Collecting customer info during point of sale (POS) checkout

[fencetalk]

In the Shopify POS app you can ship to customer, send cart, and go to cart. The first two collect customer contact information, but the last one, go to cart doesn't.

When a customer is in front of you and will take their purchase with them, we use the go to cart page; however, I don't see a way to collect customer contact information. The inadequate options are to send receipt by email or sms and add a note. Both options require the person using the POS to remember to do both, and the email or number collected to send the receipt is not searchable (i.e., it's attached to the order, but a customer reaching out can't be searched for).

My question is: is there a way to force the collection of email, number, address, or even just name of a customer that is checking out in person and taking the good with them? (Ship to customer, while taking payment and collecting information, is not a solution because our warehouse team won't know if the order was taken or if it still needs shipped.)

Thank you for your help.

[wlg]

Yes! I have a similar question. I notice that when I buy something from a merchant that uses Square (and other systems), my customer info is automatically saved and then brought up in their system the next time I check out. I don't know why Shopify doesn't do something similar. I have so many repeat customers who have to reenter email addresses, phone numbers, etc. even if they use the same credit card, and this information is fairly useless to me when it comes to aggregating and analyzing customer data. I keep thinking I am missing something! 

[Trish_Hampton]

Same issue here and the customers seem to get upset that it doesn't store their info - like it's not a legit pos system since they are so used to square. Did you get any more info on this? Thank you!

[Michelle10]

Same problem here. We were using Square previously and the customer checkout experience is much better. Was hoping to integrate with my Shopify website by switching to Shopify POS but not sure it's worth it.

[Imogen]

Hi there, @Michelle10! Thanks for following up on this thread!

We've taken steps to help folks collect customer information while selling in person, and we have a help document here that should outline for you the sort of information you can collect! You can also add and assign customers to orders using Shopify POS! Please let me know if the help document I've provided helps address any of the concerns you have. Additionally, you can reach out to our Retail Specialists using the 'Contact Support' options in the 'More' tab of the POS App regarding any specific questions or feedback you have around Shopify POS!

[Michelle10]

Thank you, but unfortunately that document is not helpful. Again, I want the customer's name and email to autopopulate based on their credit card, rather than having to ask them for that info during every transaction. 

[wlg]

Yes! Our customers are so used to Square gathering their info directly from their credit card, they get impatient and a bit frustrated when we have to manually enter data. Most just say no thanks and walk out. This creates a big problem when trying to implement a loyalty program, since in store transactions won’t be nearly as easy to analyze as online sales. This seems like basic functionality for other POS systems. Is there a date for this feature, Shopify?

[ProjD_Evan]

I'm also waiting answer on this

[fencetalk]

The best solution, and I use that word lightly, is to add an "add customer" tile to the grid and make it standard practice to always press the tile, enter information, and then select 1) ship to customer, 2) send cart, or 3) go to cart.

[Cowboy12]

This is a solution, but there needs to be a better one agreed. Any other or new solutions out there?

[HENOSIS]

Any update about collecting customer data? 

[fencetalk]

I just stumbled across this Shopify help center topic that may be a solution. I haven't tried it yet.

[Maz]

Hey, @wlg!

Thanks for joining this thead.

This option is available via upgrading to POS Pro, should this not suffice, I can enter a feature request on your behalf!

[purlsandpines]

This is super frustrating. My customers get frustrated when each time they purchase something they have to enter their info again. This is a feature that is included in every Square acct and, in my opinion, should be with Shopify. 

[wlg]

Hi Maz - I just looked up the plans available to me via my Shopify account, and it shows Basic, Shopify, Advanced, or Plus. What exactly is an Pro account. I’m guessing it’s something out of my price range, but please let me know if this is not the case.

I’ve had my retail shop for a year now, and about half of our customers are repeat. They do not understand why other businesses in town save all their info (via Square), but we can’t. It’s very frustrating.

Today, I needed to reach out to a customer about their order, but of course without even a name on their credit card, I have no way of doing that. We are a very busy shop and don’t have the time to manually enter people’s info every time. I’m not sure how we can ever do a rewards program without capturing this info. If I’m missing something please let me know. But if it’s going to be hundreds more a month for a higher plan that includes this feature, I’m not sure if I should be considering an alternative POS system.  

