Looking at possible ways to drive your bottom line up as a small business owner means looking at cashless payments.
For many small businesses that means starting with the existing technology you have on hand. Start by taking a look at ATM and POS software if you haven’t done that by now. It’s important to understand how this software works for digital enterprise and omnichannel businesses with physical locations too.
Here are a few things you need to know about how cashless payments drive transactions. We’ll look at the challenges SMBs face with this technology too.
Meshing Old and New Technology
First, it’s important for small businesses to understand the trials when meshing old technology with new. ATM technology is a great example. These machines have been a staple in restaurants and variety stores as well as other retail environments for 50 years.
As a small business owner with one of these, you need to be wondering if the ATM is antiquated. There’s a new generation of digital natives today who prefer smartphones and the cashless payments they provide.
The question is how you’ll keep up with new demands while satisfying customers who still want money in their hands. The solution is a combination of the latest innovative software and existing hardware.
The Big Picture
Taking a look at the big picture when it comes to cashless payments helps as well. If you are an e-commerce business looking to expand globally consider this. China is at the forefront of offshore markets turning smartphone apps into payment processing tools.
Digitizing Quickly
Other countries like India are digitizing quickly. Usually, that means movement towards cashless payments as smartphones get used more.
However, entering into the digital cashless world presents its own set of problems for entrepreneurs. While there is a growing trend towards a cashless society, it’s important to consider some of these red flags too.
Outages
If you rely on cashless payments, you also need to rely on the Internet. It’s always important to keep in mind that 100% uptime is usually never a given. Natural disasters like earthquakes or flooding can knock out critical infrastructure causing small businesses problems.
Security Concerns
Security is another concern for cashless businesses. Today’s environment has become increasingly hostile. Nation states and criminal gangs are continually looking for ways to disrupt digital systems.
Budgeting
Small businesses also have some concerns over how they will budget with a completely cashless system. Small business owners need to understand how POS and other payment systems have built-in tracking systems. These require a leap of faith but very little in the way of a learning curve.
Chris Poelma President and General Manager of Small Business at NCR Corporation, explains several options for businesses looking at cashless payments. These include:
- Paying in social
- Using an app
- Going outside of app
- Paying with Tap and
- Go with Traditional Cards and payments
“Small businesses need to support all of them. The consumer needs to decide which ones get in and out of the store quickly,” Poelma recently told Cheddar.
So, the real question becomes how does a small business start adopting these technologies if they haven’t already?
NCR Silver allows your SMB to accept cashless payments and track other important metrics like sales and inventory. It’s cloud-based so you can get information anywhere. It bridges the gap for companies looking for cashless solutions that are user-friendly.
There are a variety of other features this company uses to integrate cashless payments.
NCR Counterpoint and Silver use Java technology. It’s the perfect system blending in well with cloud technology for a safe, secure experience.
Always Optimized and Turned On
One of the other challenges in going to a cashless system can be customer service. It’s always best to have a company working with you on POS and other systems that has your back. For example, NCR has a team of dedicated professionals who ensure your devices are always optimized and turned on.
Challenges aside, there is really no way to get around adopting some kind of cashless payment for your small business. Consider some of the recent statistics like the World Payments Report from Capgemini last year.
Cashless Payment Numbers
They stated that worldwide cashless transactions reached $482.6 billion in 2016. What’s more important is non-cash transactions are projected to grow 21.6% globally until 2021. The most recent statistics puts the number of North American noncash transactions at 161.1 billion.
Cashless payments have moved into the mainstream. They are driving transactions for large companies and small businesses alike. Staying on top of any challenges or concerns means hiring companies that understand how critical these payments are.
It seems like the market is now becoming more comfortable with cashless transactions. It is all because of apps integrated into mobile devices.
Don’t get ahead of your customers. If they are fine with cash & credit cards then you may not need to get into mobile-based payments yet. But remember that some payment types can save you on fees (for example, using Venmo instead of a credit card).
And the up-time argument above is important. As a consumer, I don’t carry much cash and so if the internet is down I’m out of luck on a lot of my purchases.