A majority (72%) of American consumers prefer paper receipts over digital receipts when it comes to their purchases, according to a US survey conducted by Tulchin Research, a public opinion research firm, reports Koehler Paper(part of Koehler Group).
Paper receipts provided many survey respondents with greater confidence concerning their information security, which is just one reason why they do not want paper receipts to disappear. Most (85%) of the Americans interviewed also added that they want to at least have a choice between paper and digital receipts.
The survey, which was initiated by the Paper Receipt Converting Association (PRCA), was based on responses from 1,000 randomly selected adults 18 years or older in the USA. Three out of four survey respondents preferred paper receipts, while only one-fourth preferred a digital receipt sent to their phones by e‐mail or text message.
Meanwhile, eight out of ten American consumers said they wanted to decide themselves which type of receipt they wanted for their purchases and were not interested in having the decision made for them. “These results are surprising since they go against the general trend towards digitalization,” says Koehler America General manager Steve Graves. He further adds, “This development shows that paper receipts are experiencing a renaissance, and I’m pretty sure that these survey results would be nearly identical if we were to survey Europeans instead.”
Koehler Paper believes that getting things on paper is a common practice, as it serves as a purpose of documentation in the event of complaints. Sebastian Früh, Director Thermal Paper Division at Koehler Paper says “On top of all this, Koehler Paper also offers thermal paper made without color developers, which makes it recyclable and better for the environment.”
