Beginning in 2017, all new Level 4 merchants were required to use only Payment Card Industry (PCI)-certified QIR solutions providers for POS application and terminal installation and integration.
Hello Fellow Alaskans!
It’s still early in the year, but restaurants and retail operations are already in full swing towards making their summer season an amazing one. We are of the same mind - we want this to be a better summer than last year, and we’ve got some helpful tips on how to help accomplish that goal. Let’s jump into four ways to get ready for summer!
At Skurla’s, we are always looking at the latest, greatest technology that could help build our customers' businesses. This year, we’ll be keeping you in the loop frequently with new technology we have available now, and what will be available in the future. For this article, I’m super excited to have read the story about Apple possibly developing integrated payment technology into their devices, starting with the iPhone: Apple (AAPL) to Let iPhones Accept Credit Cards in Threat to Square - Bloomberg.
QR Codes - Yes, you need to start using QR codes for your business, if you haven't already.
What is a QR code exactly? Well, QR stands for Quick Response. And quick response is what consumers expect these days. No one wants to type in a link to a website anymore - that is just too much work and they will probably not go to that effort.
But if you provide a QR code - consumers are way more likely to snap the code and go directly to the site where you want them to order, read a menu, learn more about a product or event, redeem a coupon, or make a payment, etc.
And as we will show you below - QR codes are super easy to create!
In a recent post, we shared our core values and how we use them to guide our business decisions and individual actions.
Last month we shared that every year around the holidays, the Skurla’s team meets for a day to review the previous year and set a course for “the ship” for the coming year.
We like to refer to the business as a ship because at Skurla’s, we are an “all hands” type of company, meaning we are all pitching in, doing our part to make sure we are doing the right thing for our company and our customers. It’s an opportunity for the “crew” to be a part of the decision-making process and make sure everyone is “onboard” for the course we’re setting.
Here is Part 2 of the "Heart of Skurla's" -
Every year around the holidays, the Skurla’s team meets for a day to review the previous year and set a course for “the ship” for the coming year. We like to refer to the business as a ship because at Skurla’s, we are an “all hands” type of company, meaning we are all pitching in, doing our part to make sure we are doing the right thing for our company and our customers. It’s an opportunity for the “crew” to be a part of the decision-making process and make sure everyone is “onboard” for the course we’re setting.
Ever wonder who is paying for all those miles you earn on your credit cards? The surprising answer, is merchants like you!
To kick off our annual strategic planning meetings, we like to start out with an ice breaker. This year
Jesse Dison was in charge. (I know - that is a scary thought).
After doing this group exercise, we all unanimously agreed this was a great game to do as a team!!! It was fun, built team spirit, and we learned how much we really liked each other! (Plus, we affirmed that we are truly living one of our core values:
Trust - w
e establish trust with our customers, vendors, and each other by doing what we say and following our core values.)
Jesse found this trust ice breaker at
quizbreaker.com, so we wanted to share with our customers.
Objective: To get team members learning new and interesting things about each other
We recommend using this icebreaker when your team players know each other fairly well and when there is a level of trust among the group.
Recent research has actually found that trust is linked directly to positive team performance, so we can’t recommend enough ensuring that trust is at the forefront of your team's culture
Instructions:
Every year we attend industry educational events to keep Skurla’s current with technology trends and payments, but also to be able share that information on to our customers. This year, we were able to attend major events, and one of the biggest topics was NCA (Non-Cash Adjustment). For those that may not be familiar with this, it’s a program where merchants save up to 99% of their credit card processing expenses by passing along a small fee (3.99%) to their customers who pay with credit cards. It also rewards their customers who pay in cash as they don’t have to pay this fee.
Why has this been such a big deal? The pandemic hasn’t been kind to many businesses to say the least. Labor and inventory shortages, price increases, and cost of doing business have all been major factors that have forced business to look at their bottom line and some are barely getting by. NCA is a solution that can have a serious positive impact. The savings calculation is simple - look at the fees on your credit card statement and that’s money that you’ll likely save. For a small merchant who pays $2,000 a month in fees, that’s a savings $24,000 a year!
