Written by: Dianne Provenzano, VP Head of Treasury Services, Union Savings Bank
As the world moves into the next phase of living with the COVID-19 pandemic, many consumers and businesses are still easing back into the new normal. But as we do away with masks and social distancing during in-person shopping and dining, some pandemic-era trends, such as contactless payments, are here to stay.
Because they help reduce physical interaction, contactless payments, both with tap-and-go cards and mobile payments (with smartphones and smartwatches), were often the preferred payment option in recent years. In fact, according to a Forbes study, overall usage of contactless payments grew 150% between March 2019 and June 2020. Also notable was that 72% of consumers have paid for business services using cashless payments during the pandemic, according to a Capterra survey.
So it’s clear that consumers like contactless payments, but what’s in it for businesses if they’re looking to implement the needed technology? Here are four reasons to offer contactless payments at your business:
1. Check Out is Faster, More Efficient
No one likes waiting in line, and getting more customers out the door quickly can benefit your business’ bottom line as well. Because contactless payments use near-field communication (NFC), a transaction can be completed in seconds and are estimated to work twice as fast as traditional swipe or chip-enabled card. While saving seconds doesn’t sound like a lot, it certainly adds up over the course of the day, saving your business and your customers valuable time.
2. Contactless is Safer & More Secure
Along with speed, NFC technology has the additional benefit of being more secure for both customer and merchant when it comes to protecting personal data. Not only do contactless payments use the same protective EMV technology as chip and pin transactions, but it also is encrypted to discourage hacking attempts and fraud. In terms of spreading less germs, that is an added benefit when using contactless options that your customers will appreciate, with 65% still worried about decreasing the transmission of germs while shopping.
3. Enhances the Customer Experience
With added speed and security, offering contactless payments enhances the overall customer experience. Along with those benefits, it also makes your business feel modern and high-tech, as it opens the door to mobile payments on smartphones and smartwatches, with no need for customers to dig out their wallet to pay or be out of luck if they left it at home.
4. Implementation is Easy & (Likely) Affordable
If your pay terminals already have NFC capabilities built-in, then turning it on may be of little to no cost to you, making implementing contactless payments a no-brainer. The only other thing to consider when promoting contactless payments is making the time for employee education so that they can quickly and easily explain the process while working with a customer who has never used the technology before.
How Your Bank Can Help
As you can see, offering contactless payments offers several benefits for both your business and your customers. If you’re not sure about how to get contactless payments started at your business, the good news is your local bank is here to help. Give the Union Savings Bank Merchant Services Team a call today to get started, 203.791.7243.
