A speaker that announces payment

One thing I didn’t expect to take off moving towards a cashless society

Photo by Jonas Jacobsson on Unsplash

One thing I did not expect from the boom of digital payment was a speaker that tells you when you receive a payment. Search: Google QR Soundbox.

Nothing flashy, and does what it says — Verify, then announce payment received without you having to look at a screen.

POS, the web, and devices enable cashless payment, the soundbox merely enhances the experience for merchants.

Does it solve merchants’ pain points? definitely.

Is it a game-changer? Most likely not.

Most companies offer inexpensive subscriptions for the soundbox. If you are trying to copy the business, you need to know what game they are playing.

The insights gathered are probably what the big players are after — the transaction data, merchant behaviors, and consumer spending.

Eg: Transaction data for banks & financial institutions to manage micro-loans or credit ratings for SMEs; Merchant behaviors & consumer spending for e-commerce companies & retail.

If you are a startup and not in the business of changing the game, it’s good to know how to play the game differently and turn that to your advantage.