Age-restricted products like nicotine, alcohol, and lottery tickets are cornerstones of convenience store sales. With an average of 54 million age-restricted transactions every day (excluding lottery), c-stores look at more IDs than any other industry, so having a reliable system for age verification is paramount.
TruAge, a digital age verification tool from nonprofit TruAge Solutions, seeks to be “the universal form of age verification that protects retailers and provides the most convenient and privacy-minded method for consumers,” said Stephanie Sikorski, vice president of marketing for NACS. The technology anonymizes a consumer’s information and, when scanned, verifies that their credentials are valid, confirms the customer is of age, and logs proof that the verification took place into the POS system.
With myriad benefits for retailers and consumers alike, here are five reasons the time is right to implement TruAge.
- Developed For the Industry, By the Industry
There is no shortage of tools on the market from tech companies looking to lead the transition—but only one has been developed by the convenience industry.
Conceived by NACS in partnership with its standards organization Conexxus, the TruAge system is a direct response to its users’ needs, explained Paul Ziv, vice president of technology and operations for TruAge Solutions. “As the future of age verification inevitably and rapidly trends digital, TruAge aims to ensure that the industry has a seat at the table and a clear path to better age verification.”
TruAge Solutions advocates for age verification on behalf of the convenience channel by forming relationships with Apple, Google, and WC3 (the consortium that sets web standards) for digital wallet integration. It also works with state and local government entities to collaborate on both existing and future integrations for the industry and beyond, added Ziv.
- One with the Digital Ecosystem
Technology is consistently evolving at quick speeds, and consumers certainly aren’t slow to adopt new tech. C-stores need to keep up.
“As we move deeper into the digital realm where everybody is using their phones for tap-to-pay and digital identification systems like states’ mobile driver licenses (mDLs), the c-store industry needs a solution that can plug in and be part of the existing ecosystem,” Ziv said. “It’s not just that we’re trying to catch up with technology trends to accommodate the ‘next generation’ of customers; it’s that we’re working to help ensure that the industry is at the forefront of it all.”
Fourteen states and counting already use mDLs, which are digital drivers’ licenses provisioned by the state’s governing body directly to a mobile device. TruAge does not replace mDLs but works in accordance with them, adding a layer of benefits like consumer protection on top.
- A Ubiquitous and Tech-Agnostic Solution
As various digital tools become more prevalent, digital age verification will become more of the norm, Ziv said. The way to make it easiest for retailers and consumers, he said, is to have a universal standard that works with all point-of-sale (POS) systems and solution providers. “The goal is for TruAge to be ubiquitous.”
The technology that powers TruAge is designed to eventually integrate with mDLs or the technology that powers them like Google Pay and Apple Wallet. “We’re working to maintain an open standard,” Ziv explained.
Although TruAge’s own app has several hundred thousand downloads already, the anonymized digital TruAge “token” that can be scanned by a POS system can be as simple as a QR code integrated into a retailer’s loyalty program app, for instance.
Major providers like Verifone, Clover, Pinnacle, and Minor Decliner already integrate with TruAge, with Invenco by GVR (formerly Gilbarco) and Toast coming soon. TruAge is designed to work seamlessly across transactions, both in person and when used with online and delivery.
- It Removes Friction at the Register
While integration with major POS providers will make age verification simpler for retailers, it also goes a long way for customers. “Our goal is to help facilitate or even accelerate a faster and more frictionless checkout experience for the industry,” said Ziv.
When it comes to catering to the consumer, the less friction during the transaction, the better, Ziv added. Compared with physical identification cards stuffed away in a customer’s wallet, or even another digital age verification system buried within a password-protected mobile app, a TruAge QR code scan is designed to be at consumers’ fingertips, especially when they already likely have their phones in hand, Ziv added.
- It’s Free
TruAge is completely free for retailers. “Retailers have already struggled with paying credit card [interchange] swipe fees for decades,” Sikorski said. “TruAge, unlike some other digital age verification systems, will absolutely be staying away from any type of per-transaction or per-scan cost.”
To learn more about TruAge and see the product in action, visit the Future of Convenience booth (C3380) at the NACS Show this October 7-10 in Las Vegas.