In cooperation with Weretail, VR Payment GmbH now not only offers all services around Alipay and WeChat Pay to handle cashless payment transactions with Chinese customers securely and conveniently, but the China Solution is a modular in-app service package to attract the Chinese target group to buy from you.
More information : https://china-solution.vr-payment.de
Alipay and WeChat Pay in Germany
Marco van Eersel from WeRetail on Chinese payment systems at points of sale in Germany | #PaymentPower Podcast No. 95
Anyone who followed the 2024 European Football Championship automatically saw Alipay everywhere. The Chinese payment system graced stadiums and fan miles. But why? Marco van Eersel, founder of WeRetail, explains the role Alipay and its counterpart WeChat Pay play at points of sale in Germany. He knows how the catering, retail and service sectors can best integrate the systems – and use additional functions such as targeted customer communication to their advantage.
Directly to the individual questions and answers:
- Why is Alipay advertising so aggressively at the European Football Championship? → 00:01:50
- How does Alipay work? → 00:03:52
- How is WeChat Pay different from Alipay? → 00:06:30
- For which payments is WeChat Pay more likely to be used and for which is Alipay more likely to be used? → 00:08:35
- What advantages and services does Alipay offer merchants in Germany? → 00:09:25
- What advantages and services does WeChat Pay offer merchants in Germany? → 00:10:42
- What sales volume is at stake for retailers? → 00:12:00
- How can merchants accept payments via Alipay and WeChat Pay? → 00:13:00
- How can you imagine the integration in practice? → 00:15:50
The #PaymentPower Podcast
So that you can take your business to a new level with the right payment solution. We educate retailers and service providers about cashless payment methods, new digital business models and current customer needs. Because every company benefits from modern payment – the baker around the corner as well as the nationwide chain store or the large international company. Every four weeks we talk to experts about payment in e-commerce, stationary and mobile retail.
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Reach new target groups with the China Solution
Overcoming sales barriers: through a presence on WeChat and Alipay
In Asia, they are part of the basic equipment of every smartphone: the WeChat and Alipay apps. Chatting, shopping, dating, rating a restaurant, making reservations – all this and much more is possible centrally in a single application. For German retailers, service providers and restaurateurs with foreign customers, a presence in the super apps enables additional sales and customer potential. With the China Solution, VR Payment and WeRetail offer an uncomplicated entry as a complete package. We show here how this works and what it looks like in practice.
WeChat and Alipay as travel guides and marketing platforms
With the China Solution , retailers enable their customers from China to pay via QR code – just like they are used to at home. This increases customer satisfaction and sales. But the solution offers much more than mobile payment. Originally established as a messenger and payment method, the so-called super apps now combine many services in interactive ecosystems . In addition to the messenger and payment functions, they also provide identity services, extensive social media features, e-commerce offers, navigation and travel services. They are therefore also seen as indispensable abroad. Push notifications directly advertise various travel experiences and draw users’ attention to nearby shops, restaurants and attractions.
The China Solution – a service with many added values
With a professional presence on the platforms and a targeted approach to users, travelers from China can be won as customers. Marco van Eersel, Managing Director of WeRetail and sales partner of VR Payment, describes the advantages of the joint solution: “The Asian super apps are a real game changer for the retail, gastronomy, culture and event industries. With the China Solution, we offer an uncomplicated integration of this sales channel into the various business models. The enormous range of functions, especially of WeChat, is difficult for Europeans to understand. Because we have nothing comparable. We therefore provide full and strategic support: in setting up a profile, entering the products in the shop, with translations, a reservation tool, tailor-made promotional measures and in customer contact.”
With the China Solution, tourists are not one-time customers either: “Thanks to the full-service package and the e-commerce connection, German retailers can also be present in the living rooms of Chinese users and record purchases,” explains Stephan Schmidt, Key Account Manager at VR Payment.
From Münster to Salzburg: the China Solution in action
The China Solution is suitable for every industry and company size: whether it is a souvenir shop, tourist attraction, luxury retail chain, amusement park, café or hotel. The traditional inn Der Pschorr, the Salzburg fashion boutique Diva, the jewelry manufacturer Niessing and the cult club P1 in Munich show what possibilities the solution offers.
The Pschorr increases sales
Der Pschorr in Munich is a popular restaurant among Germans. However, Chinese guests were less likely to visit the restaurant in the past. Since the beginning of 2024, Der Pschorr has been using the China Solution thanks to advice from Munich Bank, VR Payment and WeRetail. This allows guests to pay via WeChat Pay and Alipay. The solution also includes the opening of a customized Alipay storefront, i.e. a virtual shop window, and a WeChat Official Account with its own website and menu translated into Chinese. The partners also supported the integration into the online reservation and ordering systems that are specifically geared towards Chinese customers.
Salzburg fashion boutique Diva strengthens customer loyalty
Chinese customers pay conveniently via QR code in the Salzburg fashion boutique Diva and can also find out information digitally in their familiar WeChat environment and shop in the e-shop. To do this, Diva uses so-called WeChat mini programs, i.e. apps within the WeChat app that are automatically ready for use without additional downloads. In this way, the boutique can build strong customer loyalty in the long term – even when the shoppers have long since returned to their home country. This is because they can buy the products they want via WeChat at any time and take advantage of the promotions, for example on Chinese holidays.
Inspire Asian travellers with jewellery craftsmanship
The Niessing jewelry manufacturer has implemented various cashless payment solutions from VR Payment in both its stationary stores and online. The North Rhine-Westphalian company attracts international customers who value traditional craftsmanship, including from Asia. Every Niessing branch is connected to the Asian payment platforms Alipay and WeChat Pay. Volksbank Gronau-Ahaus presented this additional offer in the initial meeting when Niessing was looking for a new house bank in 2020 – and convinced them with its expertise in international payment methods. The whole story of the collaboration can be found in the podcast with Rudolf Scheben , the managing director of the Niessing jewelry cooperation.
Club visit in P1 digitally expanded
Guests from all over the world come to celebrate in the Munich club P1 – including Chinese visitors. With the Munich bank and the payment experts from VR Payment, the P1 implemented the common Chinese payment methods in the club. Together, the partners also set up a WeChat online store and implemented a suitable marketing strategy. For example, Chinese travelers in Munich are automatically contacted via push notification on WeChat and Alipay and directed to the club. “I’ve long wanted to try out how to position a German club brand in the Chinese super apps,” says Sebastian Goller, Managing Director of P1 . “The possibilities and connections that arise through the China Solution are almost limitless.” WeChat and Alipay users share and evaluate their experiences in real time, give tips to their digital environment and become important multipliers.
Portfolio analysis: Where is the potential?
Corporate customers in German cities or tourist destinations in particular benefit from the targeted approach to Asian travelers, business people and expats. “The label ‘Made in Germany’ is in demand in China,” says Michaela Lux, Head of Sales at VR Payment. “We should leverage this potential together with the retail, catering, leisure and cultural sectors.”
