Tag Archives: PromoPRNT

5 Things That Make a Good Promotion

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Successfully selling products is the ultimate goal for a small business. However, in order to sell those products, whatever they may be, the business must entice customers to make a purchase. Promotions are the backbone of creating a sense of urgency to take initiative and purchase a product.

But, what makes a good promotion? How do you create the perfect promotion that encourages buyers? Here are five ways to successfully promote to your customers!

  1. Run a Targeted Promotion

Promotions are used in a multitude of ways, whether it is to gain new customers, sell products, or steer them away from competition. However, one promotion cannot reach every point in your promotional plan. Therefore, it is crucial to determine your promotion’s target efforts:

  • Do you want to entice more purchases either through greater frequency or volume?
  • Advertise to new customers?
  • Repair your relationships with previous customers?
  • Advertise your business during slow months?
  1. Know Your Incentives

Once you have determined the purpose of your promotion, you have to create an incentive for your promotion to draw your customers in. Here are some examples:

  • Discounts/Coupons
  • Samples/Trial Offers
  • Events
  1. Set a Goal

Although this may seem obvious, always have a goal for your promotions in mind. Know what you want to achieve. For instance:

  • What is your sales target?
  • How many new customers do you want to gain?
  • How much revenue do you want to bring in for the quarter?

Having a determined goal for your promotions will help to keep your business on track an aid in your its success.

  1. Choose a Promotional Strategy

Once your goal is determined, you will need a strategy for your promotion. That is, how will you best reach your customers? There are many effective ways to successfully advertise to your customers.

  • Social Media
  • Contests
  • Mail Order Marketing
  • Giveaways
  • Customer Surveys
  • Charity
  • Customer Appreciation Gifts
  1. Know Your Promotional Techniques

It is important to have an understanding of the many promotional techniques that can be offered. Like incentives, these techniques can be used to draw in your customers and lead to an increase in sales and loyalty:

  • Free samples, trials, and gifts
  • Special Pricing
  • Influencer Marketing
  • Digital Marketing

To Discover Star Micronics Newest Value-Added Service PromoPRNT

How to Use Receipt Printers for In-Store Communications

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At Star Micronics, we’re always pushing the limit of our POS-tech designs. We’ve been a leading global manufacturer of mobile, point of sale (POS), and customer engagement technologies and this year we wanted to offer an add-on that has usefulness for a wide range of small businesses and local retailers.

PromoPRNT is the easiest way to reach your customers offline and in-store. It can be used for any kind of messages a retailer or small business needs to share with their customers.

An In-Store Customer Engagement Suite

  • Hiring notices
  • Event reminders
  • Discount promotions
  • Driving traffic online
  • Customer feedback surveys
  • Seasonal campaign sale (e.g. Back to School deals)
  • A funny message for brand awareness
  • Mention of a charity or community initiative
  • A point of purchase message designed for customer retention
  • Thank you and seasons greetings messages

With Promotion Builder and Promotion Scheduler, small businesses can easily customize and schedule their messages on receipts of Star printers.

A receipt printer is, therefore, more than just a printer, but one part of the Star Micronics Cloud suite of retailer tools. PromoPRNT also comes with inbuilt templates to get you started on the right foot.

Reaching customers offline has many distinct advantages over digital communications, such as:

  • Higher read rates than email (“open rate” is also considerably higher)
  • Much less costly, resulting in higher overall ROI
  • Easy to create original memories for local repeat customers
  • Simple implementation of an offline to online strategy
  • More intimate communications that go “straight to customer’s wallet”

PromoPRNT is creating an IoT Approach to Retail

Since PromoPRNT is managed on the Cloud and has an O2O (offline to online) aspect, this represents an evolution of Star’s ability to contribute an IoT aspect to all of the different kinds of businesses who use our products including retail stores, restaurants, gift shops, hospitality locations, seasonal kiosks, and retail chains.

Essentially:

  • Promotion Builder is a simple way to create and design receipt promotions.
  • Promotion Scheduler is a detailed way retailers can schedule their on-receipt POS ad campaigns.
  • Promotion Builder has an inbuilt library of templates to help SMBs get started.
  • Reaching your customers was never this easy! Since access to PromoPRNT tools is free in 2018, retailers are trying it out to deliver incentives directly to their shoppers’ hands.

