Among the array of choices available, e-wallets like PayPal, Skrill, and Neteller have emerged as genuine game-changers, offering a string of advantages for consumers and merchants alike. It’s almost a decade since PayPal was integrated as a credible mobile payment method, compatible across all major operating systems, including Android, iOS, Windows and BlackBerry.

The entertainment and retail industries appear to have embraced e-wallets most enthusiastically to date. Entertainment subsectors like the online poker industry readily accepts e-wallets for deposits and withdrawals when playing poker for real money, streamlining transactions and acting as a secure barrier between players’ traditional bank accounts. These e-wallets also tend to offer much quicker payment clearance times from online poker accounts than traditional wire transfers. E-wallets have also expedited simple transactions in the travel industry, facilitating seamless ticket purchases and in-app transactions.

If you’re yet to adopt e-wallets as a credible payment method for your online store, here’s five compelling reasons why accepting payments via sites like PayPal, Skrill, and Neteller can significantly boost your bottom line.

Streamlined Checkout Experiences

E-commerce is all about convenience, and nothing streamlines the checkout process better than e-wallets. Traditional payment methods often require users to fill in extensive forms, input credit card details, and go through multiple verification steps. This cumbersome process can be a significant deterrent, leading to cart abandonment.

With e-wallets like PayPal and Skrill, users enjoy a simplified checkout experience. By securely storing their payment details within the digital wallet, customers can complete transactions with just a few clicks. This seamless process reduces friction during the purchase journey, increasing the likelihood of completed sales and fostering a positive user experience.

Enhanced Security Measures

Security concerns are paramount in the online realm, and e-wallets address these worries with advanced security features. PayPal and Skrill, for instance, utilize robust encryption technologies to safeguard users’ financial information. By acting as an intermediary between the customer and the merchant, e-wallets add an extra layer of security, reducing the risk of sensitive data exposure.

Moreover, these digital wallets often provide features like two-factor authentication and real-time transaction monitoring, further fortifying the safety of online payments. By offering customers a secure and trustworthy payment option, e-commerce businesses can instil confidence and build lasting relationships with their customers.

Global Reach and Currency Flexibility

E-wallets transcend geographical boundaries, enabling e-commerce businesses to tap into a global customer base. PayPal and Skrill, in particular, support multiple currencies, allowing merchants to cater to an international audience without the complications of currency conversion.

This global reach is especially beneficial for businesses looking to expand their operations beyond domestic borders. By accepting payments in various currencies, e-commerce platforms can attract customers from diverse regions, fostering growth and diversification.

Mobile-Friendly Solutions

The rise of mobile commerce has reshaped the way consumers shop online. E-wallets align seamlessly with this trend, offering mobile-friendly solutions that cater to the preferences of modern shoppers. With the increasing use of smartphones and tablets for online transactions, it’s essential for e-commerce businesses to provide payment methods that align with mobile usage patterns.

PayPal and Skrill offer dedicated mobile apps, ensuring a smooth and intuitive payment experience on handheld devices. The latter’s 1-Tap functionality couldn’t be any quicker, allowing customers to pay for goods or services using a single tap or click. The convenience of completing transactions on the go enhances customer satisfaction and contributes to higher conversion rates, particularly in the ever-expanding mobile e-commerce landscape.

Loyalty Programs and Buyer Incentives

E-wallet providers often entice users with loyalty programs and buyer incentives, creating a win-win situation for both merchants and customers. For instance, PayPal’s Cashback Mastercard offers cashback rewards for eligible purchases, while Skrill frequently collaborates with merchants to provide exclusive discounts and promotions for users of its digital wallet.

By aligning with these programs, e-commerce businesses can leverage the appeal of such incentives to attract and retain customers. The prospect of earning rewards or accessing special deals can serve as a powerful motivator for users to choose e-wallets as their preferred payment method.

In the fast-paced world of e-commerce, staying ahead of the curve requires adaptability and a keen understanding of consumer preferences. Embracing e-wallets like PayPal and Skrill is more than just a modern convenience; it’s a strategic move that can propel your sales to new heights.

The post 5 Reasons to Embrace E-Wallets to Unlock E-Commerce Success appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

This week, the team at Marin Software — provider of a cross-channel performance advertising cloud — shared with MMW details of its new product integration that allows the more than 15,000 companies using HubSpot‘s platform to “align their inbound marketing activities and paid online advertising.”

This innovative integration lets marketers’ sync their HubSpot landing pages and contact lists with Perfect Audience, which helps them to save time and advertise more effectively. By linking marketers’ inbound marketing and paid online advertising efforts, the new partnership enables a more consistent way to re-engage high-value audiences with personalized messaging across more than 8 billion daily impressions on desktop and mobile devices worldwide, including on Facebook and Twitter.

“We are excited to bring the power of retargeting to HubSpot’s customers. By partnering with HubSpot, our advertisers have the added benefit of finding unconverted website visitors and re-engaging them wherever they are — across channels and devices — making their advertising more effective,” said Chris Lien, Executive Chairman of Marin Software.

