There are a few things I think we’re going to look back at in five to 10 years and will laugh at how antiquated they are. First off, wires. I don’t know about you, but my house is filled to the brim with them. Number two – cars. I can’t believe we let people drive. I wouldn’t trust 90% of the population to make me a sandwich, but sure – stick them on the road in a death machine. And lastly, cash. I genuinely think that within 10 years, we don’t have physical money anymore. Actually, I don’t think we’ll have wallets stuffed with cards either. It’s all going to be in one place. On your phone.
Ladies and gents, the future has arrived.
For the first time in my life, I paid for my Tesco shop with my phone. Tesco asked me to try out its new Tesco Pay+ app. I like to think of myself as a Louis Theroux type of journalist, so decided to leave my wallet at home. Bearing in mind my local Tesco is 20 minutes away, I like to think that’s commitment because I was not going home without lunch.
I went in and popped straight to the customer services desk to double check I could use the app throughout the store, the cashier she said that any till with one of those beepy gun things (you know what I mean), will do the trick as well as self-service machines.
I set off to do my shopping. On the weekend, I like to (when I’m feeling particularly nice), make an elaborate brunch. So I picked up the ingredients for a Croque Monsieur (you’re impressed right?!) and a doughnut for the walk home. FYI, it was so good, but I had to sleep for three hours afterwards it was so filling and rich.
I stuck my shopping on the conveyer belt and got my app out. It takes literally a few seconds to get to the bit the cashier needs to scan, and that’s it. It’s SO quick and much easier than faffing about with cash or a PIN number.
What is Tesco Pay+?
Really simply, it is Tesco’s new payment app. You can leave your wallet at home and collect your Clubcard points on your phone. This is particularly useful because I often forget my Clubcard and miss out on hundreds of points.
Tesco Pay+ is completely free to download and allows you to pay for your shopping (up to £250), and petrol with a quick scan of your phone. It’s better than a contactless card (which sure, is also quick) because you can spend more than £30 in one transaction.
Honestly, from getting your phone out to opening the app – the whole process in the store takes a few seconds. It is perfect for someone who just wants to nip out and quickly pick up something without rummaging around in their bag. Actually, it’s perfect for the big shops too because you don’t have enough hands as it is – especially with kids about. It just makes life easier.
How does it work?
Once you’ve downloaded the app and have set it up (I’ve explained below), you put in your four-digit passcode you get a unique QR code (you know, one of those pixel-y boxes).
A cashier then scans that, it automatically takes payments without needing your plastic cards. Oh, and the best bit – your Clubcard points automatically get added on without needing to root around your bag to find your card.
I popped out to my local Tesco Express shop the other day to buy chocolate ahem, salad, and I kid you not, felt like Harry Potter swishing my phone at the self-service till. The people behind me were definitely impressed! ha.
How do I get it?
Download the Tesco Pay+ app on your android or apple phone, free.
Log in using the email and password you use for your Clubcard account, (or set up a new account in the app), and set up a four-digit security number.
Add your credit or debit card details to the app (you can add more than one).
Use the ‘Pay’ barcode to pay for your shopping and collect Clubcard points.
What do I think of it?
I don’t know about you, but I have this habit of going into shops, paying for my items by card and having no clue how much I just spent. It’s shocking how you can go into autopilot when spending.
What I like with Tesco Pay+ app is that it gives you a little push notification saying you shopped at Tesco and how much you spent (no ignoring that!). You can also go into your payments in the app and see how much you have been spending. It’s a nice little way to keep an eye on your shopping – because for me, more than anything else, the majority of my pay gets spent at the supermarket.
I’m also AWFUL at checking in on my Clubcard points and more often than not, let them expire (don’t judge me!). So there’s a nice little feature with Tesco Pay+ that lets you see your current points on your screen. Everything is in one place.
*This is in collaboration with Tesco Pay+
It sounds like a good concept which should co-exist with current payment methods.
I’m not sure that I would like to live in a completely cashless society and believe that we will be using cash for many decades to come.
There are many studies which illustrate that people spend more when they use debit or credit cards vs using cash. The reason is because plastic cards and also phone apps reduce what is known in the industry as “friction”. One study in particular took a vending machine that once took cash and changed the payment method to card only. The average sales rose by +100% over comparable time periods.
It may be antiquated but something just feels right about the physical exchange of cash for a good or service.
I hope in my lifetime that we do not get too binary, bearing in my mind I am barely into my thirties.
Anyway, who doesn’t like a fat wallet or purse loaded with cash after payday?
I too have pay+, but for some reason, every time I use it , I have to put e-mail address & password in, the first time I used it was ok, I end up having to use my cards . Really annoying.
I tried but it’s pretty pointless. If you have to go to a bag or pocket for your phone, why not just pull out your wallet. The app requires a PIN for security so really doesn’t save any more time. If the app let you scan your shopping as you shopped and then checkout with a simple weigh in, that would save time. Otherwise – no.