 

To sign-up, simply register your business here with the Star Micronics Cloud. To understand more about how PromoPRNT works, watch this short video:

 

 

 

RetailNOW 2018 Recap

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This year, RetailNOW 2018 ran from August 5th to 8th at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention center in Nashville, Tennessee. In this post, we’ll do a short recap of some of the trends and our own experience of it at Star Micronics and our growing ecosystem of partners.

RetailNOW was buzzing this year on Twitter under the hashtag #RetailNOW2018. It’s held by RSPA, a trade association comprised of resellers, ISVs, manufacturers, payment processors, distributors, and other POS and tech ecosystem participants.

Star Micronics had some exciting new products to showcase such as our mCollection including new printers and scales, which got a fair amount of attention at RSPA.

RetailNOW is an important event for POS tech since it combines resellers with both hardware and software ecosystems. The point of sale industry is being challenged right now with channel sustainability and thus the role RSPA plays is crucial.

Star Micronics’ booth was #803 and our set-up looked like this:

 

We held a contest where those who entered could win an Amazon Echo Spot. Our new mCollection series was well received, especially our scales.

With over 160 exhibitors and a packed agenda, RetailNOW 2018 was the ideal event for us to showcase our mCollection series that has been designed with the latest tech to deliver products that are especially compact in size, sleek, and offer the easiest setup in the industry with a reliable and remarkable user experience. Where our mCollection truly shines is in connectivity–each printer has multiple connectivity options including Bluetooth, CloudPRNT, Ethernet, and of course, lightning USB and traditional USB options.

 

RSPA speakers had warm receptions that looked like this:

                          Image credit: RSPA Twitter.

The inaugural RSPA women of the year in 2018 was Abby Sorensen. On the ISV insights panel, the importance of finding partners who need your software but who also have the same DNA was mentioned. The RetailNOW 2018 event also included golf, free head-shots at the photo booth on the show floor, and many other perks. Many speakers added value around the best practices for ISVs, VARs, and Vendors.

 

Tips for Value Added Resellers (VARs)

POS VARs are evolving how they see the emerging ecosystem:

                       Image credit: Jim Roddy on Twitter

RSPA is really committed to providing year-round education on topics relevant to its community with everything from tech boot camps to regional events and global expansion. VARs are also increasingly relying on automation tools to streamline their business.

                  Image credit: Jim Roddy on Twitter

VARs know what works for them in terms of the top lead generation tools. For many of them, product catalogs, software overview videos and educational content such as buyers guides, e-books, lists, and live chats work really nicely. RetailNOW 2018 was full of educational content for VARs, Vendors, and those in related POS tech industries.

 

4 Ways to Use Offers, Coupons, Discounts and Deals to Drive Revenue and Customer Loyalty

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Photo Credit: Burst.  

At Star Micronics we’re a POS tech engagement company obsessed with adding value to retail stores and small businesses. We became a leading global manufacturer of mobile point of sale (POS) and customer engagement technologies through many years of building simple-to-use and reliable products such as receipt printers. In 2017 we created innovative partnerships at  Star Micronics Cloud (formerly called Star Cloud Services) which have helped solidify our position with tens of thousands of independent business users and hundreds of thousands of devices sold.

Today we want to present to you how to use promos, discounts, coupons, and deals to generate ROI and increase basket size at your store and local business. Creating offers cheaply that engage customers at the POS and at the time of sale is key for developing memorable offers that lead to repeat customers and long-term customer loyalty.

1. CREATE PROMOS EASILY ON RECEIPTS

The physical receipt is now a key marketing real estate in 2018. With the advent of our solution called PromoPRNT, you can easily create ads at the POS that quickly and efficiently create marketing campaigns on your store’s best deals, offers as well as QR-code-based coupons.

With Promo Maker and Promo Manager, retailers can create in-store ads on receipts that convert shoppers and get eyeballs with the greatest ROI and also improve word-of-mouth benefits for your small business. Since PromoPRNT allows for the customization of the offer, receipt-based promos can drive revenue 24/7 automatically with POS ads. The solution is available to registered users on the Star Micronics Cloud.  

