Over 1.74 million online merchants all over the world use to manage their businesses. But most of them don’t know that it offers a point-of-sale (Shopify POS) system to blend online and brick-and-mortar operations.
This tool allows customers’s information to sync across the platform, and business owners can generate reports from a single system rather than pulling them from multiple systems.
Shopify’s point of sale is one of the best systems for small businesses in the e-commerce market. It’s user-friendly and free for customers of all subscription plans.
Shopify POS includes stock and customer management tools that offer seamless omnichannel selling.
In this guide, we’ll look at what Shopify POS is, how it works, and what exactly to expect from it.
Table of Contents
What is Shopify POS?
The Shopify POS is a point-of-sale application designed to unify your online and in-person product sales. You can use it as a cash register in your brick-and-mortar store and for checkout in your online store. With Shopify POS, you’ll enjoy a seamless, industry-leading online integration that will help you grow your business.
Using it is pretty straightforward, as you only need to download the app from your app store to your mobile device.
From there, you’ll enjoy the benefits of effective POS technology right from your iOS or Android device. This helps you avoid costly hardware and also gives you the freedom to personalize the interface to match your business and customers’ needs.
The good news about the Shopify POS is that it can integrate with the Shopify e-commerce platform. This allows you to manage sales and inventory in both digital and physical retail shops in one place.
With large customization opportunities such as setting up customer loyalty programs, offering personalized discounts, custom receipts, and much more, you can connect the customer retail experience to your brand.
You’ll need the following things to get started with the Shopify POS:
- A Shopify Plan
- A Shopify POS account and the app
- Shopify hardware to host your POS.
What are the main components of Shopify POS?
The Shopify POS system comprises the following key components:
Shopify Admin
When speaking about Shopify admin, you mean the control center where merchants complete most of their store management tasks. This is the home of all the information about your online store.
Here, the merchant manages every aspect of the business, including products, customers, payments, orders and fulfillment, and analytics.
Merchants also manage all their selling processes, including how they sell on their social media channels, websites, marketplaces, and in their retail stores with Shopify POS.
Shopify POS App
Once you set up the Shopify admin, you need to download the point-of-sale app on all the devices that you intend to use to run your business.
The POS app synchronizes instantly with the Shopify admin once you log in. All the information that has been linked to the POS will appear automatically in the app, including products, orders, discounts, customers, staff, etc.
Shopify Hardware
A Shopify hardware device is the gadget that you’ll use to host your POS. The application is compatible with iOS and Android devices, so you’ll need to acquire one and pair it with a scanner, which can be the camera and a card reader.
However, if you are using an iPhone, no card reader is required, as you can tap on Pay on the device, and the POS app will process the payment.
You can also use third-party devices to host the app, as long as they are compatible. Shopify offers various highly rated, compatible POS terminals and accessory options.
At the Shopify hardware store, you can find anything you want, from barcode scanners to receipt printers to cash drawers, etc.
Shopify Payments
When it comes to Shopify payments, the POS is designed to work perfectly with the e-commerce platform. You don’t have to worry about transactions doubling up, and no reconciliation of payments will be necessary. Shopify payments come with the Shopify plan, so there’s no extra setup fee or the hassle of setting up a third-party payment provider.
Shopify POS key features and benefits
Because Shopify POS is the best point-of-sale system available in the market, it’s extremely feature-rich and a solution to streamline your business. Here’s what it brings to the table:
Comprehensive Inventory Management
Shopify POS offers extensive inventory management tools such as demand forecasting, inventory reports, stock analysis, and cross-channel syncing.
The app tracks and updates stock in real-time, which updates you better on stock levels and sends notifications when products are running low. This helps to maintain the most favorable stock levels to meet the customers’ demand.
Customer management
Shopify POS harnesses customer insights. By collecting data like customer details and purchase history, you’ll be able to identify patterns in their behavior and preferences.
Understanding your customers helps you tag and categorize user-profiles and come up with a customer loyalty program. Collecting crucial customer information helps boost customer retention efforts, improve marketing strategies, and generally elevate the overall shopping experience.
Businesses that are using Shopify POS are witnessing increased customer satisfaction, loyalty, and repeat business.
Staff management
With Shopify POS, you can easily manage your team by creating their profiles with roles and permissions, time tracking, manager approvals, dedicated staff PINs, and payroll syncing. Most Shopify plans allow you to include as many accounts as you want.
Boost Sales
You can accept multiple payments through the Shopify POS, including debit cards, credit cards, Google Pay, Apple Pay, etc. These diverse payment options allow you to embrace customer preferences, providing them with a smooth checkout experience. This reduces the barrier to purchase, increasing customer satisfaction.
Omnichannel sales
Shopify POS unlocks omnichannel success. This is because combining online and physical stores offers flexibility and convenience to your customers, allowing them to choose the shopping channel of their choice. Similarly, you can reach a wider audience and maximize sales potential.
Marketing and growth
Maximize your business potential through Shopify POS by integrating it with many third-party tools. These tools include email marketing tools, accounting, analytics, etc. You can also track and manage marketing campaigns through Shopify POS. It means that you can personalize the POS system according to your business needs for marketing purposes.
