connects to their digital wallets, or they can pay at vision-checkout kiosks with traditional methods like credit cards and e-wallets. The best part is that they can even have items delivered to the comfort of their own homes with the help of automated robots that interact with customers.

    E-Wallets: The Safe & Contactless Way To Shop

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    Digital wallet usage has skyrocketed. Seventy-one percent of consumers will at least sometimes use a digital wallet instead of entering credit card information directly, according to a 2021 ClearSale consumer behavior study. This is very, very good news for Technology Providers, better known as ISVs. Why? More than 78% of consumers who paid for a recent purchase using a digital wallet say they prefer to shop in unattended environments – making digital wallet users almost four times likelier to choose self-serve contactless options.

    Payments Are Complicated… You’re Going To Need A Bigger Boat

    Although ISVs have expertise in all things software, when it comes to autonomous retail transactions and workflows it’s best to get a payments partner who’s got the knowledge needed to create an all-in-one solution for them and their merchants. 

    One of the biggest challenges we see is folks coming to us after being burned by having to deal with multiple integrations, distributors, processors, hardware providers, and payment gateways. The key to building a self-service experience that’s truly remarkable is to get a partner on the payment side that can help you integrate things because payment is a completely different discipline than point-of-sale. You don’t want to be dealing with one payment partner for eCommerce, one for in-store, and another for your unattended or mobile solution.

    It’s A Big Eco-System

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    We recommend one relationship with a partner who understands all the different environments in which your merchants operate. One who has experience simplifying complex integrations. They’re there to help you build a superior solution that you can monitor and report on all in one place. Ultimately, you need support in simplifying any implementation and troubleshooting issues so you can focus on growth and running your business.

    Build A Self-Service Experience That’s Frictionless

    ISVs, or Technology Providers, have a unique opportunity to deliver new solutions that help merchants embrace the changing consumer behaviors driving the demand for self-service. 

    To help you build out your self-service strategy we went a little deeper with an industry report called: “Self-Serve Experiences Are Driving the Future of Payments” which goes into both unattended and contactless payments solutions that set self-service environments apart.

    Read this Report to Discover:

    • Why unattended solutions are now the expectation 
    • Which new types of self-serve solutions are on the horizon
    • Unique ways to engage shoppers and deliver memorable experiences
    • How to integrate these solutions into your existing channel mix


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    Download Your Whitepaper!

    Get To Know Us Better

    Worldnet’s GoChip software, paired with Star Micronics’ printing technology makes it easy for merchants to adopt unattended and contactless payments. One of our strengths is listening, which makes relationship-building and partnerships easy. We’ve become the leading integrated payments gateway, specialized in self-service solutions, not just because of our technology, but because we strive to offer the best services and support to our partners.

    Our software and APIs allow you to unify your unattended, in-store, online, and mobile payment experiences. Worldnet’s GoChip SDK is EMV certified with major processors and provides Integrated Contactless/NFC and EMV options. The Cardholder-Not-Present suite covers eCommerce, in-app payments, Virtual Terminal, and Tokenization solutions, allowing merchants to accept any payment, anywhere, with all major credit and debit cards, as well as digital wallets.

    Let our team of experts make payments their problem, so you can focus on growth.

    worldnet-John

    Guest Post Written By John Clarke, CEO and Co-Founder of Worldnet Payments

    A Payments veteran, with over 23 years of experience driving technology innovation in the Payments Industry, John co-founded WorldNet in 2008. He has since achieved many significant firsts in the Payments Industry, including developing the first iPhone Payment App in Europe. At WorldNet, John continues to drive technology innovation in Payment Processing.

    Liked this post? Here’s another:



    How QR Codes Can Benefit Your Business

  • How Small Businesses Can Stand Out on Social Media

    How Small Businesses Can Stand Out on Social Media

    Owning a small business can make it difficult to compete with the big brand names that everyone already knows. The advantage that SMB retailers have compared to “big-box” retailers is their opportunity to create an authentic and unique experience for each of their customers. While you may feel like you’re being overshadowed by the big guys, here are a few ways to stand out on social media.

