September Payments Hub round-up
7 Oct 2014
Our September 2014 Hub sessions aimed to unravel:
"A retail perspective on how Kiwi's shop and pay"
We pulled together a retail centric panel moderated by Paul Rayner of ‘Better Change’ to tackle this topic. The panel included:
- Diane Dickinson - Managing Director, Ipsos New Zealand
- Tim Dryburgh - Retail Network and Property Manager, Z Energy
- Matt Court - Manager Digital, Paymark
- Amrit Chaitanya - National Manager Financial Services, Progressive Enterprises
- Grant Stapleton - Director of Retail NZ, Hue Group, Mexicali Fresh, Laser Group
Hub sessions were held in both Wellington and Auckland and were kicked off with a warm welcome and some classic ‘dad’ jokes by our closet comedian and Payments NZ CEO, Steve Wiggins. Steve outlined some of the work Payments NZ has on the go at the moment, including the launch of the Payments NZ Membership Initiative on 1 October and our biennial payments industry conference on 11 and 12 November 2014.
Diane Dickinson challenged us to consider ‘Why the chicken crossed the road’
Using recent Ipsos research on customer trending, Diane helped us get to grips with customer expectations. Choices, trust and privacy are a big part of what motivates a customer to buy. Diane challenged the audience to consider, and really understand, who they are marketing their products and services to - the customer’s real self (the practical and tangible) or their projected self (how the customer wants to be seen)?
Paul Rayner then kicked off the panel discussion
Tim Dryburgh shared Z’s business mantra of being Fast, Friendly and Hassle free. Zip Through ‘Z’. Contactless payments are right in the thick of it when it comes to the ‘hassle free’ payments experience for customers.
Amrit Chaitanya discussed the huge inroads Progressives is making in customer experience with ‘click & collect’. Customer needs are changing and businesses must shift their thinking in a timely and frictionless manner.
Matt Court advised that the online space was growing exponentially year on year, and asked ‘what will that mean for bricks and mortar?’ We need to remove the complexity of paying online and provide a greater and consistent experience for merchants and customers.
Grant Stapleton made it clear that 50% of New Zealand SMEs don’t have a website, so where does that leave the small retailer? In this challenging environment, online arguably owns the customer interface; but in reality all contribute to the overall customer experience.
Sound Bites from the September Hub
“I always attend; there is nowhere else I can find a room full of people as passionate about payments!...At every Payments Hub there are always 4 or 5 pieces of information that will be really useful to me at Z over the coming months.”
Tim Dryburgh, Retail Network & Property Manager, Z Energy
“The evening made for a valuable session with the openness of knowledge shared by Diane, the panellists and the wider audience.”
Amrit Chaitanya, National Manager Financial Services, Progressive Enterprises Limited
”Being a panellist at the Payments Hub was a very satisfying experience. Not only did I get to engage in thought-provoking discussion about the role of payments in retail, but I caught up one-on-one with a number of key industry players, resulting in some exciting ‘next steps’.”
Matt Court, Manager Digital, Paymark Limited
“In a time when corporates are talking about an Omni channel approach to connecting with their customers many SMEs still don't have a website let alone an online payment facility….Technology and the low entry costs for products such as software as a service is a game changer for SMEs.”
Grant Stapleton, Director of Retail NZ, Hue Group, Mexicali Fresh & Laser Group
For more about this event, read our September Payments Hub newsletter (262kb PDF)