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Paper bills and coins seem to have a short lifespan left. More and more people use credit and debit cards to pay for their daily purchases and online stores render paying with cash completely obsolete in many cases. Now, another trend has popped up to threaten the old currency system. The new gadget that can be part of your payment methods is, not surprisingly, your cellphone.
This is not an inherently bad thing, of course. For many consumers, the comfort of carrying around a single plastic card instead of wads of bills or heavy lumps of coins is really convenient. Going paperless may also reduce the demand on environmental resources minting and printing currency creates. If you look at online shopping and digital downloads and purchases, then it becomes even more obvious why this trend is growing.
How It Works
The mechanics of this new method, called Mobile Payment or MOIP, are really simple. You download an app that will let you sync with your bank accounts, and shops install electronic readers and print QRC barcodes on their tickets. These barcodes are already on many products, and their primary purpose is usually to link you to websites where you can read more information about the products, the company, or do online purchases with the current payment methods.
With this new app however, you will be able to pay instantly for your purchases as if it were a credit card. McDonald’s, which is already testing the waters in places like Texas and Utah, already allows you to place your orders and pay with this method, so that, by the time you get to the location, all you have to do is pick your food and leave.
What This Means for Your Purchases
The comfort and speed of this payment method has the potential to make life much easier. Browsing an online store from anywhere and making a purchase without having to whip out your credit card information and filling out a number of forms is left out of the process, which means faster shopping. Being able to buy movie tickets on your way to the theater rather than waiting in line, or picking up a necessary item from a store when you are in a hurry, could certainly save you time and energy. Of course, this technology is still in its infancy, so its actual efficiency and reliability has yet to be proven.
What This Means for Your Sales
If you have a shop, either online or between four walls, this means adding a new dimension to the way you can do business. Implementing this payment method could be a boom to your sales if it catches on. If you run an eCommerce business, the advantages may be more marked. Many shopping carts in online stores are abandoned before payment is made, so any method that makes it simpler for your customers to complete their transactions will boost your sales. It is possible that paying with an app on your cellphone will become just as much a standard option in eCommerce shops as services like PayPal or Square.