This partnership extends Beyond’s payment processing suite and allows small business owners to accept EMV chip card payments from their mobile devices.

From Tuesday’s announcement:

SwipeSimple is a secure EMV-enabled mobile payment acceptance suite that includes an EMV chip card reader, mobile application for iOS and Android, and a back-office web dashboard for merchants to accept payments and manage their businesses. SwipeSimple provides key layers of security including point to point encryption and a PCI level 1 compliant payment gateway.

With SwipeSimple, merchants will be able to:

• Accept EMV chip card payments on their smartphone or tablet
• Manage their inventory in real-time, leveraging SwipeSimple’s cloud-based inventory and item-tracking
• Adjust tip and tax levels, through an easy to use tip and tax option interface
• Accept payments without cellular data or Wi-Fi by enabling Offline Mode
• Get smart analytics, with SwipeSimple’s comprehensive reporting that enables merchants to make better business decisions

“At Beyond, we are committed to offering tools that meet the needs of business owners. SwipeSimple enables our clients to accept payments securely from their own devices with EMV enabled readers,” said Robert O. Carr, Founder and CEO at Beyond. “Mobile payments with SwipeSimple bring a new addition to our suite of services allowing opportunity for businesses to grow.”

To learn more, click here.

The post Beyond Launches SwipeSimple Mobile Point-of-Sale appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

We’re told that eligible cardholders of participating banks will be able to make payments with Fitbit Pay, Fitbit’s new payment function, when available.

So how does it work?

With Fitbit Pay, Visa and Fitbit are meeting demand amongst the majority of wearable owners who, according to the recent “How We Will Pay” survey* by PYMNTS and Visa, see the opportunity for wearables to improve the way they pay throughout their day with a more secure and seamless cashless payment experience.

Not surprisingly, the continuous rise in mobile connectivity has led to the proliferation of digital payments. And Visa is now in position to make the most of the opportunity at hand.

“Visa continues to focus on delivering the tools and technologies that empower our partners to offer safe, secure and convenient payments to consumers via connected devices,” said Jim McCarthy, executive vice president of innovation and strategic partnerships at Visa Inc. “Partnering with Fitbit on its new Fitbit Pay service is another step forward in the growth of Internet of Things and shows how Visa is enabling companies across the technology industry to help us all move towards a cashless future.”

The post Visa, Fitbit Take Health and Mobile Payments to the Next Level appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

The unveiling came this week at the ARIA Resort and Casino in Las Vegas during Phillip 66’s Momentum: Driven by Excellence conference.

The new platform, we’re told, will connect retail fueling consumers to Phillips 66, Conoco, and 76 locations through a mobile app using a dynamic station finder, enabling a mobile payment wallet and delivering contextual commerce digital offers.

Phillips 66’s GM of Marketing Services Rod Palmer expanded on the new offering in a session with customers, telling them that “We designed our mobile solution to build on top of technology you should already have at your store, and unlike some of our competitors, our offering doesn’t just work at the pump, but inside the store as well. It’s designed to work for all of your business.”

“A company with the innovative spirit of Phillips 66 helps move the entire retail fueling industry forward,” said Donald Frieden, founder and CEO of P97. “P97 is working with Phillips 66 to integrate existing technologies such as their proprietary credit and loyalty programs into a comprehensive mobile commerce platform, creating a seamless commerce experience for consumers.”

We’re told that Phillips 66 is currently testing mobile commerce connected sites in the Texas and Oklahoma regions, with a nationwide rollout planned for 2017 into 2018.

The post New Mobile Platform Fuels Up appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

Visa today announced that Visa Checkout is sustaining tremendous growth, reaching more than 20 million enrolled accounts.

If you’re not familiar, Visa Checkout enables millions of consumers to pay in just a few clicks on any device around the web with some of the world’s top merchants.

“Visa Checkout continues to simplify the online checkout process for consumers, while helping merchants increase sales and convert items in the cart to completed purchases,” says Sam Shrauger, senior vice president, digital solutions, Visa Inc. “Reaching 20 million enrolled accounts is a huge achievement and further affirms Visa Checkout’s purpose of bringing the trust and security of your Visa card to the evolving digital world.”

As consumer adoption of Visa Checkout grows, so too does interest among brand name merchants in joining the platform. Among the merchants who have recently adopted Visa Checkout to improve their online shopping experience in order to increase conversion rates with additional customers include HSN, Alaska Airlines, Avis Budget, Cole Haan, Emirates Airline, FIFA, Marriott, Sam’s Club and Walmart. These new merchants join a growing list of 300,000 merchants, including Best Buy, Starbucks, Papa John’s and StubHub, among others.

“At HSN, we are focused on developing innovative solutions that result in an unparalleled shopping experience,” said Ryan Ross, EVP of Marketing, Digital Commerce and Creative for HSN. “The Visa Checkout integration helped to attract new customers and drive incremental sales across all our platforms as we continue to lead the future of Boundaryless Retail at HSN.”

