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As a business owner, considering how you’ll accept payment is a pretty major thing. After all, no matter how much you love what you do, your income will fundamentally decide whether or not your business idea is a boom or a bust. And, payment options in an age of online shopping can have a significant impact on income overall.
It simply isn’t enough to offer just ‘cash or card?’ anymore. Modern consumers, and a growing amount of payment choices, mean that companies need to branch out to keep their incomes steady and appealing to current customers.
Digital wallets that have been increasing in popularity ever since the rise of Paypal and other such alternative payment routes are now expected by customers on the whole. This is true in both physical and online business. As well as making consumers’ lives easier, digital wallets are now seen as a sort of blue tick against business legitimacy. In other words, they’re an essential element of success in the modern age.
In this article, we’re going to consider which digital wallets are worth your time, and the full extent of benefits you can enjoy when you implement them in your physical or online store.
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The different types of digital wallets
Digital wallets can broadly be defined as types of software that connect bank details to vendors when payment is made. Wallets can be open (accepted by most retailers), or semi-closed (accepted by certain retailers/ the retailer that issued the wallet).
In business, transactions are most often made via open digital wallets that allow for the simple transfer of money from customer to vendor. Ideally, businesses should seek to accept as many digital wallets as possible to cater to consumer needs. This can be a surprisingly affordable goal to achieve, with something like the CREDI Interchange+ Pricing offering affordable processing rates, as well as the ability to accept wide-ranging digital wallet solutions. The question is, which digital wallets are most worthwhile right now?
- Paypal: While it was by no means the first digital wallet, you could argue that PayPal really brought the benefits of digital wallets to the mainstream. Admittedly, PayPal does have the downside of being an online-only option, but its security benefits and ease of use mean that many consumers still seek this wallet go-to. That makes it well worth catering to in your payments somewhere.
- Google Pay: Using NFC technology, Google Pay makes it possible to complete payments with fingerprints or passwords that unlock encrypted card information. Google Pay can be used online or even in-store if businesses invest in card machines with NFC-enabled POS software.
- Apple Pay: Apple Pay relies on touch or Face ID to verify payments, making it one of the most secure, and thus preferable, payment options available right now. Instead of storing card information, Apple Pay creates a device-specific number and transaction code with each purchase, allowing for privacy and peace of mind.
These are perhaps the most common and popular digital wallets at the moment, but there is also a range of other options that are constantly gaining popularity. Samsung Pay, for instance, operates much the same as Google Pay, but for Samsung customers. Equally, there are alternative options including Amazon and Walmart Pay, Cash App, and more.
The benefits of digital wallets for businesses and consumers
There is a wide range of benefits for businesses and consumers who opt to use digital wallets, and those benefits are coming more and more to the fore as digital wallets increase in popularity. Just a few of the main benefits of using digital wallets right now include –
1 – Increased security
Both businesses and their consumers can enjoy security benefits when using digital wallets. That’s because, typically, these third parties are designed to keep information encrypted, and to provide reassurance to both parties. PayPal, for instance, offers buyer and seller protection with the potential for full reimbursements.
The use of technologies like Face ID with Apple Pay also reduces the risks of fraudulent activity in a range of ways, ensuring that buyers are who they say they are, and also that businesses don’t have access to payment details upfront. The need for this verification can also prevent thieves or scammers from ever being able to make a purchase, which is good news for everyone.
2- Streamlined experiences
The fact that digital wallets already contain payment and personal details means that they provide a generally more streamlined experience for everyone. After a simple setup, consumers can easily and securely make payments from a range of accounts if they require. For businesses, as well, not needing to input buyer information manually, or process that transaction, can lead to far quicker sales handling.
With online sales, the ability to quickly checkout using digital wallets can help to secure conversions that may otherwise result in cart abandonment if payment options are long-winded. This can mean that digital wallets directly help you to make more money as a business, and that’s got to be a plus point.
3 – Access to alternative payments
Digital wallets also have the benefit of making it possible to offer a range of alternative payment methods, that may even include Bitcoin payments, if you decide to accept them. Equally, offering a full range of digital wallet payments that span across Apple, Google, and even Samsung customers can ensure that you’re catering to everyone. This then makes it more likely that interested consumers stick around for long enough to purchase from a company that they’ll automatically trust that bit more.
Dive into digital wallets today
The benefits of digital wallets are evident for business owners and consumers alike. As more buyers come to expect digital wallet payments as standard, keeping on top of this shifting trend is crucial for securing ongoing customs. If you haven’t already, it’s therefore crucial to consider a processing option that puts digital wallets within easy reach for both online and in-person purchases. Then, you, too, can enjoy the increased conversions, and loyalty, that digital wallets currently offer.