Setting up and using Shopify POS
Setting Shopify POS up is easier than you think, and with only a few simple steps, your POS will be up and running. Let’s look at how to do it:
Sign up for Shopify.
To configure Shopify POS, you need to create a Shopify account as the first step. Shopify is mainly an e-commerce platform that expanded its services by adding a POS platform to brick-and-mortar merchants as part of its e-commerce subscription plans. To use the Point of Sale system, you have to subscribe to a Shopify plan. You can choose to upgrade to the Shopify POS pro option or operate under the Shopify POS lite.
The Shopify POS Lite is available in all Shopify e-commerce plans and offers basic features such as inventory tracking, omnichannel selling, accepting payments, staff management, running transactions, customer management, and reporting.
Shopify POS Pro is a paid plan that you can add to your Shopify plan. It includes all the features of Shopify Pro Lite and other advanced versions, such as custom reporting, additional staff management, advanced checkout features, and granular inventory management.
Select the hardware.
Once your Shopify account is ready, the next thing is to choose the gadget that will host the Shopify POS. The POS system works on both iOS and Android devices. Shopify also offers a variety of affordable third-party devices and accessories to use. You need to pair the device with a scanner or use its camera and a card reader (except for iPhones, where you just tap and pay).
Set up your POS.
Is everything hardware-ready? It’s time to set up your POS. On the hardware of your choice, go to the app store and download the Shopify POS app. Sign in using the same login information for your Shopify account to link the app to the store.
Once you log in, go to your store and grant access permissions. Set the pin that you’ll be using to log in, and you are all set!
Set up the sales channels and locations.
Once you’ve logged into your Shopify POS account, it’s time to set up your sales channels. Here, you can integrate the products you are selling with channels such as Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, Walmart, eBay, etc.
If you want to track the sales and performance of your channels, you need to add them to your POS account. To do this, go to the home screen and scroll over to the sidebar menu, where you’ll select “sales channel.”.
To add more sales channels to your listed online store, click on the plus sign button. A menu with a list of channels will pop up. Select and add the channels of your choice, and once they are added, follow the prompts through the login process to get everything synchronized. From there, you’ll be able to manage sales, customer information, and inventory changes across all your channels in one place.
Add your products.
Adding your sales channels and locations before adding products helps you assign products to specific channels or locations. It’s easy to add inventory on Shopify.
To do this, go to the sidebar menu and select “products.” Go to your product list, where you can see all the products available in your digital store. At the right top corner of your inventory list, there are 3 options, including “import,” “export,” and “add products.”.
Click on “import” if you want to import products in bulk. Shopify will prompt you to download the CSV template where you can add products along with all the important information.
Select the “Add products” option if you want to add products individually. You’ll be provided with a form where you can fill in product information such as title, images, prices, SKU and barcode, weight, color, tags, etc. You can then use the Shopify inventory management tools to manage the added products.
Add your customers.
If you already have a running Shopify store, you should have a detailed customer database to help you understand them better. If you are a beginner, don’t worry; Shopify is the home for solutions.
Visit your home screen and head to the sidebar menu. Select the “customers” tab, which will take you to a page where you can add customers. Just like inventory, you have the option of importing customers in bulk or adding them one by one. Input your customers, along with all their important information.
Create staff profiles and permissions.
This feature allows you to create profiles for your staff members and set up permissions. You can also create staff pins, track their performances, and set up manager approval actions for roles like editing taxes or adding discounts.
To set it up, go to the Shopify POS account and select sales channels. Click on the “point of sale” option, and then click on “staff” from the drop-down menu. Select the “add staff” button, which takes you to the employee form where you can fill in their information, give permissions, and create a PIN.
Configure your account settings.
It’s time to configure your account settings by selecting the “settings” button located at the bottom left of your Shopify account. These settings include:
- Checkout settings
- Shipping and delivery
- Taxes and duties
Add Payments
Here, you’ll find that Shopify Payments is your default payment processor. From the settings, select payments to be able to adjust payment settings.
You may choose to continue using Shopify payments or integrate with other merchant accounts with no additional integration fee.
This helps you offer your customers different payment options at checkout. Look for merchants who can handle high-risk transactions or who offer the best rate.
Using Shopify POS: Bottom Line
Generally, it’s very easy to learn how to use Shopify POS. There are a few steps involved, and if you are keen enough, you’ll be able to configure the system to suit your online store’s needs. When the system is up and running, it will be easy to apply various strategies to help you grow your business.
Sign up for a free trial and enjoy 3 months of Shopify for $1/month on Select Plans.
You can generate reports, create marketing campaigns, and track important data. You’ll also be able to adjust various aspects of your business based on how well you get to understand it.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
- Does Shopify have a point of sale?
Yes, the point of sale for Shopify is called the Shopify POS. It is designed to help customers open and operate stores online or offline.
- Can I use Shopify POS on my phone?
Yes, you can use Shopify Pos on Android and iPhone. Shopify also introduced the tap-to-pay with Shopify feature on iPhones, so there is no need for a card reader.
- If I use Shopify POS, how do I get paid?
Your money will go directly to your business account, depending on the pay period, which differs by location.
