Australians say that consumers would walk away from a retailer if they can’t pay the way they want to. Recent research by Salmat found that if retailers don’t have the payment options a customer prefers, close to a third (29 per cent) consumers will walk away from the purchase and go elsewhere.

Salmat head of digital and performance marketing Karen Lewis said, “We know consumers’ expectations are continuously rising, and the fact that consumers would leave a retailer if they didn’t provide the payment method they wanted is testament to this.”

“Consumers want quick, easy and hassle-free options when they pay for goods – if retailers don’t offer this service they’ll lose out on sales.”

So what payment methods do consumers prefer? Digital options are a top trend with more consumers now opting to pay with Paypal (50 per cent) than credit cards (48 per cent).

“While financial institutions have attempted to stay ahead of the curve, online payment services have effectively integrated themselves into a modern way of online shopping,” Lewis said.

“This has ensured their continued rise to dominance in the retail environment.”

Consumers also prefer to pay later with Afterpay on the rise, with more Australians opting into the ‘buy now, pay later’ service. Research found one in 10 (11 per cent) of Australians regularly use Afterpay. This represents a remarkable segment of Australia embracing a new form of digital payment.

Furthermore, over one fifth of shoppers (22 per cent) were interested in payment using a mobile phone, and 11 per cent were interested in payment using a wearable device.

However, this doesn’t mean the days of traditional payments are over, with consumers still naming cash as their most preferred method of payment, with 60 per cent of consumers stating cash as their preferred payment option.

“Despite experts predicting that Australia could be cashless in just three years, our research found that cash is still the dominant method for paying,” Lewis said.

However, 40 per cent of respondents use other methods such as PayPal, AfterPay and credit and debit cards … it certainly signifies a tipping point in how consumers are choosing to pay.”