With the rapid growth of e-commerce worldwide, consumers choose to pay with cards instead of cash when buying things in local shops. They also go with contactless digital e-payments and especially with digital wallets on smartphones.
According to ECB Europa, Study on New Digital Payment Methods March 2022
“Cash was popular with the general public but increasingly used only for lower value day-to-day purchases (e.g. in bakeries and small shops), or where cash was the only method accepted (e.g. vending machines, payments, or tips in restaurants and cafés). In Austria, Malta, and Italy, however, even the tech-savvy participants indicated that cash was still preferred as it was the most widely accepted payment option and allowed greater spending control.” Cash was also more frequently mentioned by the tech-savvy in Germany than in other countries.
During the digital age, digital e-payments are the most important part of any business. Consumers seek faster, cost and time-effective technology for their daily personal financial transactions. The challenge that retail businesses face to cover this need lies in the fact that payment methods should be easily integrated into merchant systems, support all sales channels, have competitive charges, and, most importantly, meet the preferences and needs of customers.
The only way of survival for retailers is the adoption of technology in payments
Companies need to adopt such payment solutions, regardless of the industry they belong to. Starting from the state-of-the-art “smart” Android POS and advanced solutions for digital payments in e-commerce, local shops need to go with those pioneering solutions even without an e-shop, through digital e-payments links and channels. They need to invent ways to become more flexible and provide personalized payment solutions depending on the needs, size, and model of each business, such as being able to serve and complete the purchase of a customer anywhere in any store by avoiding queues through cashless self-service cash registers.
At the same time, applications that cover every modern need of a business bring together retail experts, startups, and technology companies with the aim of shaping the future of retail in the digital age. From building its website and e-shop and harmonizing it with the new legislation for electronic invoicing, to upgrading its ordering system whether it is a restaurant or a cafe. The emergence of such sophisticated advanced payment apps provided by fintech companies, such as E-wallets implemented on the cell phones of consumers, suggests more incentives to retailers and consumers than banks have done in the past.
How does an e-wallet actually work?
The e-wallet is a transaction structure where an internet program or service permits clients to handle data in a central place linked to acquisitions, affiliation, loyalty, and financial information. The only requirement is to put funds into the e-wallet, and most applications in any case allow users to do so using credit cards, debit cards, or online bank transfers. Customers use their e-wallets to pay retailers through a range of innovative methods, including scanning a QR code, “press and pay” through the NFC feature of the handset, or with the corresponding physical card with certain e-wallets.
These technology solutions are not just a trend that will stop existing, but more than a necessity and a culture that is here to stay…
Want to learn more? Check out a short video at electronicpaymentscoalition.org