    Start a Vlog

    Benefits:

    Video is taking over the way people consume information. A fun way for small businesses to showcase their products and expertise about their business is to start a vlog, a.k.a, a video blog. Video blogs can cover topics from a new clothing line you’ve just started carrying, to fashion tips, to a personal entry about the success of our small business.

    Vlogs are also great for promoting events and one-time sales. Aside from that fact that online videos now account for more than 80% of Internet traffic, a vlog creates a better sense of authenticity than your standard blog. This gives you a better opportunity, not just to increase the foot traffic in your store, it allows you to create a community with your frequent shoppers.

    How to do it:

    The great thing about vlogging is that it doesn’t need to be filmed in a fancy production studio. All you really need to start a vlog is a smart phone and an idea of the type of content you want to share with your viewers.

    A great starting point for a vlog is to film an overview of your business, what inspired you to start it, and a tour. This introduction is a perfect way to create loyal viewers and customers who are interested in learning more from your vlog. And if you’re camera shy, try asking a friend, employee, or business partner to take the lead with your creative input!

    Run Seasonal Campaigns

    Benefits:

    For retailers, you may find yourself needing to update your store for every season. This is especially true for clothing stores. By creating seasonal campaigns, you are not only letting your audience know that you are all set for the upcoming season, but showing them that you know what will be trendy for the upcoming season.

    Seasonal campaigns are beneficial because they allow you to get very visual in your social media posting – which is great since Facebook posts with images see 2.3 times more engagement than those without images, and as of June 2016, there are more than 500 million Instagram users.

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    How to do it:

    In order to announce your brand new stock of inventory for the upcoming season, you’ll need to create a visually appealing seasonal campaign. There are a few ways to do this.

    In addition to the aforementioned vlog, try creating some promotional videos to help promote the new inventory coming in. Capturing visuals of outdoor seasonal scenes will trigger your audience to visit your store for a new winter coat. In addition to video content, Instagram and Pinterest are the perfect platforms to look to when promoting a seasonal campaign.

    According to Shopify, 93% of Pinterest users use the platform to plan their next purchase. Hootsuite found that 75% of Instagram users are taking action, such as visiting a website, after viewing an Instagram post. By visually promoting products that are appropriate to the season on platforms such as Pinterest and Instagram, you’re much more likely to turn those “likes” into sales.

    Leverage User Generated Content

    Benefits:

    User generated content is a great way for small businesses to stand out on social media because it means that people are paying attention to and care about your business! By definition, user generated content includes any form of content such as blogs, wikis, discussion forums, posts, chats, tweets, podcasts, digital images, video, audio files, advertisements and other forms of media that were created by users of an online system or service, often made available via social media websites.

    Put in more simple terms – user generated content is content posted by your customers about your business. This can include anything from an Instagram user posting a photo of them wearing an item from your latest clothing line, to a shopper writing a blog article about your business. Not only does user generated content often result in free advertising, but it helps you reach a wider audience through your customers’ network.

    How to do it:

    I know what you’re thinking – how do I encourage my customers to create content about my product? There are a number of ways to push that content out of your shoppers. The easiest way to do this is simply to use social media to interact with their audiences. If someone tags you in a post, make sure to leave a comment! There are also a number of social media monitoring tools that will help you scan for posts that mention your business but don’t tag your page. Surprising one of your frequent shoppers with a comment on their Instagram photo is almost guaranteed to increase customer loyalty and stand out to all of their followers.

    If you’re looking to boost your user generated content, try hosting a contest. Photo contests are probably the most popular way to get see more user content. For example, if you are the owner of a fashion boutique, try holding a photo contest on Instagram asking people to pose with their latest store purchases. You can create a hashtag for users to post along with their photos; that way, you can easily track who is participating in your contest, and choose a winner! People will notice the hashtag and it will help you stand out to a wider audience than you initially started with.

