What is AvtaleGiro? All You Need to Know About Norwegian Direct Debit

Businesses, organisations, and consumers worldwide have fully embraced digital payments, adapting to new payment methods and transitioning to digital wallets. It’s no surprise that credit and debit cards have emerged as the most popular and widely adopted payment options, with millions of people actively participating in the “cashless society”. However, even as card payments and instant transactions dominate the Nordic market, direct debit still plays an important role in the Nordic payment ecosystem. According to Norges Bank, AvtaleGiro ranks as the third most popular payment method in Norway, boasting the highest transaction value among payment methods.

So what exactly is AvtaleGiro?

AvtaleGiro, the Norwegian equivalent of direct debit, stands as a highly favoured payment service that streamlines recurring payments. This system automates the settlement of bills, subscription fees, insurance premiums, and other routine expenses. By doing so, it liberates customers from the hassle of manually processing monthly payments, simplifies financial planning, and ensures a consistent revenue flow for businesses. AvtaleGiro mandates can be initiated either by the payer or the payee, providing flexibility and convenience for all parties involved.

If your business operates on a subscription-based model, offering products or services on a monthly or quarterly basis, consider incorporating AvtaleGiro as one of the payment options available to customers. 

How does AvtaleGiro mandate set-up work?

1. Agreement setup: To establish a new AvtaleGiro mandate, customers must create an agreement with the product or service provider to which they wish to make regular payments. If you’re an organisation that operates on a subscription-based model, you can seamlessly integrate AvtaleGiro into your payment processes through Waytobill’s subscription engine (scroll down for more information). 
2. Payment authorisation: Customers opt for AvtaleGiro as their preferred payment method and set up the mandate by logging into their BankID account. From there, they select the specific bank account that will be used for recurring withdrawals. 
3. Automatic payments: When the payment due date arrives, the amount specified on the invoice is automatically withdrawn from the customer’s designated bank account, with no need for any additional action. 
4. Notification: Customers can choose to be notified about the upcoming payment so that they can review the bill and ensure that they have sufficient funds in their account. 

Why use AvtaleGiro with Waytobill’s subscription engine?

Apart from being a convenient payment method for recurring bills and payments, AvtaleGiro is also a powerful payment system that ensures payment punctuality and precision. 

Integrating your company with AvtaleGiro can mean investing time and money. But the good news is that at Waytobill we’ve got you covered! Waytobill’s subscription engine is directly integrated with AvtaleGiro, giving you a head start and saving precious time and costs of setting up your own integration. Thanks to our seamless solution you will be able to sign customers up for recurring payments and subscriptions just with a few clicks. Besides you will be able to:

• Increase conversion rates: Seamless payment methods make it easier for customers to sign up for subscriptions and set up payments. The easier the payment process the fewer barriers for the customers. With Waytobill’s online checkout, your customers will be able to complete the registration process and payment seamlessly.
• Reduce involuntary churn rates: Involuntary churn is a major problem for subscription products and services operating with manual payments. Subscribers often forget to make the payment or do it after the due date, often ending up with involuntarily cancelled orders and product or service subscriptions. 
• Increase retention rates and customer lifetime value: Lower churn rates have a direct–and positive–impact on businesses’ retention rates and customer lifetime value. By implementing AvtaleGiro you significantly increase the chances of improving retention rates and CLV, since you eliminate the high possibility of late and missed payments. 
• Allocate staff time to other tasks: When dealing with manual payments, your team spends a lot of their precious time on cross-checking payments, following up on missed and late payments and processing cancelled orders. With Waytobill’s AvtaleGiro there is no more need for manual payment processing. 
• Better control cash flow and manage financial planning: With a steady cash flow and regular revenue coming in, organisations can make well-informed purchasing and investment decisions since they can easily predict next month’s income. 

How to use AvtaleGiro in sales?

AvtaleGiro is a payment method that can be used in all sales channels:

• Telesales: Waytobill enables businesses and organisations to offer AvtaleGiro as a payment method even when using telesales. After receiving verbal agreements from prospective subscribers, telesales agents send out payment links to the prospects’ mobile phones. The links redirect the user to an online checkout that is pre-filled with all customer information available in the sales system. Customers review their order and personal details and proceed to choose AvtaleGiro as their preferred payment method. Find out more about our telesales checkout. 
• Online: If you sell your subscription services or products online, opt for Waytobill’s online checkout and sign up customers for recurring payments with AvtaleGiro. Find out more about our online checkout. 
• Field sales: Field sales are quite popular with businesses with a subscription model, as well as non-profit organisations that look to find new financial supporters. You may know by now that potential customers and donors are not willing to share personal information on the street. Instead, invite them to use their mobile phone to scan a QR code that will redirect them to an online checkout that they can fill out at their own convenience. Find out more about our payment solution for field sales.

Why is AvtaleGiro better than credit or debit card payments?

AvtaleGiro offers several advantages over traditional credit or debit card payments. One key benefit is the elimination of issues related to card expiry dates. Unlike cards that require periodic updates due to expiration, AvtaleGiro operates seamlessly without the need for customers to update their payment information. This improves retention rates and customer lifetime value since involuntary churn is eliminated, while customers can enjoy the product or service without potential disruptions. 

AvtaleGiro’s reliability and ease of use make it a compelling choice for businesses and customers seeking a hassle-free and dependable payment method. Would you like to find out more about AvtaleGiro and Waytobill’s subscription engine? Contact us today!