The mobile revolution has been coming for a long time. And now that it is here, many in the tech field are predicting the abandonment of current payment methods in favor of mobile payment systems like Apple Pay. But so far, this has not been the case. Consumers are still using the same payment methods of the past – mostly debit and credit cards, even when they have the option to use mobile payment processes. Does this mean that mobile payment is going to be a dud? Or have consumers just not gotten used to it yet?
According to InfoScout/PYMNTS Apple Pay Transaction Tracker, over 85 percent of consumers who can use Apple Pay decide to use another means of payment, or just forget that they can use mobile. Some mobile payments professionals note that consumers are going to need time to migrate away from comfortable forms of payment, even though companies like PayPal and Google have offered mobile wallets for years that people still aren’t using.
Some mobile payment companies have decided to meet consumers in the middle. SWYP is a mobile payments platform that focuses on an electronic mag stripe that lets users keep up to 25 pay cards or loyalty cards onto one programmable device. In other words, consumers no longer need to carry around wallets, only the device. Although there are already a variety or programmable mag stripe cards on the market, the next step in the evolution of these cards is one that uses consumer shopping behavior, and predicts which cards consumers will use at certain establishments.
SWYP says their card is unique because it notices patterns of buying behavior and payment methods, and can even match these with certain times of the day. So after consumer patterns are identified, SWYP will even shuffle the cards consumers will use at a particular place, at a specific time of day to the top.
Security concerns may also be a reason that consumers are sticking to what they know. Despite the recent security breaches of top retailers in the nation, consumers still prefer to use plastic. This preference may be solidified with the new EMV chip capabilities that will drastically help to reduce fraud.
Google, Apple, PayPal and Samsung have all made mobile wallets for consumers. Is your high risk business ready to process these types of payments? eMerchantBroker.com is the number one payment processor that handles both good and bad credit merchant accounts.
