Restaurants continuously strive to improve their customer experience with new payment options. As a result, it's no longer a necessity for customers to carry cash or even their wallets when they want to order food to go or dine in a restaurant. You can now use your phone or other digital services that make payments easier. With a service like Menufy, you can order carryout or delivery, and pay online with a credit card, digital wallet, or cryptocurrency. Below are some of the ways restaurants are accepting digital payments to make buying food more convenient.
Cryptocurrency
Do you have digital currency you'd like to use to pay for food? Some restaurants accept Bitcoin online or through an app in the store. Because cryptocurrencies are a relatively new means for conducting real-world transactions, this option is still rare. Crypto-payment adoption in the online food ordering checkout process is, however, growing. In fact, select Menufy restaurants can seamlessly process both Bitcoin (BTC) and Bitcoin Cash (BCH).
QSR magazine ran a story last year highlighting the benefits of restaurants accepting cryptocurrency, mainly for the benefit of customers. But there is also an upside for restaurant owners—the opportunity to make money on the Bitcoin they accept, as this feature from Quartz notes.
The more mainstream digital currency becomes, the more restaurants will see the benefits and decide to accept it at their locations.
Apps
Even though apps like Venmo or PayPal are most commonly used for peer-to-peer transactions between friends, family, or others selling and buying items, they are also an option for restaurants that want to offer in-demand payment solutions.
This variety allows customers to decide the most convenient way to pay. If they are ordering on their phones, for instance, it might be faster to choose an app payment option because they are already logged into their account. Navigating directly to the payment section on the app can make ordering food fast and straightforward.
Digital Wallets
If you have an iPhone or an Android phone, you can use Apple Pay or Google Pay to make ordering simple. These digital wallets store your credit card information (for multiple cards, if necessary), making it easy to pay with your phone instead of physical cards. You can also add other tracking and company cards, such as loyalty programs, airline boarding passes, and membership numbers, for easy access.
These digital wallets are a great way to ensure you always have a payment method on hand. Additionally, some restaurants have point-of-sale systems that integrate digital wallet payment with a tap of your phone. No need to swipe a card.
Class Disparity
A compelling discussion has risen from these cashless forms of payment: How does it affect lower-income consumers? Some customers don't have a smartphone or bank account, making it impossible to pay digitally with a credit card or use an app to complete a transaction.
To minimize further class disparity, some cities and states are banning cashless brick & mortar businesses. These measures aim to prevent exclusively cashless marketplaces from turning away customers who only have cash at their disposal to pay for their orders. For instance, Philadelphia recently passed an ordinance that requires businesses to accept cash as a payment option. Likewise, San Francisco and the state of New Jersey have passed similar legislation to protect those who can only pay in cash.
Although many digital payment options are available, cash is not becoming obsolete. Visit a restaurant's website or ask the staff what types of digital payments they accept. Your preferred method may be available, making the transaction smooth and painless!