Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in the transportation sector use instant payments more widely than any other payment method. According to PYMNTS Intelligence, 74% of surveyed SMBs made instant payments last year. In fact, 48% of these SMBs consider instant payments to be their most commonly used payment method.
Push-to-debit cards are the most widely used instant payment method – 48% of small businesses in the transportation industry paid with them last year, followed by PayPal at 41% – but traditional payment methods still have a presence.
these are”Real-time Payments Barometer for Small Businesses: Transportation“, PYMNTS Intelligence and Clearing House Collaboration. This issue explores the use of instant payments among small businesses in the transportation industry, including the key drivers behind payment preferences. It is based on findings from a survey of 393 small businesses in the transportation industry with annual revenues of $10 million or less conducted between January 31 and March 25.
Other key findings from the report include:
Transportation SMEs' use of instant payments will depend on revenue generated by push-to-debit cards, among other things.
Revenue level plays a key role in whether transportation SMBs choose the instant payment option as a payment method. Businesses with revenues over $1 million are most likely to choose the instant payment option at 52%. For SMBs with annual revenues between $250,000 and $1 million, this percentage drops sharply to 34%. Download the report to learn more about the most commonly used payment methods by transportation SMBs of different sizes.
Smaller companies in the transportation industry that prefer instant payments have healthier balance sheets.
The speed and 24/7 availability of instant payments offer significant benefits that translate to healthier balance sheets: More than three-quarters of small businesses in the transportation industry that use instant payments as their primary payment method report having a very or extremely strong balance sheet — 23 percentage points higher than businesses that prefer methods other than instant payments.
Small businesses that don't use instant payments are indicating they're unfamiliar with the service and that their banks don't offer it.
Among transportation SMBs that have not made any instant payments in the past year, we see two major trends. First, unfamiliarity with instant payments is a major barrier to wider adoption. 29% of transportation SMBs that don't use instant payments cite difficulty to use or lack of knowledge as the reason. Second, these SMBs say a lack of banks that offer instant payments and trading partners that accept instant payments is a major barrier. Providers can potentially boost adoption by addressing these concerns.
Nearly 7 in 10 transportation SMBs that used instant payments last year cited speed as a primary benefit. Instant payments provide a variety of important benefits to SMBs. To learn more about how transportation SMBs are using instant payments, download the report. Instant Payments and the key factors surrounding payment preferences.
