Over time, cash payments have ceased to be king in the business world. Actually, a recent Forbes article showed that customers were twice as likely to purchase when using cashless means than cash. It’s no wonder industries like the casino sector have been integrating these methods to appeal to this growing preference. For instance, you might have encountered GrabPay casino payment options, which allow players to transact seamlessly, enhancing the overall gameplay.
A Boston Consulting Group report showed that economies that emphasized cash payments tend to grow slowly compared to those that switch to digital payments. In fact, digital methods can boost an economy’s GDP by 3%. When Bangladesh introduced bKash, the country showed unprecedented growth in terms of GDP and financial inclusion as well. By 2016, there were over 32 million mobile finance users, generating about $1.5bn per month. You can imagine how things are as of now.
Benefits of Cashless Payments
Modern customers tend to consider convenience as one of the crucial deciding factors when purchasing, says Linnworks. ACI Speedpay added that about 35% of buyers can change their payment method if that will be needed to process their payments faster. If your business often handles long queues during peak moments such as commuting hours, going cashless can help enhance the check-out process and generate more sales. You also want to reduce queuing time in order to appeal to time-conscious customers who have deadlines to meet.
Did you know that card payments can actually be three times faster than paying in cash? Timetric suggested that using cash can take up to six to seven seconds to be processed, unlike contactless methods, which take about one or two seconds. Plus, cashless payments are usually diversified, ensuring you can pay with your preferred method. In just 2023, a report by Startups highlighted that UK businesses lost approximately £140,000 annually due to employee theft. Using contactless payments can lower and eliminate such instances.
Of course, any business operator wants customers to spend more money on their platforms. This is another good side to cashless channels. Dun and Bradstreet found that if you used a card for buying, you would likely spend 18% more than when you used cash. To make matters even more serious, some experts believe that when customers just see a credit card logo, they are triggered to want to spend more.
Improving the Experience of Cashless Payments
Customer experience is not something you can turn a blind eye to in our contemporary world. And particularly now that acquiring a new customer can cost you up to five times more than retaining an existing one. Research by Help Scout showed that about 80% of customers will likely turn to a competitor if they find just one bad experience.
And if your checkout process takes too long, say more than 30 seconds, you can lose up to 50% of your customers. So, one of the ways you can improve the experience customers have during checkout is to diversify the methods and reduce the details they need to fill out before completing a purchase.
Online security has become a crucial bone of contention in the recent past. With over 343 million individuals encountering cyberattacks in 2023 alone, netizens have become even more conscious of their online security.
The good thing is that when they perceive your platform as secure, you will likely attract a good percentage of them, as 85% of adults want their data protected more, according to Exploding Topics. By implementing encryption techniques such as SSL/TLS encryption, you can be sure to appeal to such preferences and guarantee safe interactions as customers make their transactions.
People have never been as connected as they are today. On Facebook alone, we have over 3.065 billion users. Other social media platforms like WhatsApp have over 2.7 billion users, expected to reach 3.2 billion by 2025. Integrating digital payments into these platforms can be a great way to enhance user experience. WeChat has become popular in China, welcoming over 1.3 billion monthly users.
What Does the Future Hold?
With more sectors and jurisdictions welcoming cashless transactions, DigiPay Guru reported that the number of global transactions might rise to 2297 billion by 2027. In another place, Pyypl suggested that of all transactions done globally, 50% will be done using digital wallets by 2030.
The competition is getting stiffer daily, and companies are reinventing their payment options to stand out. Amazon, for instance, launched Amazon One, which allows shoppers to link their palms and payment cards and scan their hands later to make purchases of their preferred products. Walmart has also not been left behind as it intends to create its crypto and NFTs. In late 2022, it announced the launch of two virtual experiences in Roblox.
These two companies only prove that businesses will become more innovative regarding their cashless payment methods to stay competitive. This is good news for customers as shopping will become more convenient as businesses evolve to meet their ever-changing preferences. Looking ahead into the future, we can expect more innovative solutions that will only make online shopping more customer-centric.
