A June 2020 survey by Research and Markets revealed that over 1 billion people worldwide will transact with one or multiple forms of mobile payments by the end of 2021
This projection was complemented by the data released by Finaria at the beginning of 2021 — reporting a 40% increase in digital payments in two years. (That’s massive)
So when Briedis et al. from McKinsey & Company recommend incorporating “no-contact payment methods” into the retail operations, they did so in the hindsight of market patterns.
Accenture reports a massive surge in mobile payments for the purchase of food, apparel, consumer electronics, alcoholic beverages, home decor, DIY tools, etc. — they reflect upon a “New Normal” where the agile adoption of seamless technology will define business success.
At the heart of this adoption will be mobile payment — one that will ensure swiftness of operation for small to medium size businesses and ward off consumer psychological pressure sourcing from the COVID pandemic regarding hygiene.
Benefits of Mobile Payment and Why Shoppers Prefer Using It
In today’s mobile-first economy, customers won’t wait for merchants to adopt mobile payment. Instead, they do so themselves, thus, providing instant opportunities for merchants to enhance the customer experience and pave the way for better engagement and prolonged retention.
To that end, here is a comprehensive list of benefits that present mobile payment as a win-win solution for both merchants and consumers.
- Fast and Simplified
The ability to pay and accept payment with a trusted mobile device using a unique QR code while leveraging a secure mobile payment platform like Gocarts offers merchants and consumers the opportunity to seamlessly oversee their transactions. Also, you don’t need to have your wallets or carry loads of cash when shopping. All you need is your mobile device to Scan, Pay and GO. It’s really that simple and fast.
- Simple and Secure
QR code payment is extraordinarily safe and secure, for it doesn’t require users to provide their credit/debit card details or personal information when shopping. Besides, all transactions are protected by encrypted tokenized numbers which protects shoppers and merchants from malicious attacks. This means, when completing a transaction, the customers personal information is masked by encrypted numbers called a token, so your personal information is not shared with the merchant and vice versa.
- Convenience
The convenience factor comes from the fact that consumers and merchants can pay and accept payment from their personal mobile device. Accepting payment for small – medium scale businesses can be effectively done on mobile device. Gocarts does not require additional expensive hardware devices to accept payment. We are 100% mobile which is very convenient and affordable. We bet you can’t beat that.
Furthermore, businesses can now extend their reach to mobile payment shoppers which in turn guarantees an increase in revenue and enhances customer experience. This also eliminates the necessity of carrying loads of cash or multiple cards in your wallet.
- Brand Engagement
Gocarts mobile payment enables merchants have access to a community of shoppers for better engagement by ascertaining what they liked about the products or services purchased and how they could serve them better.
- Product Accessibility
At times, shoppers are hesitant to purchase a product or service that doesn’t lie on the priority list (but is attractive). When the transactional process is easy, more shoppers can think about adding a thing or two to their cart, which they otherwise wouldn’t. Research shows that mobile payment helps merchants serve 10x more customers than traditional POS systems.
- Convenient Checkout
Shoppers do not have to stand in line at a cash register anymore. Gocarts allows them to scan merchant QR code, pick an item, pay on their mobile device and checkout with less human interactions. We know time is of the essence, that’s why we developed a technology that saves you lots of time for other beneficial activities. All you must do is Scan, Pay and GO.
- Merchant Feedback
Mobile payments also help merchants provide better customer service. Merchants have the autonomy to accept payment anywhere, anytime with no additional hardware required. If you sell at a flea market, farmers market or a street vendor, the importance of swift checkout process cannot be overemphasized. Consumers are happy when the checkout process is fast and secure. Mobile payment enables merchants request instant feedback on ways to improve their services and serve customers better.
- Transaction Analysis
24/7 access to sales history and transactions. This also helps merchants determine business sales drivers and what results they may be able to achieve in the nearest future — a benefit sourcing purely from the facilitation of an “Ease of Use” mobile application.
- Customer Loyalty Programs
Mobile payments can increase loyalty programs, which allow customers to pay for products at checkout, thus increasing their chances of becoming loyal customers. However, it must be noted that the aforementioned is purely subjective in the sense of how retailers push the technologies at their disposal into the retail funnel.
- Build Trust & Reduce Cost
All the above contribute to the expedition of an intuitive user experience that helps build trust amongst merchants and customers. Accepting mobile payment also eases overhead operating costs for small-medium scale businesses.
Assessing the Influence of the Pandemic on Mobile Payment
The case of mobile payment is a perfect example of an iterative technological development that transforms shoppers’ attitudes towards shopping.
For several decades after the advent of credit cards, people placed a high emphasis on the transactional efficiency of payment with cash. That was primarily because credit card or debit card-based transactions were tedious and time consuming. One of the major reasons for the failure being the sluggish adoption rate by the retailers.
Consequently, in order to avoid the mental toll of standing in line and waiting for the payment to be processed, they made it a habit to pay with cash or coins whenever possible, even if that meant having an extra change in their pockets or worse – leaving a store without making any purchase at all.
However, such behaviors are bound to change post the pandemic as the world welcomes the new normal. The COVID pandemic is the primary source of anxiety and fear for the consumer. Because of the psychological implications, consumers are terrified of high contact transactions such as payment with credit cards and cash because they believe they cannot trust these transactions to be safe from possible contamination.
As a result, merchants are turning to mobile payments in order to facilitate their operations and increase revenues while lessening human interactions and potential health risk.
Some of these key behavioral shifts can be categorized as follows:
Shoppers focus on their hygiene and, thus, prefer contactless methods of payment.
Shoppers value convenience and are willing to have a smartphone as their contactless payment wallet.
Shoppers want fast and simple solutions. They should have the option to pay with a mobile device using a QR code while leveraging an application like Gocarts
Shoppers want the flexibility to pay for products or services that they might otherwise not buy using a credit card.
Shoppers want loyalty programs that incentivize them to continue shopping at a point of sale even if they don’t plan on making any purchase at that moment.
Why Choose Gocarts Mobile Payment?
We are 100% mobile, for we believe in the customers’ and merchants’ physical and financial safety in these uncertain times. Being 100% mobile also lets us do good to nature, for we don’t entail using plastic credit or debit cards and eliminate the requirement for cash.
Our idea is simple — Scan, Pay, and Go.
The QR code payment that Gocarts application facilitates is a perfect solution to the “convenience” and “security” concerns that merchants and consumers have been facing for several decades. In the same vein, we understand that it’s time to strike a balance between convenience and security by providing an easy way for customers to pay without any hassle.
Moreover, we believe in personalized shopping experience and are, thus, consistently innovating the transactional procedure — with our goal to create financial technology that can add value to people’s lives.
Curious to know if Gocarts would aptly befit your business endeavors?
Well, we’re just a message away. We’ll love to hear from you.
