{"id":80858,"date":"2021-07-05T12:58:08","date_gmt":"2021-07-05T12:58:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/interac1.wpengine.com\/?post_type=content&p=80858"},"modified":"2025-05-30T16:19:23","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T20:19:23","slug":"digital-wallets-are-on-the-rise-five-reasons-your-business-needs-to-pay-attention","status":"publish","type":"content","link":"https:\/\/www.interac.ca\/en\/content\/business\/digital-wallets-are-on-the-rise-five-reasons-your-business-needs-to-pay-attention\/","title":{"rendered":"Digital wallets are on the rise: Five reasons your business needs to pay attention."},"content":{"rendered":"\n

When it comes to how customers prefer to pay, the only constant is change. Recent events have only accelerated shifts in consumer behaviour that were already taking place<\/a>. Now, customers are turning towards e-commerce and digital payment tools more often. So, what does it mean for your business?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Customers are becoming accustomed to the convenience of an \u201comnichannel checkout experience<\/a>\u201d \u2014 meaning one that offers them the maximum number of payment choices. Many customers prefer contactless payments, for example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another trend is the rise of digital wallets, which allow customers to pay using their smartphones rather than physical cards or cash.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s what you need to know about what\u2019s driving the growth of digital wallets \u2014 and digital payments in general \u2014 for Canadian consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fact 1: Canadians are making more e-commerce transactions.<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

For reasons that don\u2019t require much explanation, fewer transactions have been taking place in person. Sudden and unforeseen changes to daily life increased consumers\u2019 dependence on digital transactions. While a shift to a more digital economy was already under way, the pandemic further accelerated these shifts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Payments Canada<\/a>, close to three out of five Canadians made an online purchase in 2021. And while the shift isn’t rising as quickly as it did at the start of the pandemic, in 2021, the value of e-commerce sales still grew at a healthy rate, up 12 per cent from 2020<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, use of cash<\/a> has retreated, presumably as a consequence of these trend toward digital transactions. The volume of cash transactions fell from roughly 6.5 billion in 2014 to 2 billion transactions in 2021<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What it means for your business<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

To have the best chance of seeing robust sales and happy customers, adapt to the shift toward a digital economy. Offer digital payment methods, like Interac <\/em>Debit, and the convenience of Interac <\/em>Debit for e-Commerce Payments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fact 2: Digital wallet adoption is one of the fast-rising trends <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

For consumers, digital wallets offer speed, choice and convenience. According to Payments Canada\u2019s 2022 payment methods and trends report, just over two out of three Canadians who own a smartphone made a purchase using a mobile payment or digital wallet<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What it means for your business<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

For retailers, the benefits of accepting Interac<\/em> Debit for e-Commerce payments include no chargebacks, low transaction costs, and the ability to offer customers a low-friction checkout experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In other words, digital wallets offer a win-win scenario for consumers as well as anyone conducting business online, notably retailers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fact 3: Many consumers want to pay by debit when using digital wallets <\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Retailers \u2014 and others doing business online \u2014 are discovering the need to offer more payment options to serve a public that\u2019s getting used to the convenience of omnichannel checkout experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What do consumers want? For many, it\u2019s debit. Interac survey data shows that nearly three-quarters (72 per cent) of Canadians believe a consumer ought to have the option to use debit across multiple channels<\/a>, whether checking out online, making a purchase in-app, or paying in store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Graph:<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In other words, they expect debit everywhere, not just in person. A significant number of consumers will abandon a shopping cart if they don\u2019t see their preferred payment method. Twenty per cent of respondents told a UPS survey that they change their mind about purchases because \u201cpreferred payment method was not offered.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What it means for your business<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Offering multiple payment options could help you avoid cart abandonment in online transactions. And virtually all Canadians have a debit card. So, for merchants, offering debit at the e-commerce checkout could lead to fewer abandoned carts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n