Accept Payments With QR Codes: A Guide for Shops and Market Vendors

Every trader knows the daily headaches of cash: no change for a UGX 50,000 note, a fake note discovered at the end of the day, counting mistakes, and the worry of carrying the day's takings home. A QR code on your counter solves all of these, and it costs you nothing to set up. This guide explains how QR payments work, how to set them up, how to get customers using them, and how to avoid fraud.

How QR payments work

1. Your customer opens EriPay and taps Scan QR (or Make Payment).
2. They point the camera at your QR code. Your business name appears on their screen.
3. They type the amount and confirm with their Wallet PIN.
4. The money lands in your business wallet instantly, and you receive a notification.

The whole thing takes less time than counting change.

Set it up in minutes

1. Register your business on EriPay with your business name and contact details.
2. Complete verification so your business can receive payments.
3. Open your merchant workspace and find your QR payment code.
4. Download and print it. Laminate it or put it in a stand so it survives rain and dust.
5. Place it where customers can scan it easily, at eye level near where they pay.

Benefits for your business

• No change problems: customers pay the exact amount.
• No fake notes and no counting errors.
• Safer: less cash in the drawer and nothing to carry home at night.
• Automatic records: every sale is in your history with the time and amount.
• Any network: customers who use MTN or Airtel can all pay you through EriPay.
• Faster queues: no waiting while you look for change.

Who benefits most

• Market vendors and roadside stalls
• Pharmacies and clinics
• Salons, barbershops and tailors
• Restaurants, cafés and bars
• Hardware and phone accessory shops
• Delivery riders, who can carry a printed QR card

Getting customers to use it

• Make it visible. Add a sign: "Pay with EriPay: scan here".
• Mention it at the till. "You can scan to pay" is enough.
• Tell regulars about free transfers. Customers who sign up get a welcome bonus and can send to friends free up to UGX 20,000.
• Help first-timers. Show them where Scan QR is in the app.

Avoiding fraud

• Always wait for your own notification before handing over goods. A customer's screen showing "success" is not proof; screenshots can be faked.
• Check the amount in your notification matches the sale.
• Watch for stickers. Check now and then that nobody has covered your QR code with another one.

What it costs

Customers pay no extra fee. You pay a small percentage on payments received, shown in your merchant workspace. Compare that with the real costs of cash: fake notes, theft, counting time and trips to the bank.

Using your takings

Money in your business wallet can pay suppliers directly, buy stock, pay staff through bulk payouts, go into a Savings Goal for expansion, or be withdrawn to mobile money, your bank, or as cash at an agent. Keeping business money in its own wallet also shows you clearly whether the business is making a profit.

Register your business on EriPay today.