Shopify Lowers Prices For Point Of Sale Plans, Adds Custom Gift Card And Receipt Options

Emerging online and offline commerce giant Shopify is introducing some changes to its retail offerings today, with lower transaction rates across its point of sale (POS) plans and using the Shopify Mobile payments app and dongle. Credit card transactions processed through Shopify now cost only 2.7 percent per exchange, with no additional flat fee, and the price for signing up to the POS program is now just $49 per month, instead of $49 per location, with support for unlimited locations and registers.

The changes also bring faster pay-outs for merchants on the Shopify platform, dropping payment time down to just three days. I spoke to Shopify VP of Product Adam McNamara about these changes, and he said they’re basically the result of what Shopify has been able to achieve in terms of economies of scale – simply put, because they’ve got so many merchants using Shopify to power their storefronts now, they can go to their bank and transaction partners and bargain for lower rates across the board.

Another new option for Shopify customers is to go in-store only. Previously, Shopify offered either ecommerce alone, or ecommerce + POS options for using its services. Now, Shopify offers the ability to just sell offline, which is something McNamara said has been a request from merchants eager to sell but not yet too keen on building an online business. Getting this option ready to roll was just a matter of time McNamara said, and he believes that many of these merchants will eventually opt-in to the online selling portion of the platform, too, later on when it makes sense for them to do so.

Shopify also now offers the ability to create and redeem gift cards at its merchant stores, as well as custom receipts, multiple languages for receipts and per-product tax overrides. It’s a refinement overhaul, but the pricing changes make this a whole new ballgame, and put Shopify in a position to better compete in this market, which is heating up thanks to aggressive moves by competitors including Square.

McNamara says there’s plenty more in terms of new product yet to come from Shopify, with an eye to making itself even more of a general commerce player. I brought up the possibility of integrating Bluetooth LE-powered Beacon tech for in-store analytics, and McNamara admitted it’s an area they’re exploring with keen interest, but wouldn’t say for sure what is or isn’t in the pipeline.