The problem many retail businesses have today is they’re too focused on asking the “why” questions, and not the “how.” This same issue rings true when it comes to integrating mobile payments solutions into any company’s brand strategy.
Instead of asking the question of how mobile payments solutions can transform a business, too many businesses are still hung up on the question of why mobile payments matter. In today’s tech-focused, device-driven world, this perspective restricts your company from innovating, being customer-centric and growing in a way that matches today’s trends.
Thanks to advancements in FinTech, mobile apps, mobile card processing and rapidly-growing startups like Payline, now is the time for companies to solidify their mobile payments strategy and learn how and where it can be an integral part of any business’s revenue-generating strategy. There is a strong correlation between mobile and your company’s ability to boost sales, but you won’t understand that concept until you take the mobile payments plunge. Waiting only lets your competition gain an edge with your existing and potential customer base.
Integrating mobile-driven solutions can transform a brand’s connection to customers in a way that hasn’t been possible with any other payment form factor, simply because there were limits with each payment type. Cash, credit cards and ACH payments simply have limits that mobile doesn’t. Particularly as more innovations transform this market, mobile is going to be at the forefront of all you do — and all your customers care about.
On any given day or any given hour, your customer base is already connected to their smartphone. Why not harness the addiction to that device to create a more powerful, seamless payments experience? Better yet? Why not use that device to deliver a dynamic brand experience through things like exclusive offers, mobile receipts, and alerts to special promotions.
When it comes to driving mobile payments adoption, companies should take notes from Kevin Costner’s famous line in the movie, Field of Dreams: “If you build it, they will come.”
If your business offers mobile payments solutions, customers will have the opportunity to build a stronger connection with your brand, become loyal brand ambassadors and likely become repeat customers. Customers want to be empowered during the buying experience, which means having the choice of how they want to pay. They also want the payments experience to be fun, which is why there’s been so much emphasis on the “gamification” of payments. Mobile solutions also give you the ability to customize your brand in a way that matches specifically what your customers want. Setting yourself apart in today’s competitive ecosystem means delivering an experience that no other company can match (emphasis on experience).
Mobile Payments Solutions and Creating an ‘Invisible’ Payments Experience
Your customers today are equipped with all the technology they need to power a dynamic payments experience at the touch of their fingertips, literally, which is why you should build your payments strategy to think through an omnichannel lens. Whether your customer is paying online, in-store or via a mobile device, the payments experience should be identical.
As shown by Amazon’s emergence from eCommerce into the brick-and-mortar world, mobile and digital aren’t limited to one type of payments platform. In the case of Amazon, however, paying in-store is similar to checking out of their website: No need for cashiers, and the ability to pay without having a credit card nearby. In either instance, the common denominator is the ability to check out with ease.
Companies should focus on delivering a payments experience that can be done with the touch of a button, or a swipe of a fingerprint. Customers not only desire that experience today, they demand it. If your business isn’t fostering that ability, your customers will find another place to shop. It was this very concept that allowed Amazon to become the retail behemoth they’ve become today — dominating the in-store, online and in-app commerce world.
By integrating mobile payments solutions into the checkout experience, your business is far more likely to boost conversions. Why? The same reason people buy more on Amazon. The one-click checkout experience makes the process fast, seamless and secure, and is the same each time.
Businesses today need to think less about the physical constraints of reaching customers and more about how relying on technology like mobile payments solutions — and payment enablement partners like Payline — can empower your company to interact with your customers on their turf, their time and using whatever device they prefer to conduct business through. From there, you can open your company up to a world of possibilities that will continue to grow as more mobile payments solutions are introduced into the market.
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Anna Kragie is a content contributor for Payline Data. She previously wrote for PYMNTS.com, as a Sr. Content Producer, where she focused on financial services and payments innovation, fraud and security, emerging payments, and FinTech news, research and thought-leadership content across the payments industry.
