Cashless Self Checkout: A Growing Trend That May Be Right For You

Self checkout solutions
Cashless self checkout: a growing trend
that may be right for you.3 Introduction
4 More options than ever before
5 When is cashless self checkout a smart solution?
6 Potential benefits of offering a cashless self checkout option
7 Self checkout solutions from IBM
2Introduction
Cash. It was once a requirement for shoppers but is now just one of many payment 90 percent of respondents either options. According to The Economist, ".cash, after millennia as one of mankind's prefer or don't mind using cashless most versatile and enduring technologies, looks set over the next 15 years or so payment methods.finally to melt away into an electronic stream of ones and zeros." In the United States, particularly, this trend is evident. According to the Nilson Report, Americans now prefer to use noncash payments for their purchases. Cards account for more than half of all transactions, up from 29 percent a decade ago, and the average house- 25%hold has more than 10 credit cards. In addition, "smart cards," automated payment systems that use wireless technology to enable consumers to make a fast payment 50%without initiating a formal transaction, continue to emerge in a variety of marketplaces. 15%One example of this technology is the E-ZPass, which allows drivers in the northeast United States to pay highway tolls wirelessly-without having to stop. Drivers simply drive past a scanner and are automatically billed the appropriate toll on a prepaid 10%account. And while cashless payments aren't necessarily increasing at the same rate worldwide, it's safe to say that, in general, cash usage is on the decline. 50% prefer to use credit cardsIt should be of particular interest to retailers that this trend applies to self checkout 25% prefer to use debit cardstransactions as well. According to Selfserviceworld.com, 50 percent of retail consum- 15% don't careers surveyed prefer to use credit cards for self checkout transactions, 25 percent 10% prefer cashprefer to use debit cards, 15 percent don't care and only 10 percent prefer cash. Therefore, up to 90 percent of respondents either prefer or don't mind using cash-less payment methods.
3More options than ever before
With this growing trend, retailers now ever before. This paper will examine When considering have the option to offer cashless self key considerations when deciding a cashless self checkout to satisfy their customer base between cash-accepting and cashless and reduce cash-handling and main- self checkout solutions, along with the checkout option, it's tenance costs. Depending on your potential business benefits of going important to assess retail business, cashless self checkout cashless in the right retail environment.solutions can be a very smart choice. key characteristics What's more, now when you're ready to implement or upgrade your self of your group retail checkout systems, you can choose environment. from more self checkout options than
4When is cashless self checkout a smart solution?
Retail environments vary widely-and Next, look at the volume of cash han-so do the consumer transactions they dled by your operation on a daily basis. process. That's why, when considering Specifically, examine what percentage a cashless self checkout solution, it's of your debit customers get cash back important to assess the key characteris- on their transactions and how your tics of your specific retail environment, customer service would be impacted if with particular attention given to the this option is not available in every lane. following issues. Also, look at your cash handling costs and figure out how you could imple-First, it's important to understand the ment the right mix of cash-accepting preferences of your customer base. and cashless self checkout models to Look at the number of debit and credit reduce these costs while still offering transactions, rather than the percent- your customers the choices they want.age of debit or credit sales. A retailer that generates 95 percent of its sales Lastly, carefully evaluate your store and from debit and credit transactions still checkout lane layouts. Retailers whose might not be a good candidate for cash- stores have large front ends and lots less self checkout, if that 95 percent of of lanes are excellent candidates for sales comes from only 50 percent of its cashless self checkout... [download for more]