Author: Denny

Mobile payments software deployments just revealed by Isis

| September 11, 2013

A number of software providers and payment terminal manufacturers have just agreed to integration.

According to an announcement from Isis, a number of new terminal manufacturers and software providers have now committed to integrate the Isis SmartTap mobile payments option into their own products.

This is considerable news as Isis has also recently revealed that it intends to launch nationwide this year.

The SmartTap protocol is only the latest of the proprietary mobile payments software specifications being used by this smartphone wallet service for leveraging NFC technology. These deployments are expected to cover a broad range of different offerings at the point of sale, according to Isis. This includes everything from unattended solutions such as vending, to point of sale terminals with high end integration.

Isis mobile payments users will be able to pay at a terminal or NFC reader that is supported.

Isis Mobile PaymentsWhen the SmartTap protocol is supported by a payment terminal or an NFC reader, it makes it possible for users of the Isis mobile payments wallet service to be able to pay for their purchases, redeem offers, and present loyalty cards within a single transaction, using a smartphone.

According to the Isis chief sales officer, Jim Stapleton, in a news release that was recently issued, “NFC is the international standard for mobile payments.” Stapleton added that “The proliferation of SmartTap capabilities at the point of sale takes mobile payments one step further, providing rich commerce features that offer an effortless consumer experience and drive engagement and loyalty in a way previously not possible.”

Providers that support the capabilities of SmartTap are making it possible to enable mobile payments and commerce in a broad spectrum of different environments, such as at gas pumps, public transit systems, vending machines, taxi cabs, supermarkets, retail stores, and restaurants.

Among the latest partners that are integrating the mobile payments capabilities of SmartTap into their product lines are On Track Innovations Global, Uniform Industrial Corp, PAX Technology, ID TECH, and XAC Automation corp. Those that have already integrated the capabilities into their point of sale offerings include VeriFone, Gilbarco Veeder-Root, Equinox Payments, Ingenico, and Wayne, A GE Energy Business.

Mobile commerce plays a growing role in back to school shopping

| September 5, 2013

Shoppers heading out for supplies at the beginning of the school year have been increasingly using smartphones.

According to a new Back to School Shopping: 2013 Trends mobile commerce report that was released by Placed, Inc., almost half of all parents who own smartphones used their devices to help them to find discounts such as coupons while they were shopping for school supplies for their children, this year.

The report also indicated that many of the parents were actually making their purchases on their smartphones.

Its estimates showed that over 20 percent of parents who owned smartphones actually purchased school supplies through mobile commerce. These statistics are providing a great deal of insight into the current trends, as well as those that may be expected over the holiday season, this year.

The mobile commerce survey was based on the feedback of more than 12,000 smartphone owners.

Mobile Commerce reportEach of the participants had at least one child. Beyond discovering that mobile commerce shopping activity has increased, it also underscored the growing value of the showrooming trend, which had previously been seen as a threat to brick and mortar stores.

It revealed that nearly two in every five smartphone using parents used their smartphones for mobile commerce purchases, but also used “showrooming” behaviors to view their products in physical stores before performing online research to make sure that they found the precise item they want, and at the best price.

Brick and mortar shops have previously felt threatened by showrooming, feeling worried that they would lose their business to the competition while shoppers were standing under their roofs. However, that doesn’t seem to be the way that mobile commerce works. Among the surveyed parents, 35 percent had accessed retailer apps or websites from their smartphones while in those specific stores. This suggests that showrooming can help to lead to solidified brand loyalty.

That said, the survey also showed that some retail shops were more effective than others at appealing to the mobile commerce loving parents. One of the more successful players, for example, was Macy’s, which has a highly mobile friendly experience, and where parents with smartphones were 20 percent more likely to visit a physical store than the average customer regardless of device use.