    Competing with large retailers doesn’t have to be a ton of work. Standing out on social media has allowed retailers to connect with their customers on a more personal level, and will continue to advance in favor of business owners. Sometimes all it takes to stand out is the initial interaction.

  • 5 Ways to Motivate Retail Store Staff and Keep Morale High

    5 Ways to Motivate Retail Store Staff and Keep Morale High

    Picture this:

    It’s just a normal Tuesday and you arrive at your shop. Your spirits are high and you are looking forward to your day. You step through the door and your cashier is on her phone. Another employee is lounging to the side. There is no sense of enthusiasm or motivation. There are no positive interactions with your customers. Your mood immediately changes and, suddenly, you realize that this is affecting your store’s sales.

    Motivation, the state or condition of being motivated or having a strong reason to act or accomplish something. In 2017, it was reported that 51% of employees in the United States are not motivated. With the lack of motivation, about 70% of Americans do not feel engaged at their job. Why? There is a science to motivation that needs to be understood in order to keep employees engaged in their daily work.

    Let’s first understand why it is so hard to stay motivated. As said by Forbes, there are three main mental reasons as to why it is so hard to remain motivated:

    1. “I have to”
    2. “I don’t feel right about this”
    3. “I can’t do this”

    Basically, motivation is determined by how your employees view a situation. So, how can you keep your staff motivated besides their paycheck? Take a look at these five tactics!

    1. Employee Training

    We get it, this sounds boring. Nobody actually wants to sit through training, right? Wrong. Employee training sessions may have a bad rap for being boring, however, when done correctly, can be fun and engaging. For starters, Myagi suggests utilizing quizzes and follow-up questions to bring about friendly competition to your employees and increase participation and memory retention. Additionally, get your employees to present their ideas to one another.  You never know what tricks they may have up their sleeves.

    2. Listen

    Such a simple concept, yet so effective. Think about your personal experiences. Don’t you feel more valued when your boss listens to what you are saying? Listening to your employees’ thoughts, concerns and ideas is crucial in allowing staff to feel involved. Showing employees that their insights are valued and appreciated guarantee a high morale and motivated work environment.

    3. Advancement Opportunities

    Knowing that you are working to achieve a goal is motivating. The goal is especially motivating if it leads to more opportunities to advance within the business. By offering these opportunities, you give your staff the encouragement to work to the best of their abilities.

    4. Incentives

    Incentives are a fun, simple, solution to keep staff members motivated. Don’t worry, your incentives do not need to be expensive. They can be as simple a gift card to Starbucks. Let’s be honest, most people love prizes, so why not give your employees a reward for a job well done?   

    5. Be an Effective Leader

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    Show that you’re passionate about your role. Be excited about your business’s goals. Nothing is more motivating than a leader who wants to succeed with their staff. However, passion is not solely what makes an effective leader. Take a look Peter Economy’s 10 powerful habits that leaders should practice:

    1. Confidence
    2. Persuasive communication
    3. The ability to be sensitive and responsive
    4. Determined
    5. Supportive
    6. Distinguished
    7. Responsible
    8. Optimistic
    9. Honesty
    10. Organized

    Takeaway

    Motivation is mental and the mind is strong. With the mind being such a powerful tool, one must learn how to interact with their staff in order to encourage a positive and productive workday. Motivated retail associates directly translate into better customer service and thus increased in-store sales.



    Learn More

  • 4 Reasons to Use Bluetooth Technology in Restaurants

    4 Reasons to Use Bluetooth Technology in Restaurants

    In the restaurant business, one of the most important things to do is to keep your customers satisfied. One can do this by making sure their customers are receiving the correct order and in a timely fashion, but by also making sure that their staff is equipped with the technology to provide customers with a unique and satisfying experience. By enabling Bluetooth point of sale technology, restaurant owners can take their customer experience to the next level by creating a smoother workflow for employees, and a convenient way for customers to order and pay. Here are the top four benefits of using Bluetooth POS technology in your restaurant.

