Finding the Best POS for Your Ethnic Market: 3 Top Features

Ethnic markets have been facing steady growth in the US over the last five years, at 2.1 percent per year on average. The size of the industry is expected to increase further in 2022, according to leading industry research publisher IBISWorld. 

If you own an ethnic market, or are thinking of opening your own, you’re likely wondering what systems you can institute to capitalize on this growth. A great way to bring your store to the next level is a top-notch point of sale solution that integrates easily into existing technology and betters your customers’ shopping experience. 

Struggling to find the best POS for your ethnic market? Here are three features you should make sure your potential choices offer. 

Online Grocery Store Integrations

Every grocery business can benefit from an online store, and ethnic markets are no exception. Online stores make your business more convenient and accessible for clients, increasing the number of orders you can take and maximizing your profits. Online stores also help build your online presence, making your business available to a wide range of potential clients. 

A good ethnic market POS system will make grocery e-commerce a reality for your small business. It can make operating a website simple, introducing seamless integration to multiple e-commerce platform options for grocery retailers. Especially post-pandemic, e-commerce is a rapidly growing space in the grocery industry – choose a POS provider who can help you make sure your small business capitalizes on this opportunity. 

POS Language Tools 

As an ethnic store, you likely have a large, diverse and potentially international clientele. Not all your customers will speak fluent English. However, an essential part of stellar customer service for small businesses is being able to effectively communicate with your shoppers, addressing their needs and concerns. 

Firstly, a good POS system should come with flexible settings. Many POS solutions offer easy-to-use translation tools. A simple adjustment these tools can facilitate is changing your point of sale’s language based on your customer base. (This is especially important for self-checkout!) Checkout can be a confusing process to begin with, but by making sure your customers can access instructions and guidance in their own language, you’re making your store a welcoming and enjoyable place to shop. 

POS systems can also come with integrations that facilitate translation capabilities. For example, IT Retail works with AliPay, Wechat Pay, and UnionPay, Chinese payment and financial services companies, to make sure that Chinese grocery stores and ethnic markets with a large number of Chinese customers are able to overcome language barriers and process payments without a hiccup. 

Support from an Accessible Tech Team

No matter how intuitive a POS solution is, you will likely still have questions, especially during the set up and integration process. Being a small business owner centers around providing speedy and efficient service to your customers, and problems surrounding your POS system can negatively impact this aspect of your business.

So, when deciding upon the best POS system for your ethnic market, it’s important that you have 24/7 access to a well-reviewed staff of IT experts. An in-house support team that is easily available will ensure your store is set up with the correct network to make safe and secure payment processing a reality for your business. And, of course, in the case of technology failure, a tech support team will make sure your business is up and running quickly. You don’t want to spend hours on hold if your business isn’t able to process transactions. (Which brings up another thing to look out for: Some POS solutions allow you to make sales if you lose your internet connection!) 

POS Software and Your Ethnic Market

So, a good ethnic market POS software will be able to provide:

• Online integrations
• Translation tools
• Technical support access…

…and much more! The most important thing to remember is that your small business is unique, and your POS system should be well fitted to your store. This means looking for software that is both comprehensive and customizable. 

IT Retail has a three-decade history of working with ethnic markets — in fact, one of our biggest deals when we started was with a Filipino supermarket that has since expanded to over 20 stores and found state-wide success in California. So, if you’re looking for a POS solution with a demonstrated history of working both with and for your store, schedule a demo with IT Retail today to speak with our team of experts.