The post Mobile Milestone Marked By Visa appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

That’s the key takeaway from the new report, which was shared with MMW ahead of the weekend.

The fastest-growing companies are also the most likely to accept mobile payments, finds the just-published global survey of 2,300 companies and consumers.

The “Future of Money” study revealed that among business respondents with annual revenue growth of 11% or more, 43% have an app that supports purchases and payments, compared with 32% of slower-growth businesses.

Mobile payments are also tied to fast profit growth. The online poll, which surveyed 2,000 consumers and 300 business executives in 10 developed and developing regions around the world, found that 43% of businesses whose profits are growing by at least 11% a year offer a payment app. By contrast, just 34% of companies with slower profit growth have such an app. And among firms with zero or negative profit growth, just 8% offer in-app payment capabilities.

While the gap is slightly narrower, 51% of fast growers sell goods and services online, vs. 47% of slower-growth companies.

“These survey findings reinforce the need for companies to make payment innovation an integral piece of their larger growth strategy,” said Peter Olynick, Retail Banking Senior Practice Lead for NTT DATA Consulting, Inc. “Companies should be working to provide a frictionless payment experience by bringing consumers innovative new products and processes. Their efforts will improve customer satisfaction, facilitate cross-border commerce and allow for a more efficient shopping experience.”

To request a copy of the complete report, “The Future of Money,” email FutureofMoney@oxfordeconomics.com.

The post Fast-Growing Companies Favor In-app Purchase, Payment Capabilities for Customers appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

As a marketplace where mobile accounts for over $9 billion a quarter in GMV in 2016, eBay will work with Button to scale and integrate partnerships across today’s growing mobile landscape, a provided statement reads.

We’re told that eBay will be launching across a host of Button Publishers including Huffington Post, loyalty publishers such as Ibotta, and others over the next couple of months.

“Mobile commerce is a significant growth driver for us, and partnering with Button will enable more mobile app partners to quickly integrate shopping on eBay into their apps,” stated John Toskey, Director, Global eBay Partner Network. “Button has developed an elegant, high performing solution that solves challenges for both advertisers and publishers, and we are excited to be partnering with their innovative mobile network.”

The post Mobile Payments Leader Pushes the Right ‘Button’ for Retailers appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

The big hesitation? Millennials worry about identity fraud and general security, according to August, 2016 research by Mitek, a mobile capture and identity verification provider.

True, there is a substantial number of millennial smartphone users in the U.S., Canada, and UK who do regularly transact via mobile (every day, or several times per week). But the most worried of millennials do so perhaps once a month or just a few times per year.

Mitek’s report showed that “one in five said they used their mobile device to pay for things once or twice a month, and 9 percent said they only did so a few times a year. Just 10 percent said they never conducted transactions via mobile.” The percentage citing security concerns was much higher.

“Nearly half of millennial smartphone users in North America and the UK said their concerns about the security of their data were a barrier to conducting more transactions via mobile,” reported eMarketer. “And just as many respondents said they were worried about identity fraud.”

Of course, there are technical issues as well.

“About 20 percent of respondents felt that there were too many steps in the process, and overall, many mentioned that the mobile experience was not good enough to transact via. In fact, more than a quarter felt that the mobile user experience isn’t as good as the desktop experience, and 19 percent felt that the mobile user experience isn’t good as the in-person experience,” according to eMarketer.

The post Millennials Might Pay Via Mobile More, If Security Was More Dependable appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

In the U.S., mobile wallet options include Apple Pay, Android Pay, and Samsung Pay, and branded apps like Starbucks, Walmart Pay, and CVS Pay.

“This year, 38.4 million Americans 14 and over will have used their mobile phones to pay at the point of sale at least once in the preceding six months,” according to eMarketer. “That’s just 19.4 percent of U.S. smartphone users. By 2020, that figure will grow to 33.1 percent of smartphone users.”

What’s the hold up?

“There are several reasons why U.S. consumers aren’t yet making proximity payments en masse,” notes eMarketer analyst Bryan Yeager. “There are still concerns about security, a patchwork of merchant acceptance, and a lack of perceived value in replacing the use of cash or card with the tap or scan of a smartphone.”

Yeager anticipates that those consumer concerns will be addressed in the coming next few years. As a result, mobile pay could surge.

In 2016, proximity mobile payment transactions will grow 183.3 percent to $27.67 billion. Next year, the total could reach $62.49 billion. By 2020, proximity mobile payment transactions are expected to equal $314.13 billion.

“More than 90 percent of U.S. retail sales ($4.45 trillion) will occur in traditional contexts like brick-and-mortar stores this year, which is where consumers primarily make proximity payments,” said Yeager. “Increasing acceptance of proximity payments at a wider array of merchants is pushing average spend via such methods higher, which helps explain why transaction value is growing far faster than the number of users.”

