Important MasterCard Mandate Deadline for Heartland Customers

Of note, I was actually onsite installing Card Defender for a customer here in Idaho when she received a letter from Heartland addressing the same card number issues noted below. It was very comforting for the retailer to know that Card Defender meets or exceeds industry requirements for payment processing. If you happen to be using Microsoft Dynamics RMS and have questions about these types of letters, please contact me. Thanks!

Dear Valued Customer,

As previously communicated, MasterCard cards are issued with account numbers beginning with a 5”. Beginning in 2017, MasterCard cards will also be issued with account numbers beginning with a “2”. 

The cards beginning with a 2 will be processed in the same manner as current MasterCard cards.

MasterCard requires that all point-of-sale systems accepting the current 5 series cards must also be able to accept the cards with the new 2 series number. Our records indicate that you process using a third-party system. Please contact your third-party provider directly to determine if any action is needed to ensure your system is in compliance and can accept the new 2 series cards.

Your failure to accept the new 2 series MasterCard cards after June 30, 2017 may result in non-compliance assessments being passed on to you – as well as potential lost revenue associated with not accepting customers’ cards. The MasterCard fee schedule for non-compliance is:

Up to $2,500 per occurrence for first 30 days
Up to $5,000 per occurrence for days 31-60
Up to $10,000 per occurrence for days 61-90
Up to $20,000 per occurrence for subsequent violations
If you have any questions, please contact
your third-party point-of-sale provider.

Sincerely,

Martin Moretti
SVP Chief Card Service Officer

Cloud Retailer Point of Sale: Blending the Best of Cloud and Local

I've seen multiple articles on pointofsale.com and Business Solutions Magazine over the last few months that are either very biased towards locally run point of sale software or very biased towards cloud based point of sale software. In most cases these articles have been written by companies in favor of the type of retail point of sale software that the company offers.

This got me thinking about the Cloud Retailer point of sale software which has been around for several years but recently gained a lot of interest due to a statewide contract being signed for a government entity to use Cloud Retailer at all of the state's park and recreation facilities. Cloud Retailer is also a direct migration path for Microsoft Dynamics RMS point of sale software users so many of them are taking a serious look at Cloud Retailer as a replacement for RMS. RMS users already have potential replacement options like Retail Management Hero and Retail Realm Essentials but want options to consider what is best for them.

As I've been digging deeper into Cloud Retailer over the last 6 months, a few things came to mind that makes Cloud Retailer very unique in blending the best of what what cloud based point of sale systems offer as well as what locally run point of sale systems offer. Here is a bullet point list:

• Cloud Retailer is Both Local and Cloud. The "cash register" part of the software that handles sales  transactions is actually run as local software on Windows devices. This gives Cloud Retailer a speed advantage over cloud based point of sale systems for retailers with a large number of sku's/plu's and/or heavy transaction volume. The manager part of Cloud Retailer is run via a web browser which gives Cloud Retailer the "access anywhere" ability that locally run point of sale systems generally lack.
• Scalable. Unlike point of sale software that is limited to one location, or maxes out at 14 locations, Cloud Retailer has already been tested for use at up to 50 locations and can easily be updated to handle more locations as needed.
• Pricing. While locally run point of sale systems normally have a price structure that requires full payment up front, and cloud based point of sale systems normally have an on-going monthly cost, Cloud Retailer has a partial upfront licenses cost and then a monthly (or annual) fee that covers support and updates. What this means is that you pay around 65% less for Cloud Retailer when it comes to upfront licensing plus the ongoing monthly fee is around 50% less then other point of sale software programs. Much easier on the budget when it comes to both upfront and on-going costs.
• Latest in Payment Processing Security. Cloud Retailer includes Card Defender which offers the latest in payment processing security and technology and can be updated as new payment security requirements are introduced.
• Customizations. Cloud Retailer is a RITE product so customizations are pretty darn easy via RITE's programming team. I bring this up as a typical point of sale system can only perform about 90% of what you want it to do. Not so with Cloud Retailer. If needed, RITE can (and has) modified Cloud Retailer using it's Application Program Interface (API) to include the exact functionality that your business or organization needs. 
• RMS Discounts. OK - this doesn't apply to everyone but Cloud Retailer is a direct migration option for RMS users. What I mean by this is that your existing data from RMS can be transferred from RMS to Cloud Retailer plus the initial license cost of Cloud Retailer is discounted up to 100% for RMS point of sale software users.

All in all, this makes Cloud Retailer a pretty cool retail point of sale software program. Obviously, there are discussions to be had about features and functions but I've seen a noted increase in Cloud Retailer interest and look forward to some site visits with retailers wanting to take a deeper look at Cloud Retailer.

Questions about Cloud Retailer or retail point of sale in general? I can be reached at kevinantosh@gmail.com or 208-340-5632.

More Shout Outs to New or Upgrading Customers

OK - looks like these are going to be monthly posts as we are adding around 1 new customer per week. Its pretty cool that I've been able to meet in person (or will be meeting in person) with many of these retailers!

A heads up that I am also working on a fairly in depth video explaining options for RMS users as I am now booked through July with face to face meetings with Microsoft Dynamics RMS software users who have between 1 and 40 store locations.

Now on to the welcome shouts outs:

Takashima

Great group of folks to work with and there are several more projects we are working together on.

Trouts Fly Fishing

Added our Card Defender EMV system for Microsoft Dynamics RMS at 2 stores in conjunction with Gravity Payments.

Bird House Habitat

Added Card Defender EMV system for Microsoft Dynamics RMS at in conjunction with Gravity Payments.

OK - I realized that I've missed a few here but will try and catch up in a few weeks - thanks again for selecting me as your point of sale system solution partner!