The post What Do You Get When You Cross Full-Funnel Marketing Automation and Paid Online Advertising? appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

To that end, BlackBerry has just announced the availability of BBM Protected, the first solution in the eBBM Suite for secure enterprise-class messaging.

“The eBBM Suite is a new family of BBM products and services built for business that bring together the convenience and usability of BBM with the additional security and compliance required by enterprise customers,” the Canadian mobile communications company said in a written statement.

The eBBM Suite will include new services designed to enable mobile workers to be more productive on the go, while meeting enterprises’ needs for security, manageability and control.

We’re told that the first product in the eBBM Suite (which was announced earlier this year) is called BBM Protected and is being delivered ahead of schedule beginning immediately.

“We’ve been testing BBM Protected on behalf of our customers and have been impressed so far,” said Zekeria Oezdemir, Technical Director of NovaLink. “BBM Protected is the ideal solution for our banking and insurance customers who have increased security needs.”

The current release of BBM Protected can be used for BlackBerry smartphones running BB0S 6.0 or later or BlackBerry 10 in Regulated mode. Versions of BBM Protected for BlackBerry 10 smartphones using BlackBerry Balance and iOS and Android devices are expected later this year.

The post BlackBerry Taking a Fresh Look at Secure Mobile Messaging appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

It’s very rare to see a gaggle of teenagers, young adults, or even mature professionals (that’s code for “old folks at work”) without at least one smartphone between them.

The prevalence of mobile technology means that marketers need to be tuned in to this trend and prepared to make the most of it.

How can you do that, exactly? Here are five immediate and pressing considerations:

1. Know your audience. Five years ago, the mobile audience might have been a pretty unified strata of society. Today, people from all demographics utilize this technology. Knowing who your audience is and the mobile tech they prefer will help you narrow down your audience here.
2. Know how to reach that audience. Research when the best time of day to reach out to your audience is. Shoving content in someone’s face right when they are at their busiest is never a good plan.
3. Know what kind of content to send. Once you know who will be viewing your content and when, you need to actually create that content. Think about the needs of your audience. What do they want to see? How can you use that to promote your business?
4. Know whether or not to invest in an app. While a mobile optimized website can be great, an app can help push your business as well. Just remember. It needs to be useful, not just an advertisement.
5. Know how to measure return on investment. ROI with mobile marketing is hard to pin down right now. There are some effective trackers out there, so find that one that works the best for your needs and keep tabs on your marketing.

The post Five Things You Should Know About Mobile Marketing appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

Late last week, new reports emerged which indicate that Apple’s foray into high-definition music is now imminent.

According to industry sources, 24-bit tracks could be unveiled within two months, likely before Apple’s WWDC set for early June.

“That’s right – Apple will launch hi-res iTunes in two months,” says music and tech industry blogger Robert Hutton. “And at that point, you can say goodbye to HD Tracks, Acoustic Sounds Hi-Res store, and ProStudioMasters, and probably all the other hi-res audio online stores. Apple will kill them, straight out of the box.”

It is believed that songs in this high-performance category will come at a premium price.

“I’m not sure I feel good about Apple entering hi-res – I hate monopolies, and I sure am not an Apple fan overall,” Hutton concludes. “The reason labels will instantly migrate to Apple, despite business practices that are…well…not exactly consumer friendly, is that it is virtually certain there will be watermarking involved. That SHOULD be a deal breaker – for music fans at least – but the reality is, labels will hungrily embrace it.”

The post Apple Prepping Major iTunes Overhaul? appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

The following is a guest contributed post from Subrah Iyer, founder of Moxtra.

 In the era of BYOD and working remotely, collaboration is imperative. In fact, according to Good Technology, more than 80 percent of U.S. adults work seven extra hours per week outside the office. The shift from everyone working in-house on company computers, to working in a coffee shop on a tablet, is presenting some unique challenges to collaboration, productivity and organization.

As companies continually choose to go the route of picking a mobile collaboration platform to ease the transition into the digital world, there are a few features that are essential – and can’t be sacrificed.

Accessibility. Having the capability to use the platform via mobile (Android or iOS, tablet, etc.) or desktop computer is key, depending upon the devices available to your organization. Some platforms only have competency for one or the other, and don’t lend themselves to a multitude of accessibility methods. Keeping limitations to a minimum is preferable.

Conversation. Conversing is the heart of true team collaboration. Without a chat feature, personnel won’t be able to adequately collaborate on projects. Platforms with discussion options should have real-time notifications and desktop sharing capabilities. It is also essential to create conversation with your audience without talking at them.

Integration. It’s important the option you choose has the ability to be integrated across other platforms. For example, some apps can be assimilated with SharePoint, Salesforce and Dropbox. This is a crucial component, as there are likely other vendors your company finds necessary to business.

Annotation. Users should be able to take notes – whether by typing or voice recording – to communicate edits to other team members. This is especially important when a group project is taking place and team members need to share specific ideas or suggestions.