In the meantime, mobile peer-to-peer (P2P) payment apps — think Venmo and Square Cash — have been more widely adopted by consumers. The data shows that 45.8 million adults (about 25 percent of U.S. adult smartphone users) will use a P2P payment app at least once per month.

The post In U.S., Mobile Peer-to-Peer Payment Grows, While Mobile Wallet Action Slower appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

The following is a guest contributed post from Gillian Hughes, VP Corporate Sales at Veoo.

Mobile is fast-becoming the dominant marketing channel for companies across the vast majority of industries. This is largely because mobile adoption can offer businesses, and particularly marketers, who are keen to reach out to potential new customers, with simplicity, speed, and scale. However, these companies should consider the fact that while nearly everyone has a mobile phone these days, this doesn’t mean that everyone uses their mobiles in the same way.

One mobile feature that is becoming an increasingly hot topic is the mobile wallet. More and more consumers are embracing mobile wallets, and why not? Convenience and personalisation are at the core of everything nowadays, especially where technology is concerned, so who wouldn’t want to ditch the traditional wallets that have for so long been crammed into our back pockets or handbags and instead just reach for our mobile phones? Mobile wallets allow us to consolidate the things that we all use on a daily basis – our cash, cards, receipts and vouchers – into the one device that most of us already wouldn’t dream of leaving the house without. Perhaps mobile wallets are therefore a mobile solution that can benefit everyone?

So far, the payment capabilities of mobile wallets has received a lot of attention, but I would argue that the real innovation actually takes place once you move past payments and explore the other possibilities that mobile wallets open up. Only then will you see their potential to deliver true utility to consumers, reduces costs for businesses and ultimately drive more mobile payments.

To illustrate this theory, there have been various recent studies into mobile users’ attitudes, expectations and adoption of mobile wallets, many of which have found that, regardless of age, gender, and location, consumers want to use mobile wallets to communicate with brands about sales, offers, coupons, loyalty programs and more. It’s therefore clear that consumers are on board with the idea of mobile wallets, but it is up to retailers to ensure that their customers have the opportunity to engage in a practical sense.

The shift in how consumers want to interact with retailers and brands means that, now more than ever, content needs to be relevant, personal and useful, but must also remain simple and efficient, in order to avoid the risk of disengagement. Consumers have shown that they are ready, so the ball is now in the retailers’ court to promote the use of mobile wallets and take advantage of this desire for greater engagement. This is well within brands’ interest if they are seeking to drive greater in-store traffic, redemptions and ROI. Furthermore, a common theme in most recent studies into the uptake of mobile wallets is that the vast majority of consumers believe their opinion of a brand would improve if they were given opportunities to save offers and loyalty cards to a mobile wallet.

There is definitely some discrepancy between what consumers want from their mobile wallets and what they actually have in them, but this only suggests to me that the market for a wider range of mobile wallet solutions, which are custom-built achieve the functions that consumers are searching for, is particularly strong.

The top two reasons for lapses in mobile wallet usage are because consumers either forget to use them or are unsure of which merchants accept them, both of which are issues that can be easily resolved if retailers take measures to move mobile wallets to the front of consumers’ minds. If this is something that brands are willing to invest time into, they will ultimately boost their sales, via schemes such as targeted vouchers, rewards and loyalty programs, however the process needs to be made easier and reciprocal benefits are essential.

The bottom line is that retailers will see game-changing results if they take full advantage of the capabilities of mobile wallets, a belief that we hold very strongly at Veoo and hence why we are so passionate about our own Mobile Wallet platform, which is designed to help retailers tap into the many advantages on offer. Retail is a cut-throat landscape, with fierce competition on all sides, and marketers need a new way of gaining a foothold in consumers’ back pockets. With the ability to deliver branded content like offers, coupons and digital loyalty cards, as well as time and location-sensitive offers, the brands that meet their customers’ demand for mobile wallet solutions will be the ones who take the lead.

The post Mobile Wallets: A Reciprocal Relationship appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

The conference spans August 29th – August 31st. Among the advertised speakers set for the conference are:

• Safwan Zaheer, Director, Accenture Digital
• Priya Dozier, Product Management Executive, FIS Global
• Michele Dupre, Group VP, Verizon Enterprise Solutions.
• Larry Berlin, First Analysis (moderator)

“We are very excited about this session in particular as it brings together three of the top thought leaders in next generation mobility, retail, commerce and payments, who are behind the evolution of today’s customer shopping experience,” said Marla Ellerman, Mobile Payments Conference executive director and publisher of Mobile Marketing & Technology.

To learn more about the conference or to register to attend, click here.

The post Talks to Focus on Impact of AI, Social Commerce and Bots on Mobile Shopping at the 2016 Mobile Payments Conference appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.