Source: screenshot from Sophatar Webinar hosted by Star Micronics.

2. SYNC DIGITAL SIGNAGE WITH POST AND RECEIPT DATA

Sophatar is a Digital Signage startup with whom we have created an innovative solution with Sophatar® POS Signage™.  Easy-to-install digital screens help increase basket size, enabling retailers to produce more ROI from their top selling products. This means that through a simple software subscription, small businesses can easily create discounts, promos, and deals that integrate with POS data from Star Printers, directly and automatically creating contextual and dynamic signage that shoppers can see at physical locations.

This essentially enables any retail or hospitality business to implement professional digital signage that’s smart and can easily integrate with mobile coupons and loyalty cards, with no need for customers to install a mobile app. This not only creates customer loyalty, through engaging customer experience in-store but also deals that shoppers cannot resist. As the offers are generated and displayed, based on existing sales data, the best selling items can be displayed, driving higher revenues and increasing average basket sizes at your location.

3.  MOBILE LOYALTY OFFERS PAIRED WITH SEASONAL CAMPAIGNS

For promotions and loyalty offers that sync with a retailer’s Email and SMS marketing campaigns, it’s essential to onboard top customers into a customized loyalty program. From here, retailers and brick-and-mortar stores can drive ROI from events, seasonal campaigns, free product giveaways, birthday messages and other strategic discounts where loyalty points can drive in-store traffic.

Automated customer communications inside loyalty programs build and strengthen existing relationships with a retailer’s best shoppers. Thirdshelf is the ideal software for independent retailers to accomplish this:  

  • Creating a loyalty program out-of-the-box
  • Segmenting customers and tracking loyalty analytics
  • Automating Email and SMS marketing offers

Nurturing high-value customers can drive revenue and increase customer loyalty through tailored and highly segmented marketing campaigns that reach the smartphones of shoppers.

4. CREATING AN OMNICHANNEL LOYALTY EXPERIENCE

In an era when retailers need to create customer experiences in-store, at Star Micronics we believe that creating immersion in-store at the POS — via promos on receipts, via digital signage and mobile that can all work together to create promotions whose benefits stack, generating ROI at physical locations and increasing sales.

This is also a seamless loyalty strategy that is affordable even for retailers who operate from a single physical location. Secondly, the offers created via PromoPRNT, Sophatar® POS Signage™ and Thirdshelf complement different touch-points of the customer journey that create irresistible offers while boosting customer loyalty.

What the three solutions mentioned all have in common is that they exist to help retailers automate marketing at their retail location and at the POS, in-store, and via mobile, to create the best customer engagement at the lowest cost.

Star Micronics Offers First Look at New, Innovative Solutions

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NRF 2018: Star Micronics Offers First Look at New, Innovative Solutions

Somerset, NJ – January 26, 2017 – Star Micronics, a leading global manufacturer of mobile, point of sale (POS) and customer engagement technologies, showcased its newest innovations at NRF 2018 Retail’s Big Show.

NRF 2018 was held in New York in the Jacob K. Javits Center from January 14-16 and Star Micronics exhibited its latest POS innovations in booth #2745, including:

 

1st AirPrint® receipt printer

The TSP650II is the first receipt printer on the market with Apple AirPrint® Certification.  This printer will work seamlessly with all Apple® devices, ensuring quick set up and high-quality receipt printing. The TSP650II AirPrint will enable Apple users to continue with the familiar AirPrint experience while using their Apple iOS® POS system.

 

mCollection

mC-Print: Chic, Compact, Complete printer collection

Star Micronics new mC-Print receipt printers were designed specifically to expand Star Micronics’ Mobile POS solutions. This mPOS printer is stylish, chic, and compact. With multi-interface support and peripheral connectivity, this Cloud Service-ready receipt printer is equipped to handle retailers’ needs with style.

mPOP + Peripherals:

Now, the mPOP has additional optional peripherals for merchants to choose from, such as 2D barcode scanner, scale, customer display, and port to external cash drawer. With these added peripherals, retailers and restaurateurs can transform their mPOP into a complete, versatile point of sale hub in order to accept a wider variety of transactions in higher volume.

