Paying with cash is so 20th century. Even toting credit cards around seems outdated to many buyers. As a business owner, you can probably see the handwriting on the wall: Digital payments are the wave of the future. The key is to recognize the important steps you need to take if you want to embrace the digital payments revolution.
The types of digital payments.
Today’s buyers have a wide variety of choices when it comes to how they pay for products and services.
- Paying with a mobile phone or wearable. In order for this to happen, the consumer must first input their payment information into a digital wallet app where it can be securely encrypted and stored. At the time of purchase, the wallet is opened, the consumer’s identity is verified via biometrics or PIN, and the information is shared with the merchant’s reader through the use of near-field communication (NFC) technology.
- Mobile point of sale (mPOS) equipment. This is a device on the merchant’s end, sometimes a smartphone or tablet, that reads the customer’s credit card or accepts contactless payments. Since it is wireless, the seller can use their mPOS system anywhere while still reaping the rewards of being connected to a multi-functional POS system.
- Payments through smart speakers. Small but powerful devices from companies such as Google and Amazon are becoming household fixtures that perform numerous informational and entertainment functions. Recently, they are increasingly being used to integrate with peer-to-peer payment companies. As a result, customers are now able to send electronic payments from their homes to compensate businesses for products or services.
- Social media site payments. If you have a presence on Instagram, YouTube, or one of the many other social media platforms, you can now accept payments there for your products. You will pay a small fee to accept these digital payments but will be rewarded by being able to capitalize on the popularity of these websites.
- Accept payments over the phone. For buyers uninterested in (or unwilling to) use other non-cash payment methods, you can take their information over the phone and process their order manually. Just be sure that you have a Virtual Terminal which you can input their card information into. This technology ensures that the data is encrypted throughout the payment process, just as it would be if the buyer were making the purchase in person at your store.
Making a payment now may seem far more complex than it was back in the good old days of cash. However, the security of today’s transaction is much higher. Furthermore, record-keeping on both sides of the register is far more accurate. It’s no wonder that consumers of all ages are rushing to make use of digital payments.
Don’t fall behind your competitors. Talk to your payment processing company to explore the features of your current hardware and software. You may actually have more capabilities at your fingertips than you realize.
On the other hand, if your software and hardware are just too old to keep up, there is no better time than now to embrace the future. When you adapt your operations to bring new systems and technology on board, you can enhance your efficiency and broaden your customer service. Make today the day you join the digital payments revolution.
