We're pleased to announce that if you use Shopify POS to handle your in-person transactions, you can now use Swell inside the app to reward customers regardless as to where they shop with you!
On some occasions, our merchants have asked us why they should bother to integrate their rewards and referral programs between storefront and website. "Can't I just run everything separately?" they ask.
The truth is that for the vast majority of businesses, integrating Swell with Shopify POS to create an omnichannel rewards program provides an incredible array of benefits. Using Swell alongside a POS system allows you to:
Capture Emails. Your omnichannel rewards program is all the reason your customers will need to provide their email address while in-store. Use Swell to convert one-time shoppers into repeat buyers!
Connect with Customers...Wherever They Are! Many of your customers likely shop with you both in-person and online -- make sure they can sign up for your rewards program and redeem their points in both places too.
Build Deeper Relationships with Customers. Use Swell's Customer Management section to track each customer's in-store and online purchases -- and create more personalized, tailored communication in turn.
Because of the above reasons and more, we strongly encourage our online merchants who also use Shopify POS to use Swell in-store as well.
How Do I Use Swell in the Shopify POS System?
If you've already set up Swell for your e-commerce store, enabling and using it in the Shopify POS app can't be easier!
To start, there are no separate apps to download or install; as long as you've installed Swell via the Shopify app store, you're all set.
For the time being, our app allows you to complete two important actions in an in-person setting: 1) enroll or sign your customers into your rewards program, and 2) help them redeem points for a discount towards the purchase they're making in-store. Let's walk through how to do each of these tasks!
Step 1: Enrolling / Signing In a Customer
When you're ready to complete a transaction with a customer using the Shopify POS app, the first step is to obtain the customer's email address. We would recommend some sort of dialogue similar to:
"Are you part of our rewards program yet? If not, I'll just need your email address today to automatically enroll you."
This exchange alone is extremely valuable -- customers normally would be unlikely to volunteer their email address, but enrolling them in the rewards program gives them a reason to!
You can complete this part of the process either before or immediately after adding products to the cart. Once you're ready to add the information though, just click the "Add Customer" button to get started:
If the customer says that they're not part of the program, then just tap the "Create Customer" button to enter in their information.
Alternatively, if the customer's email is already in your system, then all you need to do is search for it and tap the appropriate name.
Once you've done that, the customer will automatically be "logged in" to the rewards program! You can see their name in the top right-hand corner of the screen:
Step 2: Help a Customer Redeem Points Towards Purchase
Once you've identified the customer, you can use Swell to help them redeem points towards their purchase!
First, add the product(s) to the customer's cart, and then click the three dots in the top right-hand corner of the window to launch Swell:
Please note that if you're not a Swell Pro subscriber, you'll get an error message asking you to upgrade first!
Once Swell is launched, you'll see a window that will look familiar to you -- it's the same "rewards popup" that customers see on your site! Just like customers do on your site, you can view their points balance at the top of the window, and then press the "Get Rewards" section of the popup to redeem points on behalf of the customer for a discount -- just remember to confirm with that the customer would like to redeem their points before you do so!
Once you press the "Apply Discount" button, the discount will automatically be applied to the cart before you check the customer out, and the customer's points balance will automatically be reduced as well!
Use Swell to Gain Insight Into POS Sales
Best of all, using Swell alongside Shopify POS gives you insight into your customer base that's hard to gain elsewhere!
For example, if you'd like to understand how your POS sales are performing - separately from your online store, that is - you can always visit the Analytics section of your Swell account, where you can see detailed metrics related to your store's performance:
Click the "View Analytics" button to gain more insight into your POS sales.
You can even see where individual customers have bought from you in the past -- just click on a given customer's email address in the Customers section of your Swell account to see their activity history!
Use the Customers section of your Swell account to view point-earning, purchase, and redemption activity at the customer level.
We hope you enjoy creating the seamless, omnichannel rewards program that your customers will enjoy participating in. Just as a reminder, using Swell as part of your POS system is a "Swell Pro" feature -- if you haven't upgraded already, make sure to do so before using Swell in-store!
And remember, if you have any questions about how to use Swell on the Shopify POS system, please just send us an email!
