The card terminals that my workplace uses requires that the customer presses ‘confirm’ to make sure that their total is correct prior to charging their card. Pretty simple, right? The card terminal clearly indicates that the customer needs to confirm. Unfortunately, this isn’t how it plays out in practice.
In practice, it goes something like this:
*terminal says to confirm the total is $10.53*
Customer: It says I need to confirm the total
Me: Uh huh.
Customer: So what do I press?
Me: Umm, is there a problem with your total?
Customer: No
Me: Then push confirm 🤡
Why can’t people follow simple directions? It’s written in plain English on the screen.
What does the actual screen look like?
It’s your typical card reader screen, with a contactless payment option.
Hmmm, I’ve used them then.
I can say that while we aren’t confused by the intent, there are some that would be because confirm’s word usage can be where you confirm with another source, rather than you needing to confirm your agreement.
Like, if I’m confirming an entry in my checkbook ledger, I don’t use the ledger, I use the receipt or the check itself. Some people would default to that usage rather than as “click to agree”.