GET A CHANCE TO WIN A FREE CHARGING PAD! 🏆

[isabelle]

The Seller Community is excited to announce that we’re offering an opportunity for US-based Sellers to win a free, Square-branded charging phone pad from January 28th, 2022 - February 10th, 2022! 

Please review the contest terms below before you enter. 

How does it work? 

We’re asking sellers to reply to this post introducing yourselves and telling us what you’re looking for in the Seller Community and/or what brought you to the Seller Community. Feel free to include photos of your business or logo. 

Use the reply button below to share what you'd like to see from the Seller Community! 

Here’s an example of the kind of replies that help us understand how to better serve you:

Hi, I’m Isabelle, business owner of Cup of Candle in San Francisco, CA. I started the business 5 years ago, and have been using Square since we opened. 

I have joined the Seller Community hoping to learn more about Square for Retail by asking questions geared towards other retail-industry sellers. 

Other examples of what you may be looking for in the Community include: 

• A connection to product teams
• Peers who own a similar business 
• Events that help you learn more about Square products
• Answers to technical questions

No matter what it is you're interested in, we want to know! 😊

This is part of an effort to better understand what interests our sellers in the Seller Community and how we can improve!

How are winners selected? 

The Seller Community team will review the replies authored between January 28th, 2022 - February 10th, 2022, and select 120 winners. A winning reply will be thought-provoking, insightful, and offer genuine feedback or guidance for the Seller Community Team. 

The winners will be notified via private message, asking for a shipping address, and you should receive your free charging pad within 6 weeks of notification!

Terms attached.

[featheredarrow]

Hello- We're The Feathered Arrow Mercantile in Wamego, KS. We opened our doors officially December 1st 2021. We are a unique boutique compiled of 50+ vendors each offering their own style, décor, media and talent. We're continually adding more artists, makers, creators and curators to our shop. We have an eclectic group of hippies, cowboys, & all the in between. We're getting ready to add an additional 1500 sqf next month as we've already outgrown the 5000 sqf we started with less than 3 months ago.

[BrendaL]

I have alway’s been a stay at home. My

My husband was in the US Navy and deployed a lot. I stayed home and gave our 3 children a stable home life. They are all grown now and on their own. I recently started my very own business. Bits & Pieces of Pensacola material girl. 

I make and sell Kitchen Boa’s. They are such a huge hit at our Farmer’s Market. I am usually making anywhere from 60 to 100 a week just to keep up. I am really enjoying this stage of my life.  The Square had made it possible for me to not have to turn customer’s away who don’t carry cash. 

[rockiroad]

Hey there! My name is Jenn and I am the owner and maker of Rocki Road Kreations.  I opened up my tumbler-making business in July of 2021. I then went to add glitter to my business on Etsy, which led me to also open up my own business website on Square in October of 2021.  I am so happy I decided to take this step because my business has grown pretty fast.  I love the fact that my business link shows my business name as opposed to Etsy, where there are a million of other shops.

I have found the Sellers Community very helpful, as I am still learning on how to run and operate this online business.  Many of my questions are posted there by other sellers and it has made me realize I am not alone with some of the struggles.  The fact that Square continues to add  new things we can offer our customers, such as gift cards, after pay, etc., gives me peace of mind knowing my business is on the right track.

Thank you. 

Jenn Sanchez

Rocki Road Kreations

[maryamnh]

Hello Olive,

my name is Mary and I'm an independent contractor / work as a hairstylist in Portland, Oregon. I started working for myself in 2014 and started using Square for payment processing the year after that. 

I joined the forum in 2020 looking for information about PPP loans, and have really enjoyed the community and opportunities for learning and connecting that have come out of being a member here.

Being able to connect with other small business owners / sellers throughout the pandemic has been very reassuring. More than I could have hoped for. Many of us have friends and family with regular jobs and it can be overwhelming for them to understand the pressure and problems we are dealing with, which can be an isolating experience. Finding a community of people in the same boat during this crazy time is a total bonus.

In the last year I was lucky enough to be able to participate in some of Square's research discussions for new product launches and I have loved giving feedback and helping Square in better understanding my business needs. What I have told them, and what really is true for me, is that there is very little industry specific information out there (on the internet) for entrepreneurs, so you end up having to learn a lot along the way through trial and error. This can be a frustrating process, I appreciate the community because it's a place where people like myself share what they have learned. 

I also enjoy being able to connect with Square reps. Square is the first product I have used where the support through reps is really solid. I am not sure if this was part of the plan for this community, or if this environment just naturally emerged - nevertheless it is a major factor in why I choose Square for my business.

Thank you for this opportunity! 

edit: Areas where Square could improve

After reading some of the replies, I like to reinforce what another poster said about the pricing of add on services like marketing with Square. I cannot remember who posted it, but the point they made was that the pricing and services were fractured and its confusing.

I would like to see a full suite of services for a flat fee, or a more comprehensive interface for add on services where I can pick and choose which tools I want to use / make sense for my business along with clear pricing.

