40% of the Brazilian workforce is made of informal workers. They are street sellers, beach vendors, food stand owners: millions of informal sellers, Mercado Pago's biggest target. Usually they don’t accept credit cards, because card companies charge them a fee per sale. That’s why a new payment method called PIX was a revolution to them. It’s free of taxes and 100% of the money goes instantly to the vendor's accounts. They only need to inform their customers of their PIX number, but there’s a problem: it’s a huge number. Mercado Pago – the biggest fintech company in Latin America – is all about making finances easier and more accessible. So, our goal was to simplify this charging process and get more sellers to open a Mercado Pago digital account along the way.

PIX is a payment method that was launched in Brazil in 2020 and it stirred the informal economy. By charging with PIX, the money goes instantly to the vendor’s account, no fees. They just need to inform their customers of the PIX number. Which is, by the way, a huge number. Hard to memorize, to write it down, to say it out loud. So, Mercado Pago transformed the seller's PIX numbers into personalized QR Codes. For each Pix number, a different QR Code was generated. Then, we put those QR Codes into clothing and accessories that sellers already use everyday to work: t-shirts, hats, aprons, badges, bags, etc. That way, customers only need to point their phones at the seller's uniform to scan the QR Code and pay using PIX. And to get their PIX Collection items, sellers only needed to open a free Mercado Pago digital account.

Mercado Pago’s target audience is made of small business owners and small entrepreneurs. They’re people who sell their products on the sidewalks, street markets, beaches, train stations, bus terminals, and that, until 2020, accepted mainly cash as payment. Credit card companies usually charge a fee per sale and take days to transfer the amount to the vendor’s bank account, and these are people who need money on the spot. When PIX was launched, it quickly became our audience’s first option of charging. It has become a cultural habit for sellers to handwrite their huge PIX numbers on signs, pieces of paper, and styrofoam boxes, which are difficult to read and get old really fast. So, Mercado Pago decided to make PIX even easier to get more sellers to open a digital free account and, of course, to boost their sales.

First, Mercado Pago generated hundreds of thousands of QR Codes. Then, we printed each one of these QR Codes on a clothing or accessory item: t-shirt, hat, apron, bag, badge. Each item was an individual print, because each QR Code was unique. Once the Pix Collection was ready, the distribution phase started. On TV, radio, social and outdoor media, we let sellers know about our collection and where it would be available. At the same time, Mercado Pago did activations where our sellers are: street markets, beaches, train stations, bus terminals in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. Promoters delivered the collection for free, helped sellers to open a Mercado Pago digital account and associate the QR Code on the clothing with their PIX number. From then on, customers only needed to scan the QR Codes and the payment was instantly deposited on the seller’s Mercado Pago account.

Mercado Pago created a unique and effective selling experience: we improved how small sellers charge their customers, making it easier and faster. Now, sellers get their money instantly on their Mercado Pago digital account and customers can pay in the most practical way: by scanning the code. Pix Collection was an instant hit. 100% of the Pix Collection kits were delivered to sellers in only 3 days. 84% of QR Codes were activated and put to use and Mercado Pago’s new customer rate was increased by 16%.