Thank you in advance for any help you can provide!!

 Cheers!

Lisa

[Sophia]

Hi, Lisa!

To clarify, you do not need to change your Shopify plan in order to upgrade to Shopify POS Pro. The page linked in this post includes step-by-step instructions on how to manage your Shopify Point of Sale subscription. Shopify POS Lite is included in all plans. You can view the current pricing for Shopify POS Pro based on your plan here (click the + Full list of features button to expand the information): Shopify Pricing.

[wlg]

Hello - Thank you for this information, but I am not sure that it answered my question. As far as I can tell, I already have the features associated with the POS Pro, and I still don't see anything that would automatically keep name, phone number, email, etc. when a customer checks out. For instance, when I get something at my local lunch spot, their Square system knows that my credit card is tied to my phone number and email, so nothing has to be manually typed into their POS terminal, when I pay, in order for me to get a text receipt. However, I have many repeat customers who expect the same from our shopping experience and I haven't found a way to do that within Shopify. Assuming that I have the features of Shopify POS Pro, is this possible? Thank you!

[Moira]

Hey @wlg,

Shopify POS Pro will collect this data for you, as mentioned above:

You can choose whether you want to collect the following customer details during checkout:

• First name
• Last name
• Contact information
  • Phone number only
  • Email only
  • Email or phone number
  • Both email and phone number

You can check which POS subscription you have by heading to your Settings > Apps and sales channels.

• From the Apps and sales channels page, click Point of sale.
• Click Open sales channel.
• Click Locations.
• Click Manage subscriptions.

[Michelle10]

Not helpful--please read what we are asking for. We would like this information captured *automatically* just like it is on Square. So that you don't have to ASK for the person's name or email every time. Please please please make this a feature. 

[wlg]

This doesn't solve the problem. Here's the scenario. I go into a local take-out restaurant and use my credit card. When they ask if I want a receipt, the POS terminal already has my phone number and email address populated. I MAY have given them my phone number or email address the first time I checked out there, or it was already pulled in from the credit card information. In any case, their POS recognizes my credit card every single time I pick up food without me having to enter anything. So, all I have to do is click a button on whether I want the receipt emailed or texted to me. When we ask a customer if they want a receipt, we often get the answer, "Just use the phone number on file since I have shopped here before." We are unable to do that in Shopify and it has been basic functionality in Square for as long as I can remember. We need their customer information automatically populated, and the current order data should be added to the customer's other order data, to keep track of all their purchases. We should be able to attain this data simply as a result of them using their credit card. Does that make sense? Thank you!

[Sophia]

I appreciate the clarification. The current process with Shopify POS is that you can store customer information as mentioned above, but you still need to search for the customer when processing the sale. This happens before the customer pays. When you go to the cart, you can select "Add customer", and then you'll have the option to search for existing customers rather than adding a new one each time.

I totally understand the feature you're requesting, as I have used Square checkout before and get my receipts emailed to me. I'm happy to share this feedback with our developers for consideration in future updates.

[HENOSIS]

Please tell your developers to set up this customer data collection
feature with shopify. it would make for a seamless customer checkout
experience

[WildAboutHarry]

Hopefully Shopify pays attention and actually implements it. Shopify used to be pretty decent at collecting customer data - at the bare minimum it would capture their name when they paid via credit/debit card, but now I have nothing but a massive list of "No customer" in my Orders lineup. And for the record, we HAVE the Shopify Pro POS. And still the customer information capture is abysmal. I can't ask my employees to request a customer first and last name every time. It's 2024 - I would say that's considered kind of weird at this point. NO ONE anywhere else does that unless you happen to be signing up for some sort of reward program. No one asks that for a regular purchase. 

[Luxandnox]

No. 

We'd like the POS collect customer's basic information as they checkout. Basic information such as name (which already present on the credit card) and other common info such as email so that our system can recognize the customer info for future purchase.

Without this feature its difficult to connect order and look up order quickly especially when all the order shows no customer.

this feature comes with other POS platform but is lacking on Shopify.