So for example, if I only want the ability to send marketing emails and text, it should be easy for me to pick out this service and the price structure should be transparent as well. Right now, it's my second month paying for the ability to send out marketing emails and I still cannot find where exactly the payment options for this service is managed from inside my dashboard. It's really confusing. 

[yurthhandyman]

i like to enter to win chargeing pad

[shopfybr]

Hi,

I'm Kamala, Chief "Do Good, Feel Good" Officer at Fybr. Our brick and mortar is located in Santa Cruz, CA and we're online at ShopFybr.com. We're an eco-conscious lifestyle shop with a focus on bamboo apparel and bedding as well as other eco and socially conscious goods. Our mission is to help people do good and feel good.

I joined Square in 2019 after using another retail POS for about a year. Square was our backup payment processor from Day 1 and it became clear that it was a better fit for our business so I kicked the other one to the curb. Now we no longer need a backup! 🙂

I guess I'm kind of a nerd and I seriously fangirl out on Square. My husband and friends think it's funny. 🤪 I I'm here because I love being a part of this community. The aspects of the Square Seller Community that resonate with me most, are the beta program, access to product teams, and events and opportunities where I can learn more about how Square works for my business.

Thanks for all your efforts in creating this community. I can only imagine it's like herding cats!

Kamala

[vlemmon]

Hi, My name is Virginia and I operate the Global Golf Retail Store in Raleigh, NC. The seller community has helped me learn so much as a first time Square user. We had to learn how to make Square work for our company and we did. We figured out the best way to handle returns for playability guarantees and to handle trade ins. The seller community has so many tips to help anyone who is just starting. Thank you so much everyone. 

[Sybilestial]

Good morning!

My name is Heather and I own Okami no Seiza. I started this business around 2020. I sell commissions: they usually consist of pet portraits, digital watercolor, digital stained glass, and leveling icons. I also sell stickers, pins, and charms, which are usually made recycled materials. I use Square mostly for my in-person purchases or purchases which require payment plans. My Square is paired with my Etsy. I mostly use Ko-fi to post any artworks or manage subscriptions, though I sell everything there as well.

I joined the Seller Community so that I can learn to juggle multiple websites with my business. I also hope that one day Square can pair with Ko-fi.

Have a great day,
Heather

[rickispresent]

Hi! I'm Rick, owner of Thrifty Garden in Fort Myers, FL. We're a small retail garden center (among other things). We've used Square nearly from the beginning. Overall very pleased with the software and support. I'd love to know how others handle some of the accounting integrations and challenges. Specifically with things like Square Capital payments (where fees are deducted before transfer, causing multiple entries) and things like Square's payroll and marketing fees that get batched together in one transaction, but get accounted for separately. Not a huge deal, but certainly adds to the always-behind bookkeeping tasks! Thanks for the opportunity to share with the community!

-Rick

[DawnMR]

My Name is Dawn and I am a hairstylist in the Nashville, TN area. I am new to this group and would love to see more from others in the Salon business. I have been looking for info on how to sell/dropship hairproducts to my personal clients and more.

[pawffeeshop]

Hi there! As a cat cafe owner I would love to connect with other cat cafe or even just coffee shops to discuss tips and tricks about how they have things set up in their register/website, best practices, etc. I would also love to help further a discussion for the ever popular multi-person "class" booking option so we can stop using a separate site for doing this. Square is a popular processing option and if they are able to bring everything into one place, they can be even more popular! 

Another thing I have thought about would be a monthly charge for all services, loyalty, marketing, payroll etc. Having to pay fees for each is what deters me, I am able to save money by doing these things on my own. 

Thanks! Pawffee Shop Cat Cafe

[texasdarbarcafe]

Hi,

My name is S.Malik and i am the owner of Texas Darbar Cafe LLC, running a small Mediterranean Food Truck with Hooka Lounge. 

I would just like to add that the Square system takes care most of my headaches. They have so many features that i am not even able to access all. I am still working on accessing all there features to make my business run smooth. They even have features of advertising that i am sure lot of people not even using it. I would suggest everyone in this community to explore there app/website and benefit from all the options they have.

Thank you and Good luck with your business.

[HHFamilyFarms]

Hello! I am Lori Hartman of Hartman Heimstytte Family Farms. We are a direct sales farm selling eggs, meats, produce and more to our customers. I have joined the Square seller community to learn more about the options and capabilities of the Square system. Some of the options that I would like to see in the future would be: 

1. The ability for customers to place orders for items online and be able to select "Pay at pick up" as a payment method. 

2. The ability for customers to select the number of items that they would like to purchase and for me to be able to enter the weight of the item after the item has been pulled (specifically for items sold by weight).

