Topics: Technology

Uncovering Consumer Trends: Experience Rises to the Top

For today’s shoppers, having an experience is a major factor that helps them determine when and where to shop, and a growing number of businesses are tapping into the trend. Target is combining shopping with relaxation, offering customers in some areas a glass of wine while they shop. Umpquah Bank focuses on its neighborhood feel by offering up community space for local groups, featuring local artwork and brewing up fresh cups of its specialty coffee. More

Understanding the EMV Shift for In-Store and Fuel Island Transactions at The NATSO Show

For merchants, including truckstop and travel plaza operators, complying with the EMV shift—the move to align credit and debit cards in the United States with proprietary chip technology—is extremely complex and expensive. However, merchants have to adopt EMV-compliant devices or assume the liability for fraudulent transactions. More

Coin: The Other Black Card

I'd like to introduce you to Coin -- the first universal credit card in the U.S. This is the other black card -- one that stores multiple credit and loyalty cards in conjunction with a user's smart phone. With the push of a button, the user can swap from their Visa to their Amex and to their loyalty card for your business with another push. There are very few better examples of modern technology integrating into everyday must carry items with the promise of making life just a little bit easier. More

Know Your Truckstop’s Traffic

You need to start understanding your online traffic to understand your customer better and how to reach them. I was working with a member who wanted to use his website to reach more truck drivers. That sounded great, but there was a problem: when I looked at his website’s analytics (performance metrics), I found that his online customer is most likely not a truck driver. More

Before Purchasing New Technology, Use What You Have

Technology is such an important word in our culture today, and we often think more and better technology is the solution to whatever challenge we’re facing. During my visits with truckstop and travel plaza operators, many of them tell me they’re thinking of investing in new technology. I always like to dig a little deeper into why. More

Is It Worth “Switching” To EMV At My Truckstop?

Today is the deadline. What should I do? Is it worth “switching” to EMV at my truckstop? More

EMV And Pins: What Does My Truckstop Need To Know?

Is EMV the most secure payment method available? More

How Does The "EMV Shift” Deadline Apply To My Truckstop’s Fuel Dispensers?

Does the October 1, 2015 deadline apply to my fuel dispensers? No. Automated fuel dispensers will have until 2017 to make the shift to EMV. Until then, they will follow existing fraud liability rules. Thus, while inside-the-store point-of-sale equipment faces a liability shift deadline of October 1, 2015, fuel dispensers have two extra years. Gilbarco recently announced that the company has seen a record high in automated fuel dispenser orders, indicating that large, regional retailers are upgrading their dispenser payment platforms to support new EMV standards. More

The Upcoming “EMV Shift” – What Truckstop And Travel Plaza Operators Should Know

NATSO has received a number of questions from truckstop owners and operators regarding the October 1, 2015 “EMV Shift” – this refers to Visa and MasterCard’s plans to begin aligning credit and debit cards in the United States with those companies’ proprietary chip technology. NATSO has prepared a detailed Question-and-Answer document answering some of the key questions on this important topic. Read the detailed document at The Upcoming “EMV Shift” – What Truckstop And Travel Plaza Operators Should Know. More

Calculating the ROI in Truckstop Technology Projects

When I am out in the field visiting members, they frequently ask me about technology. Operators are often wondering if they should upgrade their pumps or their point-of-sale system, invest in a mobile app, update their web site or purchase digital devices, such as a menu board. As with any major purchase, business owners also want to know what the return on their investment (ROI) will be, but that isn’t always easy with technology investments. To start, it is helpful for operators to gather information about the benefits of the technology they are considering, such as increased speed of service for their customers or their employees, which can result in decreased costs and an improved experience. From there, operators can begin putting a pencil to paper. Let’s say you find new point-of-sale technology that can save employees time counting a till, and it saves you one hour and you’re paying that employee $15 an hour and you have three employees on shift. Now you have a number associated with your return. You may also find that an updated POS system provides a streamlined reporting process, allowing you to take care of it faster, or create a loyalty program that will allow you to establish a correlation of growth. Those are all quantifiable benefits. More