Paper receipts preferred by consumers

prwhite

Administrator
Staff member
Independent research has revealed the majority of North American consumers prefer paper receipts over digital alternatives. The research—conducted by global polling company Toluna—surveyed 2,508 consumers across the US and Canada, finding that 71% of respondents prefer paper receipts over digital alternatives and 77% in the US believe paper receipts are more practical for returning goods.

Seventy percent (70%) of US consumers and two thirds (64%) of Canadian consumers surveyed said they were concerned that giving retailers their personal information, such as email and postal addresses, put them at a greater risk of being hacked. Many (62% of US and 61% of Canadians) were also worried that their transactional history may be used for unsolicited marketing activity.

Despite an overwhelming preference for paper receipts, many consumers are concerned about paper’s impact on the environment, but underestimate the impact of digital receipts: 56% of US / 55% of Canadian consumers believe digital receipts are better for the environment; and 49% of US / 44% of Canadians surveyed believe that sending emails has no environmental impact at all.

The study finds, in reality, total emissions generated by worldwide emails is estimated to be 300 million tons of CO2 a year: equivalent to the annual emissions of 63 million cars. On balance, “Sustainably managed forests breathe for the Earth, absorbing carbon dioxide and producing oxygen. By storing carbon generated from fossil fuels, forests help to regulate the global climate: absorbing nearly 40% of fossil-fuel emissions.”
 
But the real question is how much of the paper used to print receipts is actually sourced from sustainably managed forests? Seems a bit disingenuous to claim paper receipts are better for the environment than digital receipts just because those kinds of forests exist. What if my email servers are powered by wind energy? =)
 
Our front counter POS system has a display facing the customer that offers a choice of a paper receipt, email receipt or text receipt. Text is the most popular followed by email. Very few choose a paper receipt.
 
Funny, because I read this the other day about most paper receipts. https://www.newsweek.com/hand-sanit...hand,hand sanitizer before touching receipts.

From the article you linked to:

"The resulting blood levels of BPA were "well within the range wherein the risk for a whole range of nasty conditions, from type II diabetes to angina and heart attacks to obesity and liver abnormalities" is increased, vom Saal tells Newsweek."

I had thought that those ailments were caused by eating too much fast food, fizzy drinks and Twinkies/Ding Dongs, and Snowballs.

Food.jpg


There are going to be a great many people relieved to be able to go back to scarfing down those essential nutrients knowing that they may indulge as long as they do not wash their hands before touching paper receipts.
 

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