How to grow your payments app with water kiosks and water points
By SendPay Business · · 2 min read
In many towns and villages, households buy their drinking water from a kiosk or a community water point rather than a tap at home. Each jerrycan costs very little, so kiosk attendants handle hundreds of tiny payments a day, often in coins, and the owners, water committees or utilities have to collect and count it all. A payments app that lets people pay for water by phone, buy credit in advance and lets owners see every day's takings without counting cash can win water kiosks, and every household that fetches water sees your app.
Talk to water kiosk operators
Ask local water kiosk operators:
- How do people pay for water today, and how much cash do you handle each day?
- Who collects the takings, and how often does money go missing?
- Do any households, schools or businesses buy water regularly or in bulk?
- How do you pay for repairs, pumps and electricity?
Let people pay by phone
Letting households pay for each jerrycan by phone, or scan a code at the kiosk, means fewer coins to count and a record of every sale.
Offer prepaid water credit
Households, schools and small businesses can top up credit in advance and draw it down as they collect water, which smooths income for the kiosk.
Grow through water committees and operators
Many kiosks are run by water committees, community groups or small operators with several sites. Win one of them and every kiosk they run, and every household that uses it, comes with it.
Build it
Create your own financial platform.
Pick a template, name it, brand it, preview every page before you pay. Your brand, your users, your fees.
Build my platform →Questions people ask
What about water delivery?
The water and gas delivery sellers guide covers sellers who deliver drinking water and cooking gas and get paid at the door, often in cash.
Water and gas delivery sellers →What about borehole drillers?
The borehole and well drillers guide covers deposits before a rig is sent out and stage payments as drilling, casing and pump fitting are done.
Borehole and well drillers →Can I call it a bank?
In most countries "bank" is a protected word you can only use with a banking licence. Call it an account, a wallet, an app or a platform. The accounts and payments behind a SendPay Business platform are powered by licensed partners.
Is there a step-by-step plan I can follow?
Yes. The free launch checklist takes you from picking your people and naming your app to setting fees, going live and winning your first ten customers.
Digital bank app launch checklist →How do I start?
Pick a template, name it and preview every page before you pay. Your platform can be live on your own domain within 24 hours of confirmation.
Build my platform →Read next
This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. SendPay Business is a technology company, not a bank, and does not take deposits; regulated services on the platforms are provided by licensed partners. PayPal, Patreon and Substack are named as reference points only and are not affiliated with SendPay Business.