The acceptance of Visa digital card payments among SMEs and small merchants in Italy continues to grow: + 7% compared to last year (67% in 2021 vs 74% in 2022). The retail, food & beverage and health & wellness sectors lead the ranking. The advantages indicated are clear and, among these, safety, ease of use compared to other payment methods, and an increase in turnover stand out. This is what emerges from the Visa study on SMEs, conducted in 14 European countries, including Italy, to better understand the challenges and expectations of micro and small merchants in the context of payments.
Visa, the importance of digital payments
As emerges from the research, small Italian businesses have been heavily affected by economic uncertainty, by inflation and supply difficulties which generated an increase in costs for 58% of them. Additionally, 32% of SMBs have had to raise prices, 21% have experienced a reduction in their shopping cart and 10% have had to downsize their business. Only a smaller percentage was able to resist and discovered new opportunities (6%).
The greater propensity to accept card payments, the relationship with international customers, the online presence and the willingness to invest in tools that increase efficiency and save time determine the success of these small businesses.
The awareness remains that technology can be a precious ally in times of crisis: for this reason, more than half of respondents (57%) expect payment service providers to assist in digitization.
Visa, awareness of the benefits of digital payments is growing
For SMEs that accept card payments, the resulting value is clear: 66% consider them simpler than other payment methods, 67% believe they reduce the risk of not getting paid, while for the 29% the acceptance of card payments resulted in an increase in turnover of between 6 and 15%.
The research also signals the need to increase the digitization of Italian SMEs: more than 1 out of 4 still does not accept card payments (26%) and stands out for being active only on the domestic market (59%) and on business customers(56%).
Credit card VISA on white background
SMB customization and flexibility
As the management needs of SMBs become ever more sophisticated, the time to deal with them becomes ever shorter. It is no coincidence that the need for technological solutions to support the business is growing: 57% of Italian SMEs use software platforms and almost half ask for innovative solutions. 49% need a software platform that includes all functions in an integrated way, 47% require it to be customized according to specific business needs.
Among the main elements for SMEs in a payment offer, whether or not they accept card payments, same-day reconciliation and fraud safety tools top the list.
And among the drivers that would prompt non-users to consider accepting card payments, in first place is the possibility of doing so without the purchase of additional technology (21%), as in the case of Visa Tap to Phone which allows you to accept payments on Android devices equipped with NFC without the need for additional hardware.