Everything You Need to Know About Dynamic QR Codes

India is showing pronounced support towards the Digital India Campaign by making use of digital payment modes. Most of us have ditched the traditional wallets and have adopted e-wallets and other forms of digital payments. A study revealed that UPI is the most preferred payment option amongst customers. While UPI is a broader term, QR codes are specifically gaining popularity in India since:

1. It is convenient
2. It is superfast

Ever since the COVID-19 outbreak, personal hygiene is of paramount importance. Customer expectations have rapidly evolved with increased demand for low touch experiences and no cash payments, whether in-store or on delivery. Contactless payments including QR codes, UPI, and SMS Pay allow you to complete a transaction without getting in close proximity to any person or surface, which is much-needed in current times. Hence, every consumer-facing business is looking to install QR code payments at the billing counter. This would not only facilitate faster checkouts but also keep merchants, their customers and the nation safe from COVID-19.

What are QR Code Payments?

QR code is a black and white pattern, which when scanned, is decoded by smartphones into characters. Depending on the command provided in that pattern, the action is performed. For example, it could lead you to a website, make a call or update the payment information for you. In the payment’s space, QR code contains merchant details such as the name of the merchant and their bank account details. There are two types of QR codes:

1. Static QR Codes
2. Dynamic QR codes

Static QR Code

A static QR has the URL of the destination website encoded in the code. In payments space, it is the merchant name and the bank details that are encoded in the code. The code is called Static, as like the name suggests, it cannot be edited. Upon scanning a static QR code, the customer is supposed to enter the payment amount manually and then can send the payment directly to the merchant's account.

A static QR code does not gather any tracking metrics i.e. you cannot monitor the live status of payments received, or reconcile it back into the system.

Dynamic QR Code

Unlike a static QR code, a dynamic QR code, as the name suggests is dynamic in nature and therefore changes with each transaction. A merchant in order to accept payments, generates a Dynamic QR code, which not only contains the merchant name and bank details, but also the payment amount to be collected. When a customer scans it, he does not need to enter any amount manually and can directly make the payment.

This means as a merchant, you are in control of the amount receivable. And hence, merchants are now proactively integrating dynamic QR codes into their payment system.

Merchants these days, are looking to accept Dynamic QR payments, for reasons more than one which are all listed below:

Benefits of Dynamic QR Codes

1. Safety

Accepting payments via QR codes can lend a sense of safety amongst your customers, agents as well as cashiers especially in current times, where hygiene is a major concern. QR code is a tool that enables you to accept payments in a fully contactless manner, which supports the low touch experience expected by customers.

2. Better Payment Experience

In case of Dynamic QR codes, they offer a quick, uninterrupted and secure payment experience. Unlike card payments, the customer does not have to worry about entering the amount or even the PIN number while being attended by a cashier. Once the transaction is completed, both merchant and the consumer receive instant confirmation.

3. Circumvent Manual Reconciliation Process

In a static QR code, you do not receive any payment information, furthermore you do not have control over the amount entered by your customer. Hence, reconciling the financial statements can sometimes be a nightmare. This is also the case with cash and non integrated payment modes. However, a dynamic QR code is an integrated solution and is auto-generated from the bill summary. This means it contains all the necessary payment details, making it easier to reconcile.

4. Save Money

The government has recently made the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on UPI as Zero. Therefore as a merchant you save money on UPI payments via Dynamic QR code, and you can accept any amount of payment without having to worry about the MDR.

5. Relevance across Sectors

Dynamic QR codes are relevant not only for counter payments in grocery stores but also in other retail formats, including apparel, footwear and other specialised stores, pharmacies , hospitals, government, and entertainment sectors. Even some traffic police departments today use dynamic QR based payments making it more convenient to tackle the “I do not have cash” situation.

As payment experts, we recommend medical stores, hospital canteens, departmental and grocery stores to integrate contactless dynamic QR code payment solutions with their billing systems, in the light of the current situation.

Where can it be used?

1. For Home Delivery/ Collection businesses, such as e-commerce, logistics, grocery, pharmacies, the delivery executive is able to generate the QR code at the time of payment collection, via the app on his phone. The dynamic QR code generated will have the bill and payment details. The customer can simply scan the QR code via any QR scanning app (UPI app) and pay without the need to enter the payment details.

2. For payment collections At Branch, or At Counter Top in pharmacies, hospitals, or food stalls, the cashier uses the Ezetap application to push the QR code from their billing system to an Android Display. The code contains all necessary details, the customer can scan the code using any QR code scanner and complete the payment.

3. For Self-Service Kiosks, at fast food restaurants, cafes, government services, once the customer/ citizen has chosen the items/ services he wants to buy/ use, a dynamic QR code is generated along with the payment details, and displayed at the Kiosk. The customer / citizen can use any QR code scanning app (UPI app) to scan and pay.

How can I get the solution?

At Ezetap, we are the pioneers in payment technology and solutions in India. We offer a Universal Payment Platform, which can be tailored to your business needs. Thus we can help you streamline your payment process with the solutions that exactly fit your use case. Right from a dynamic QR code to SMS Pay, we will help you integrate the payment solution into your billing system for a seamless experience. Contact us at 1800 313 141516 and we will arrange a demo that will help understand how you can start accepting contactless payments including dynamic QR code to speed up the checkout process.