 

 

PromoPRNT

PromoPRNT is a new service available to Star Cloud Services members that empowers retailers to create printed promotions in addition to receipts. PromoPRNT delivers two services through the Star Cloud Services Dashboard, Promo Maker and Promo Manager. Promo Maker is a simple way to create and design receipt promotions. Promo Manager allows retailers to schedule the length of a promotional campaign and to view insights from their campaigns.  Ultimately, with these PromoPRNT tools, retailers will be able to deliver incentives directly to shopper’s hands.

Sophatar® POS Signage™

Sophatar® POS Signage is another new service available to all Star Cloud Services members for a low monthly cost. This innovative digital signage solution analyzes retailers’ POS sales data through the Star Micronics printer and Star Cloud to display popular sales items.  If the retailer doesn’t have images of best-selling items on hand, Sophatar® POS Signage will automatically search for images using UPC codes and textual descriptions of the products.

 

This year’s booth partners:

  • Vend
  • SuiteRetail
  • BizTracker
  • nClose

“If you spent some time at our booth at NRF 2018, thank you,” Said Christophe Naasz, Director of Business Development at Star Micronics America, Inc. “We have so many innovative and groundbreaking solutions scheduled for release in 2018. It was fantastic to have the opportunity to give the industry a sneak peek.”

 

About Star Micronics

Star Micronics, one of the world’s largest POS providers, has designated a portfolio of printing, secure cash management, 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 printers in tandem with Android™, iOS iPad®, and iPhone® devices to generate receipts for all of its printers. Always leading, and always innovating, Star Micronics enables 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:

Leticia Arce

Star Micronics America, Inc.

larce@starmicronics.com

848-216-3283

 

Melissa McGaughey

SkyRocket Group

Melissa@skyrocketgroup.com

814-833-5026 x106

 

 

 

 

NRF Retail’s Big Show 2018 Recap with Star Micronics

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Thank you to everyone who took the opportunity to stop by our booth and check out our latest retail technology solutions. If you missed us, we offered a sneak peek at several of our newest technologies and solutions for 2018.

Here are just a few of the innovative solutions Star Micronics had on display.

mCollection

Our new mCollection includes products that will expand the functionality of our mPOP solution. mC-Print2 and mC-Print3 were big hits with all of our visitors.

mPOP + Peripherals

Merchants can now transform the mPOP into a complete point of sale hub and accept versatile transactions at a greater volume. The mPOP is able to integrate with an increased number of peripherals, such as a 2D barcode scanner, scale, customer display, and port to an external cash drawer.

mcPrint2 and mcPrint3

Stylish and sleek, these printers were made to look great with your mPOP. These attractive and Cloud Service-ready receipt printers support multiple interfaces and peripheral connectivity. These little printers look fantastic and are ideal for handling your business needs with style.

TSP650IIAirPrint®

This receipt printer works seamlessly with all Apple® devices and is the first printer of its kind with Apple AirPrint Certification. With quick and, easy setup, high-quality receipt printing, this printer is ready to hit the ground running out of the box. Most importantly, it will allow Apple users to continue with the familiar AirPrint experience while using their Apple iOS® POS system. Cash drawer control from your Apple device has also become a reality with the TSP650IIAirPrint.

Sophatar® POS Signage™

Available at a low monthly subscription, this digital signage solution solves three common problems retailers run into when purchasing a digital signage solution. First, it’s affordable. Second, it searches by the UPC codes and product descriptions of your products to automatically generate content and display them on your digital signs. This eliminates the time you spend hunting down images and content to display. Lastly, it creates dynamic content updates based on your sales data. In this way, it’s always displaying your best selling products.

PromoPRNT

Available through the Star Cloud Services dashboard, this new service will empower you to create printed promotions on your receipts. PromoPRNT includes two separate services, Promo Maker and Promo Manager. Promo Maker is a quick and easy way to design receipt promotions and add them to your printer receipts. Promo Manager is the tool that allows the length of a promotional campaign to be scheduled. Merchants can also track promotion campaign insights through the Promo Manager tool. With PromoPRNT, you will be able to deliver incentives directly into shoppers’ hands.

We also featured several of our vendor partners in our NRF 2018 booth, including Vend, SuiteRetail, Biztracker, and nClose.

See you next year NRF!