Adyen makes a strong case for unified commerce amidst the boom of online payments
QSR Media talks to Michel van Aalten on how they serve as a bridge between customers and QSRs through frictionless and innovative payment experiences.
For Pieter van der Does and Arnout Schujiff, the infrastructure of payments technology systems needed an update of its own.
With a group of entrepreneurs, they founded Adyen in 2006, building a new, all-encompassing payments platform suitable for the rapidly-evolving needs of fast-growing businesses.
Adyen (which means “start over again” in Surinamese) boasts of having established a modern payments infrastructure directly connected to card networks and local payment methods across the world, allowing for unified commerce and providing shopper data insights to merchants. The platform enables payments across all channels including online, in-app and in-store.
The company has grown rapidly, with 22 offices across the world. Adyen has become the payments platform of choice for many of the world’s biggest companies, including global quick service restaurant brands such as McDonald’s, Subway and Joe & The Juice.
QSR Media spoke to Michel van Aalten, Adyen’s country manager for Australia and New Zealand, who offered his latest thoughts on why seamless payment experiences are critical for QSRs for years to come.
QSR Media: From your perspective, what are the most interesting technologies when it comes to payment solutions? What is the impact of these new developments to the quick service and fast casual restaurant industry?
Van Aalten: Adyen is constantly looking for ways to create frictionless and innovative payment experiences for our customers across multiple sectors. We’ve seen a lot of technologies being utilised by retailers that would translate well and be hugely beneficial for QSRs. For instance, retailers have led the way when it comes to developing their own-branded apps.
Chains like McDonald’s, Domino’s and Starbucks have shown the potential that creating a branded app provides, giving the consumer the ability to order and pay ahead. Retailers have also shown the value in developing strong loyalty and rewards programs. Through unified commerce, you can seamlessly recognise and reward your customer across all your payment channels, meaning they reap the rewards without having to present loyalty cards.
The power of unified commerce is also hugely exciting for QSRs. By linking sales channels, the business has a single view of its customer, unlocking valuable data insights. Another really interesting technology innovation has been the installation and customisation of kiosks. They give consumers the convenience to browse, enable them to upsize and customise – potentially avoiding any feelings of judgement – and order in their own time. With the proliferation of mobile payment technology, it’s vital for QSRs to offer a variety of ways to pay, including ApplePay and GooglePay.
Creating a seamless payments experience for consumers improves the overall impression of the store and fosters loyalty.
What challenges do you still see in the QSR industry? How do you think these challenges can be overcome?
We know that friction in the purchasing journey is an issue when it comes to providing a seamless customer experience for merchants across different industries. For instance, people hate to queue, so providing swift ordering is key. The use of kiosks is great way to help bust queues, and ensuring you offer a range of payment methods means people are able to use their preferred method, and you can turn around the order quicker. It also cuts down on the amount of cash transactions taken, which reduces time, risk and inconvenience.
Another great opportunity a lot of QSRs are missing out on is not having a full view of their customers across different channels, whether that’s through in-store, online or in-app. This prevents the business from accessing key customer insights, such as ordering patterns. However, implementing a unified commerce solution provides a seamless experience for the customer across all channels, and gives the business the ability to better understand and meet their customer’s needs.
Franchisee management also presents its own set of challenges for QSRs. From the onboarding process to the management of information, relying on manual processes with no easy-to-access insights is challenging. Adyen offers easy onboarding, plus a dashboard that provides easy-to-use views on sales, reconciliation, cash flow and the various sales
channels in operation.
It’s important for QSRs to find the right partner to enable these technological changes. Teaming up with a provider who can help them digitise and manage a variety of payment solutions will reduce the number of partners they need overall.
Where do you see technology evolving in the future? What’s your vision for the QSR industry five years down the line?
We’ll see a move towards having fewer fixed points of sale in-store. With the uptake and benefits of self-service kiosks and mobile phone ordering, traditional service counters will become less relevant and pave the way for more innovative store designs and customer experiences. These newer solutions offer quicker and better experiences for consumers, which means stores will require less front-of-house staff, allowing them to redeploy staff to other roles back-of-house.
We’ll also see offerings become much more tailored to the consumer. With the potential for personalising experiences and offerings based on the data from unified commerce platforms, QSRs will be able to understand more about their customer and tailor the ordering and payment process based on each individual’s transaction history. Being able to recognise your customer – and whether they usually order solo or for the family, or their preference for wraps over burgers – builds a sense of familiarity and ease, and fosters loyalty for your business.