    1. Simple Set-up

    One of the biggest benefits of using Bluetooth point of sale technology in your restaurant is the simple set up. With Bluetooth enabled receipt printers, users can eliminate the need for messy cables, and simply pair their tablet or mobile device with the Bluetooth printer to easily print kitchen orders or receipts. Another benefit of wireless Bluetooth over WiFi connectivity for your point of sale is that you no longer have to worry about outages due to network connection issues.

    2. Table-side Service

    By pairing a tablet or mobile device with your receipt or kitchen printer, this allows for servers to take customer orders right there at the table and send the orders directly to the printer. Restaurant owners and managers no longer need to worry about the server forgetting to enter the order after taking it, because it is all being done in real-time. Additionally, Bluetooth POS technology allows restaurants to equip each table with their own tablet device, so customers can sit down and order as they please without needed to wait for their server in a busy restaurant.

    3. Improve Order Accuracy

    By enabling table-side service in your restaurant, you are ensuring improved order accuracy. As the server is taking the customer’s order, they can simultaneously send the order through the point of sale system to the kitchen for preparation. This means that there will be less miscommunication between the customer and the server, and between the server and the kitchen staff. There is less chance of there being missing item from the order or having an order placed incorrectly. The server can also remember to upsell add-ons or suggest a new item, because the full menu is right there in front of them as they enter the customer’s order. This not only improves customer satisfaction, but can result in an increase in revenue for the restaurant owner.

    4. Pay at the Table Capability

    When providing the convenience of table-side ordering to your restaurant guests, it is important to compliment that with table-side payment capability. Ordering and paying for food either online or through a mobile application is quickly gaining popularity, and consumers are now looking for this same convenience when dining out. With pay at the table capability, customers can simply swipe their card and receive their receipt right at the table, or pay through a mobile app offered through the restaurant without having to wait for the server to bring the check, return to collect the payment, and then print the receipt. Again, allowing customers to pay at their own convenience will help to increase customer satisfaction and allow restaurants to get more tables in and out more quickly, resulting in a reduced wait time and increase in revenue.

    Sabor POS and Star Micronics provide a point of sale solution for restaurants that utilizes Bluetooth technology in order to guarantee total workflow efficiency and an increase in customer satisfaction. Learn more about Sabor POS and their support for Star’s TSP100IIIBi, TSP650II BTi, and SP700 BTi printers, and the all-in-one mPOP™ peripheral for restaurants.

    Download our success story here: Star_Castrillo_Case-Study

  • Customer Experience Trends for the Future of Retail

    Customer Experience Trends for the Future of Retail

    Technology in retail has reached an all time high and is continuing to grow in 2017. The Internet of Things (IoT), Virtual Reality (VR), and Augmented Reality (AR) have all began to make their breakthrough into retail technology. It’s needless to say that this technology is changing the customer experience.

    IoT in Retail

    The Internet of Things simply defined is the “internet working of physical devices, vehicles (also referred to as ‘connected devices’ and ‘smart devices’), buildings, and other items – embedded with electronics, software, sensors, actuators, and network connectivity that enable these object to collect and exchange data.”

    IoT is everywhere! If you own a smart phone, then you are using IoT on a daily basis. With the new trend of mobile wallets and near field communication (NFC) payments, retailers are beginning to use IoT in their stores to enhance the customer experience. With wearable technology and NFC payments, retailers can provide more payment options for the customer and a smoother transaction process by allowing the customer to pay via smartphone or wearable device such as an Apple Watch.

    Moving toward an age of paperless transactions, it’s crucial for retailers to accept mobile payments and offer digital interaction with their shoppers via IoT. Virtual and digital communication and transactions are something that shoppers are going to be looking for in 2017, and it will have a huge impact on the overall customer experience.

    VR and AR in Retail

    2016 has proved to us that virtual reality and augmented reality will change the way people shop and in turn, transform the customer experience in retail. Shoppers will no longer need to physically travel to a store to experience the way something looks and feels. While VR and AR are definitely related, the two are used very differently in retail technology.