Meetings. Teams can collaborate eloquently and seamlessly with virtual meetings. These are exceptionally effective when there’s functionality to incorporate voice and real-time content sharing in the collaboration platform. It is important to provide a way for team members of any size office to chat, meet, and share in a unified collaborative environment no matter where they are. An all-in-one mobile collaboration space will increase productivity and efficiency in order to create a strong campaign.

Utilizing apps with all of these features can make the transition from office to working remotely much smoother. Just remember these tips as you consider choosing the option that works best for your team.

The post MMW Op-Ed: Choosing a Mobile Collaboration Platform appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

The numbers to back this assertion are compelling. In fact, 83 percent of U.S. respondents recognize a greater need for realizing business opportunities with mobility.

Organizations that have been successful with their mobility initiatives have experienced anywhere from a 17 to 24 percent improvement in business in the form of increased revenue, faster time-to-market, improved competitive positioning, enhanced customer experience, better employee productivity and lower costs.

The report also reveals that external customer initiatives like secure application management “are now outpacing internal BYOD projects on IT priority lists.”

The study authors conclude that this reality indicates customer-facing mobile initiatives are business-critical and need to be addressed with the same sense of urgency as internal efforts.

“Today, CIOs are under enormous pressures to address the rapid pace of technology change and evolution. Mobility has dramatically elevated the complexity of what is needed both for internal users and customer-facing systems,” said Ram Varadarajan, GM of New Business Innovation at CA Technologies. “The potential of not complying with key regulations, inadvertent dissemination of corporate information, or negatively impacting brand reputation because of poor customer experience though a mobile application shopping experience, are just a few examples of risks faced by organizations that do not have an enterprise-wide mobility strategy.”

The post Why Apps Are Outpacing BYOD Among Top IT Mobility Priorities appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

McAfee recently announced the findings from a joint survey with Office Depot, Inc. that revealed surprising security misconceptions among small and medium-sized business owners.

Ready for the scary part?

More than 1,000 SMBs participated in the Office Depot Small Business Index survey last month, and a super-majority (66 percent) felt confident that their data and devices are secure and safe from hackers, with 77 percent responding that they haven’t been hacked.

But their sense of security is not deserved.

The results, in fact, are at odds with industry research that has revealed these same businesses are prime targets of complex and evolving cyber threats.

“Cyber attacks on small businesses rarely make headlines, so it is easy for these business owners to be lulled into a false sense of security, as indicated in this survey. It is especially important for small business owners to secure their systems, as they may not have the resources to survive a cyber attack, unlike a large corporation,” said Congressman Chris Collins. “I urge small business owners to dedicate the necessary resources to securing their data, and support McAfee and Office Depot in their efforts to raise awareness among business owners about the importance of cyber security.”

Seventy-two percent of data breaches investigated by Verizon Communications’ forensic analysis unit were focused on companies with less than 100 employees. The discrepancy suggests that many SMBs are not aware that they’ve been attacked.

Yes, we know that Halloween is over, but if you would like to be scared further, check out more findings and warnings contained in the new McAfee report here.

The post McAfee Making Small Businesses Nervous with New Report appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

Based on details shared with MMW, the latest release boasts new features that “simplify and speed up manual processes for mobile users.”

For example, Citrix XenMobile now eliminates the need to enter long passcodes to get into online meetings or work apps.
New enhancements also provide simpler and faster deployment options for IT organizations.

Mobility is a top priority for businesses. According to a new Citrix “Mobility in Business” report, 63 percent of enterprises believe going mobile is the greatest driver of organizational competitiveness.

“Personal and business life are both moving faster,” says Amit Pandey, Vice President and General Manager of Mobile Platforms Group at Citrix. “Our new release accelerates mobile productivity by combining unique collaboration features with powerful, but user-friendly security. Features like one-touch online meetings are an industry first, and further extend the completeness of our enterprise mobility solution, providing true competitive advantages to our customers using Citrix XenMobile.”

Citrix XenMobile 8.6 will be available for download for current customers next month.

The post Citrix Shoots to Boost Employee Mobile Productivity appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.

CAPP, we’re told, will provide developers, cloud and mobile ISVs the ability to jointly develop integrated solutions leveraging Centrify’s Unified Identity Services to provide secure access to cloud and mobile apps for mutual customers.

In addition, by formalizing its partnering efforts via CAPP, Centrify and its ISV partners such as Dropbox and Zoom are now better able to drive joint go-to-market activities.

“Centrify has long partnered with the world’s leading technology companies, and our new partner program allows more companies and developers to rely on Centrify’s cloud platform to leverage our leading SaaS and mobile security features that provide centrally managed policies to securely access and authenticate users to partners’ leading SaaS applications, regardless of device or location,” says Shreyas Sadalgi, Centrify Vice President of Business Development.

“Improved usability with SaaS application Single-Sign-on and mobile app Zero-Sign-on, along with user and mobile device self-service features, enhances security of our partners’ SaaS and mobile solutions by uniquely reducing passwords, securing identity, and authenticating access through Active Directory,” Sadalgi added.

The post Centrify Announces New Technology Partner Program appeared first on Mobile Marketing Watch.