Mobile payments are expected to increase, and several factors drive this trend. These include convenience, the possibility to earn rewards, discounts, and special offers, and the ability to receive alerts and electronic receipts.

Mobile payment technology also changes how consumers shop for goods and services and businesses operate. This is why brands need to be aware of the evolving landscape and what they can do to offer their customers an optimal experience.

Wallets

Wallets are digital tools that enable consumers to store payment and other personal information online. These tools are growing in popularity and are available at millions of retailers worldwide.

They’re also convenient for businesses, as they can speed up checkout and encourage customers to complete their purchases. This can help reduce cart abandonment and improve conversion rates.

These types of mobile payment options also offer security features such as user authentication and biometrics. This can benefit merchants that collect customer data for marketing purposes, allowing them to target their audiences more effectively.

Mobile wallet payments accounted for $75 billion in 2016 and are expected to reach over $500 billion by 2020. This represents an annual growth of 80% in five years.

Wallets are expected to grow in popularity as they become more convenient for users. They’re also likely to expand their functionality and integrate more security features. This will make it more difficult for scammers to steal sensitive personal information.

P2P

Peer-to-peer (P2P) apps let users transfer funds to each other without the need for physical cash. This allows faster and easier transactions between friends, coworkers, and family members.

P2P services also offer more privacy and anonymity than traditional payment platforms. This is because a P2P network uses a distributed system that allows users to send information across multiple devices without a central server.

A famous example of a P2P service is PayPal, which allows users to send and request money, make online purchases, and transfer funds to bank accounts. It is available in over 200 countries and has over 277 million active users.

Transferring money can vary between P2P services, but it typically requires users to link their bank accounts. Some services use ACH transfers, which may take a few days to transfer to a connected account, while others offer real-time payment networks that share funds instantly.

While peer-to-peer services can be an effective way for people to transfer money, they must be used cautiously. While most have strong fraud protections, scam artists can still exploit users by sending fraudulent funds to their accounts.

Mobile Point of Sale (mPOS)

Mobile point-of-sale systems can be a great addition to your business. They offer several advantages, including improved employee communication and better data management.

They are also a cost-effective option, especially compared to traditional point-of-sale systems. The system is significantly cheaper and doesn’t require purchasing a new cash register or paying a monthly maintenance fee.

Using an mPOS can also make it easier to track and manage inventory. You can send alerts when stock is low and automatically order products when needed.

It can even help you improve customer loyalty by generating POS reports showing customers their purchase history. These can then be used to build customer profiles to increase repeat sales and retention.

MPOS can also limit a business’s liability by keeping the information secure. This is crucial for protecting your customers’ trust in your business and limiting the risk of theft or fraud.

Near Field Communication (NFC)

Near-field communication is a technology that allows mobile devices to share information with other NFC-enabled devices, like a smartphone or RFID-enabled credit cards. NFC uses an inductive coupling process, which means it can connect to another compact device (compared to Bluetooth, which requires a much larger distance between devices).

While most consumers know about NFC as the technology that lets them pay retailers with their phones, this short-range communication technology also has other benefits. For one, it requires less power than Bluetooth, which makes it great for passive devices such as advertising tags.

The technology also has applications in home monitoring. For example, NFC wristbands could let patients track their vital signs without needing a medical professional to check them.

As NFC technology becomes increasingly ubiquitous, it will have an even more comprehensive range of applications. Whether sharing files, buying goods, or paying for services, NFC-enabled devices will have an ever-expanding role in our lives. Marketers need to start imagining what NFC could offer their businesses and how they can use it.

Contactless Payments

Contactless payments are a fast and straightforward way to pay without swiping or entering a PIN. The technology relies on radio frequency identification (RFID) and near-field communication (NFC).

Consumers use contactless cards or mobile phone apps to pay using a retailer’s point-of-sale terminal. The terminal displays a special symbol that indicates whether it accepts contactless payments.

Once a customer hovers their card or mobile device over the contactless reader, the information transmits to their bank via the contactless reader’s microchip. The bank then completes the transaction.

The benefits of this payment method include faster checkout and greater security. xIt also allows businesses to reduce the amount of cash they carry and the time and cost of maintaining and handling the money.

Credit card issuers are moving quickly to adopt this technology as it delivers value for all players involved. For retailers, it provides a more efficient and secure checkout experience; for issuing banks, it means more revenue from low-value transactions; and for consumers, it’s fast, convenient, and accessible.