kiosk payments
solution with a back end management
system and telemetry capabilities is
therefore advantageous for a kiosk
operator. Additional features can include
tracking sales, conducting refunds
remotely, monitor connectivity, receive
alerts when there are power-downs or
paper jams with printers, as well as the
ability to see what payment methods
are used and a host of other useful
consumer insights.
Stay up to date
The winning formula to ensuring your
kiosk can keep up with the ever-changing
payment field is to equip your machine
with a one-stop payment solution. The
ideal device needs to offer multiple
payment methods. The device should
provide a variety of cashless methods
that consumers are accustomed to
using; the ones they feel are secure,
reliable, and quick. These can include
the traditional credit card and the debit
card, with swipe, EMV chip cards or
contactless facilities, as well as digital
methods like mobile wallets, and NFC
payments like Google Pay, Samsung Pay,
and Apple Pay.
As people have become acclimatised
to cashless payments, the idea of paying
for services without cash has already
seeped into other spheres of people’s
lives like work, school or their residential
area. If your kiosks are located in these
sites, these same consumers will expect
a cashless option to complete their
payment. You should offer one payment
system that accepts both open payments
via cards and digital payments and
closed-loop system payments such as
physical prepaid cards or virtual cards.
Examples of closed-loop environments
include offices, schools, apartment
buildings, transport systems, or resorts.
A kiosk that accepts both open
and closed payment makes your
services available to a larger audience.
Furthermore, payments also need to
be globally accessible, making kiosks
available to visitors from other countries
"People have become acclimatised
to cashless payments; the idea of
paying for services without cash is
now part of people's everyday lives"
and consumers who are used to
completing transactions with other
payment methods. An example of this is
payment via scanning QR codes. These
are more common in Asian markets and
enjoy a significant market share. QR code
payment might not be well known in your
region, but they are ubiquitous in China
with Alipay and WeChatPay dominating
the payment scene. Offering QR code
payments is forward-looking but not a
futuristic payment method.
Moving forward
Millennials and Gen Z are more
comfortable with cashless payments and
are already using their mobile phones
as well as social media platforms for
paying. In China, WeChatPay’s QR codes
are accessed via the popular messaging
platform WeChat. Outside the Chinese
market, payments via messaging service
apps are set to change the mobile
payment landscape. With over 1.5
billion users, messaging app WhatsApp
has a built-in market, and even if only
a fraction use the payment function,
it’s still a significant number and an
important integration to include in a
payment system. In the same vein, there
are other payment methods that need to
be considered. Future payment trends
are likely to include wearables, retail
loyalty apps, cryptocurrencies, as well as
methods that haven’t yet been invented.
Additionally, when it comes to
payment providers included in a
payment solution, kiosk operators
shouldn’t only look to the future, but also
locality. Payment terminals should accept
lesser known wallets, which might enjoy
popularity among a specific group or
region, to broaden your potential sales
to a wider market. Examples include
Swish in Sweden or Twint in Switzerland.
Payment acceptance terminals also need
to cater to local audiences and offer a
flexible, full-rounded payment system,
offering support in the local languages
and payments in local currencies.
Lastly, the ability to work with market
specificities and offer customisable
solutions is another important factor
when thinking about a payment solution
for your machine. The kiosks for hotels
and resorts are very different from those
for transport systems or QSR, but the
payment system can be more flexible.
If the market you’re interested in has
a specific need like a university library
looking for payments via student cards,
a bare-bones cashless payment device
will not help you. You need to choose
a comprehensive payment solution,
with features that can be customised to
work for your machine set-up, ultimately
enhancing your operations.
There’s a lot to consider when
shopping for a payment solution
for a kiosk. It’s vital to choose a
comprehensive payment solution, one
with multiple payment methods, one that
is adaptable no matter the market, the
machine or the location. Your payment
device needs to be accessible to your
consumers. It needs to future-proof your
kiosk, and importantly, it needs to work
for you. n
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