Checkout free stores are unique in that the final payment amount to charge is not known until after the customer leaves the store. Understanding the process flow and ownership for your specific location is important for proper handling of customer needs.
PROCESS
1. Upon entry, a shopper token is generated and a pre-authorization hold amount is captured. Final payment is not known at this time.
2. Payment method (bank card or mobile app) is charged after exit. This amount is almost always larger than the initial authorization amount taken at entry. Zippin or the Retailer may manage the payment processing (see next section) depending on the arrangement.
3 The gateway encrypts the data and passes it to the corresponding payment processor. The gateway has primary responsibility to investigate any failure. Various payment gateways are supported including Shift4, Stripe, and FreedomPay.
4. The processor validates the data and asks for a money transfer. The processor conducts fraud check and validations.
5. The credit card networks act as validators of credit cards of their brand (Visa, Mastercard, AMEX etc)
6. The issuing bank, upon validation from the credit card network, receives transaction data and initiates the money transfer. The bank also notifies the cardholder about funds being charged to their account.
PAYMENT PROCESSING / BILLING
Retailers decide if they want to do the billing, or if they want to go through Zippin.
- If retailers process the billing: Zippin provides cart details. The retailer applies taxes, loyalty, and promotions to carts and processes the payments. The retailer provides the receipt.
- If Zippin processes the billing: Zippin applies taxes, loyalty, and promotions to carts and processes the payments. Zippin provides the receipt.
Store Entry < Mobile app (QR code)
Store Entry < Credit card
Store Entry: Retailer custom experience
PAYMENT METHODS
Retailers decide which payment methods to accept and should work directly with payment gateway service providers to configure properly. See options below.
- Credit or Debit Card (tap, swipe, or insert)
- Apple Pay or Google Pay (tap)
- Custom Retailer Apps (QR code)
- 3rd Party Loyalty Apps (QR code)
PAYMENT DECLINES
Proper payment gateway configuration is key to preventing declines. The following are tips to minimizing payment decline risk:
- Disable gift cards
- Disable prepaid cards
- Increase entry authorization amounts
- Consider disabling contactless (mobile wallets)
- Disable prepaid credit cards