Payconiq

=What is Payconiq?=

Payconiq is an electronic payment system used in the Benelux and in (parts of) Germany, intended to be able to pay in restaurants, hairdressers, (web)shops etc. using a smartphone. It can be used for omnichannel payments: in-store, online and between friends. Payconiq eliminates the need for old-fashioned payment methods like cash, credit cards and those annoying card readers. Consumers benefit from quick & easy payments through their smartphone while merchants reduce checkout times and pay smaller fees per transaction than any other payment method.

The company released its first pilot project in Leuven, Belgium, in 2015. In Belgium alone, over 50.000 merchants use Payconiq by the end of 2018. Why is this app so interesting? Merchants don’t need a physical payment terminal, so no investment is required for them. There is no subscription cost and a merchant only pays 0,06 EUR per transaction, which is lower than other digital payment systems such as Bancontact (used in Belgium for digital transactions). Payconiq also makes doing business more safe, because it greatly reduces the amount of cash in their cash desk. No physical bank cards needed anymore, either.

=How does Payconiq work?=

A client downloads the Payconiq app in the Google Playstore (Android smartphone users) or the Apple App Store (Apple iPhone users), links the app to their current account, and uses the app to pay wherever Payconiq is accepted. The app allows clients to, using their smartphone, scan a QR-code, or to choose any shop, restaurant, … using Payconiq in a drop-down list of nearby merchants, using GPS location tracking. The merchant tells the client the amount that needs to be paid, the client enters the amount on their screen, and, lastly, confirms the transaction with PIN or fingerprint. Every transaction can be seen in real time on the Payconiq payment portal, whether the merchant uses a smartphone, tablet or computer screen.

=What is WooCommerce?=
WooCommerce lets merchants sell products and services from their WordPress site. It’s a free WordPress plugin with additional features available as extensions. It’s is supposed to be one of the ‘most customisable eCommerce platforms for building online businesses’.

It started as a simple plugin, but evolved into a worldwide community, and is now one of the most popular webshop systems with millions of downloads around the globe.

WooCommerce is entirely open source, which means one can modify and customise anything and everything. Because developers have complete control, they can add unlimited products and users, and take unlimited orders.

Within the highly active community around WordPress and WooCommerce, there are many plugins available, which makes it possible for all types of shops to use this platform.

=Why integrate Payconiq & WooCommerce?=
For every merchant handling its eCommerce using WooCommerce, integrating Payconiq guarantees the same payment method as in store, a low transaction fee, payments happening completely digitally and instant, offering a QR-code in the Payconiq app, and so on.

=How does the extension work?=
After checkout, a QR-code needs to be scanned by the client using the Payconiq app, confirm the transaction using their PIN code in the app (or fingerprint), and at this point, the payment is immediately received by the merchant. The transaction is visible for the client on screen in the app, and visible to the merchant in their WooCommerce shop and through the Payconiq merchant portal.