    If you are active on Facebook or another social media platform, you may have notices that many people have received a pair of virtual reality goggles during the holiday season (seriously… a lot of people). Overall, these goggles are used to play video games or experience virtual realities like riding a virtual roller coaster or exploring a virtual jungle. In terms of retail technology, virtual reality could possibly be the new way people do their shopping.

    How will this change the customer experience? How will this change omnichannel retail?

    Think about when you are shopping online, but hesitant to make the purchase because you’re not sure if the pants you are purchasing will fit you, or because you don’t know if the lamp you’re looking at will go well in the living room. With the rise of VR, ecommerce retailers will be able to create a virtual store and connect the shopper with the physical product, without the shopping ever needing to leave their home. Sounds crazy, right?

    Now let’s talk about AR. In 2016, Pokémon Go! took the world by storm by introducing one of the first successful augmented reality games for smartphones. We quickly learned how the game could affect retailers, and retailers quickly learned how to take advantage of the game by offering discounts and special promotions to their customers who were playing.

    As technology continues to advance and VR and AR becomes ‘the norm’, shoppers will expect a more technologically advanced customer experience. We can already see this trend with the growing adoption of online retailers and mobile payments. Now the question is: what can SMB retailers do to keep up with this advance in technology? How can they continue to keep the customer satisfied?

    SMB Retail Technology

    While the rise in retail technology will have a huge impact on the overall customer experience, there are ways SMB retailers will be able to better the customer experience for their shoppers in 2017 that won’t require a virtual reality store.

    One very simple way SMB retailers can use technology already available to them to ehance the customer experience, is to create an omnichannel shopping experience for their customers. Engaging customers beyond the transaction is key when creating the ultimate shopping experience. This can be done through the retailer’s website, mobile app, etc. According to nChannel, two-thirds of shoppers will check prices on their phone before making a purchase in a brick and mortar retail store. For this reason, SMB retailers need to make sure that they are engaging customers both in-store and online in order to keep their shoppers satisfied.

    Enhancing the Customer Experience

    In this age of new technology, omnichannel retail, and being able to basically purchase anything you need online or on your smartphone at your convenience, there is an increased pressure being put on SMB retailers to keep their customers satisfied in-store. The important thing to note is that shopping is no longer just about making the purchase, but it is about the entire shopping experience, whether that is a virtual reality store, or superior customer service.

    In order for SMB retailers to keep their customers satisfied, they must first understand their audience and their needs. If a retailer’s target audience is a middle or older-aged crowd, creating an app for a virtual store may not be appealing. For this same audience, increasing customer service reps in store or sending mailing coupons might be more efficient. With every audience comes a new strategy for providing the best customer experience.

     

  • Star Technology Day Recap

    Star Technology Day Recap

    Star Micronics would like to thank everyone who attended our very first Star Technology Day event hosted in Mexico City! Star Micronics had a wonderful time catching up with our customers and partners, and showing off all of Star’s newest technology. We’d like to share some of the highlights from the show for anyone who may have missed out.

    While Star has a reputation for attending a variety of trade shows and events throughout the year, this was our very first Star-hosted event for distributors, resellers, end-users, and software partners. We were very excited to host our own event and showcase some of our newest products and technology.

    The Tech

    Star Micronics spent the day showing off our newest TSP143III thermal receipt printer, now available with Wi-Fi connectivity and simple “Push ‘n’ Connect” WPS connection, making it the easiest wireless set-up in the industry. Also featured was Star’s all-in-one mPOP™, mobile point of purchase solution with built-in cash drawer and printer peripheral for tablet POS. Star was also showcasing our very own digital receipt application, AllReceipts™, which allows customers to store digital copies of their receipts, and provides more customer engagement for retailers with new features such as Engage NOW and Receipt Flip.

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    Powered by Partnerships

    Star was proud to host a number of our software partners, allowing them to demonstrate their POS and mPOS software in conjunction with Star products. Software partners included GoNet, iPOS by Ivan, iZettle, Pacific Soft, MSP, National Soft, MyBusiness POS, SkyPOS, and TouchBistro.

    Thank you again to all who attended and we look forward to seeing everyone next year!