3. The ability to group or link family members together. 

4. The ability to store e-gift cards in the customer profile as payment methods. 

5. Ability to give discounts up to a set dollar amount. 

6. Ability to automatically add discounts to specific groups. 

[LadyFoxtrot]

Hello Sellers and Square support alike👋🏻
I hope everyone is having a great Q1! I may have mentioned this suggestion in a previous thread so if it is a repeat I apologize. But… just like there are customer directories for our personal clients, I thought it would be neat to have a square seller directory sellers could choose to opt in or out of public listings with in square community or could be a button in a specific thread. For example instead of like button it could be an opt in to thread seller directory. ( for people who only want to be known within private communities) But the big one would be the opt in for the entire square seller directory that could possibly be filtered by location. Point being we would be able to search other square sellers and give our business to other businesses that are involved in a great community supporting each other. This way we could actually support each other. For example I could search St Louis ice cream and all the square sellers of ice cream in St. Louis would pop up so we always have the opportunity to support other square businesses first. Ok that’s my suggestion in a nutshell you awesome programmers figure out the details 🤩😎🥳 have a great February everyone. Bundle up but we are only 6 weeks from spring!!!! Lady Foxtrot 

[4BrothersPest]

I Originally came here to learn more about selling,  I have to admit I learn so much from the threads . we are in the process of closing doors to our pest control business and opening doors to our hardscapes business. 

John G 

4brotherspest@gmail.com

[ShanaeRochelle]

Nonprofit exclusive offers 

[TincysCorner]

Hello I am Lisa Deen, owner of Tincy’s Corner.  I joined the seller community to network with other business owners and gain knowledge and tips on how to utilize square in my retail store.

[Triron4960]

Hello Square Family!

My name is Lori and my business name is Triron Services Company LLC, which is a full-service company. 

My business partner and husband (love of my life) have been utilizing Square since we opened our business during the pandemic, which was one of the best business decisions we made. Square keeps things so organized, easy, detailed and professional.

What I would like to see from the seller community is a more user-friendly mobile platforms for us.

We are on the go so we cannot always get to our computers or laptops therefore, if the mobile application has all the options of the desktop options to ensure that we can serve our clients to their satisfaction, then we make more money 

[averyknifeworks]

Hello! This is Raleigh Avery & Malea of Avery Knifeworks. We have been using square for years for festivals and shows, and since the opening of our retail store in Banner Elk, NC in October 2020. Square has made it extremely convenient to stay organized with our customers and their purchases. As well as see how we've grown over the months. We have joined the Seller Community to gain more knowledge and tools on how to better our business, our sales, technical abilities and how organized we are! 

[Abigails_stl]

Hi I'm Abby, owner of Abigail's Gift Boutique and soon to be Abigail's (Fashion) Boutique in St. Louis, MO. I started the business 8 years ago after 15 years in the mass retail market. We started using Square about 2 years ago, because we wanted a POS system that did everything and has everything under one roof. We currently use Square for POS, Online, Scheduling, Payroll, Invoices, Loyalty, and Marketing. 

I joined the Seller Community so that I could get answers to questions that I had, but have since become more involved just because of all of the knowledge that is out there from other business owners and is shared daily on this site. Plus its a great community of people that are in my shoes and understand my daily worries, difficulties and triumphs. 

[ritzput]

Hi, I'm Sandy from Sandy’s Floral Designs:

I own a flower shop and when my customers order online, there is no place for them to add "card message", "Deliver To:” (Recipient name, Address, cell), “Delivery date", or any disclaimers.  I had to add all these fields myself as modifiers ONLINE, and then go into EACH item (I have over 75), manage modifiers, add new modifier, click on new modifier box to add, then move it up to where I want it.  I then have to do this to EACH item!!!!!  There MUST be an easier way to allow order to be the same for ALL ITEMS.

Furthermore, there isn’t any options to add new “Deliver To” person as a new customer to integrate with POS or campaigns.  Many times, the person I “Deliver To”, becomes a new customer.  I have to call them to ask if they’d like to be added to my mailing list, and then manually enter each person as a new customer.

Currently, the only workaround, is to leave a modifier where customer can fill in at checkout with NO integration into POS system. It's also way too time consuming when I have over 75 items and have to go into each one to add modifiers and re-arrange.  I've discovered the following support articles, which many are inaccurate:

Add Modifier customer fill-in:

Online Dashboard/ Items/ click on any item/ scroll down to modifiers/ click manage modifiers/ click create new/ click on Right- “Typing text into text box/ text box label appears/ type in name of new modifier/ save

Re-arrange order of modifiers@ checkout:

Online dashboard/click on each item/ scroll down to modifiers/ click on new modifier box/ done then move new modifier where you want it to appear at checkout/ click on save. You must do this to EACH ITEM!!! There must be an easier way!!!!!

I’ve researched support online and all these articles have incorrect information:

Customize modifiers for order entry:

https://squareup.com/help/us/en/article/5696-customize-modifiers-for-order-entry

Create & Manage Item Modifiers:

https://squareup.com/help/us/en/article/5119-create-and-manage-item-modifiers

Customers to add note at order entry:

Solved: How can I add a text box for customers to add deli... - The Seller Community

Please advise if any of the above info is incorrect. 

I'm hoping the Community can answer my questions and save me time from being on the phone with support so much and help me learn more things that would benefit my website.