Google announces Spot Platform to help small businesses with payments

Google today announced a new Spot Platform in an effort to push small businesses into adopting Google Pay as a method of payment. The new platform will allow small businesses to develop their storefronts online without the hassle of building apps and websites.

Google is calling this “customized and branded experiences”. The system will enable users to list out their items on Google Pay and customers can easily use Google Pay to buy and pay for the goods. Google is also allowing businesses to put Spot Codes in their physical stores. These codes will allow users to scan and use the virtual storefront and even pay for the goods with ease.

In their blog post, Google also talked about the bankend setup of Spot Platform which Google claims is easy and requires just a couple of lines of Javascript. Google is also using their Order API which will provide real-time tracking for delivery orders, and the Messaging API which can surface relevant messages post checkout to the user.

A Spot is a digital front for a business that is created, branded and hosted by them, and powered by Google Pay. Users can discover a Spot online or at a physical location, and transact with the merchant easily and securely within the Google Pay app. The Google Pay app also surfaces the relevant Spot to the user when they need it, directly on the homescreen. This means that someone’s favourite restaurant Spot might show up around lunchtime, or the cab booking Spot might show up before your morning commute. Users can also easily share a Spot on the Google Pay app or on their favorite messaging app.

– Google

To kick things off, Google is partnering with six brands which include eat.fit, goibibo, Oven Story, Make my Trip, RedBus and UrbanClap. Google is also allowing other companies and businesses to register for the service and if you’re interested then you can do so by clicking here.