Advances in technology over the years have seen most products and services being moved to the online space as people embraced e-commerce. Consequently, the rise of e-commerce, has seen people adopting digital payments, a move which was accelerated when Covid-19 hit our shores.
During the pandemic, people were encouraged to use cards or mobile money to make their payments so as to reduce contact with money which was thought to aid in the transmission of the virus. It was at this time that Kenya saw the biggest rise in digital payments adoption with one of the local payment providers hitting transaction values of over Ksh. 640 Billion in 2019.
Simply put, digital payments which includes mobile money and card payments have become such a big part of our lives that we even forget to carry cash around with us. On my part, I usually use mobile money to make recurring payments such as electricity bills. While my Visa card has served me well when making purchases at supermarkets or eateries, online shopping, and while making payments for subscriptions to some of the international service providers such as Netflix, F1 Tv, Google email subscription, among others. Some of the benefits of making payments using Visa include.
Zero Charges
Given the tough economic times that we are facing as a country, every penny that one spends counts with Kenyans looking for any means to save. The zero transaction costs when making payments via a Visa card simply means that you have more money to spend on your shopping or paying those bills. This is because the traditional transaction fees can often eat into the little savings that a customer is trying to achieve.
Convenience
As the saying goes, “Mambo ni mengi na masaa ni machahe” our hectic lifestyles mean that we often don’t have time to waste with people looking for the most convenient ways to achieve their goals. When it comes to making payments, Visa provides this convenience by allowing you to pay for anything, anywhere and at any time. Whether you’re shopping online, ordering food delivery, booking travel, or paying bills, you can use your Visa card to make payments seamlessly. You don’t have to worry about carrying cash or cheques, or finding a mobile money agent when you need to make a payment.
Security
With advances in technology, there has been an unfortunate rise in the number of cases of digital fraud with hackers trying to make away with your hard earned money. However, Visa has countered this by investing in top notch security to ensure that your money is safe at all times.
Some of the measures that Visa has instituted to ensure safety of your funds includes, an anti-fraud detection system that uses artificial intelligence to make predictive analytics that can be able to detect irregular use of your card in real time. In the event that an irregular transaction is detected, this information is then relayed to your financial institution who can them make a decision to decline the transaction hence keeping your money safe.
Worldwide Acceptance
When travelling out of the country whether for business or leisure, the ability to make payments with ease can determine whether or not you are going to enjoy the trip. Visa offers worldwide acceptance which means that you can be anywhere in the world and dealing with any currency but as long as you are making a payment with your Visa card it will be accepted. Visa cards are accepted at over 38 million locations which includes restaurants, grocery stores, ATMs in over 200 countries. So you don’t have to worry about how you are going to make payments when planning for your next international trip.
Rewards
Once in a while, the card issuer say a bank comes up with a promotion whereby they give rewards whenever you make a payment using your Visa card. Currently, my bank has a promotion whereby they give you a 10% cash back for every payment made on the card which can enable you to save money more so in the current hard economic times that we are dealing with.
Contactless Payment
One thing that the Covid-19 pandemic taught us is the importance of hygiene, during this time people used to wash everything including their shopping. In as much as we stopped washing our groceries among other extreme measures, it is important to avoid getting into contact with surfaces which might not ideally be clean. The contactless payment option on Visa cards enables to do this by allowing to tap the POS in order to pay as opposed to giving the attendant your card to run it in the machine, while also ensuring speed and efficiency.
All in all, digital payments have revolutionized the way we live our lives and with the zero transaction charges while using Visa cards, it can only get better.