Mobile commerce needs more mobile payment initiatives, like these three! [5 Reading Tips]

Quelle: Mastercard & Fitbit — Source: Mastercard & Fitbit

In China, mobile commerce is already a part of everyday life. 82 percent of the revenue from the last “Singles Day” was generated via mobile devices. Customers in this market love to make purchases using their smartphones; especially for small transactions at places like food stands via Alipay or Tenpay (the Alibaba and WeChat e-wallets). This is possible by scanning the QR code posted on the stand. The role mobile commerce plays in China is an ideal model for every western front runner who also wants to participate.

The question is: when could this scene take place in Germany?

Making the payment experience enjoyable, effortless, and secure

Without a doubt, the toughest moment for a buyer is when they actually have to pay. Because who actually likes paying for things? That’s why the latest developments in digital payments are focused on making the payment experience more enjoyable.

Kontaktlos mit jedem vernetzen Gerät

Mastercard allows payment by MDES (Mastercard Digital Enablement Service) on any device with any card anywhere. To do that, they focus not only on smartphones, but also on other networked devices that are on the rise – like wearables.

It’s worth remembering that Gartner has forecasted a 17 percent increase in use of wearables worldwide. By 2021 the smartwatch will be the best-selling wearable second only to the Bluetooth headset.

» “Smartwatches are on the way to achieving the highest revenue potential among all wearables through 2021, reaching $ 17.4 billion,” reveals Angela McIntyre, research director at Gartner. «

Mastercard also recently partnered with Fitbit to work on their smartwatch. Users can pay via Fitbit Pay with their smartwatches right after a workout. Without a wallet and without a smartphone. Fast and easy. Effortlessly. Customers can use their cards from leading banks like Banco Santander, Bank of America, and HSBC via Fitbit Pay.

In addition, users can also add their Starbucks card to pay for a coffee or a delicious pastry seamlessly and easily.

Tokenization as a security guarantee

According to the latest ECC payment study: only one in ten consumers has heard of token technology, compared to around a quarter of all merchants. Although tokenization is still relatively unknown by the masses, it is very important to increase the acceptance of digital payments.

What is a token? Mastercard defines the term “token” as a 16-digit number. With smartphone payments, the actual credit card number is replaced by a token. The token is unique and is individually re-assigned for each device that is set up.

How does it work? Mastercard created a graphic that illustrates just that:

Online banking: Customer centered services through excellent apps and useful functionality

Banks have recently been developing more and more innovative apps with quality features and offers to compete with Fintech companies. A good example of this is the app from the Spanish bank BBVA which was named the best mobile banking app in the world by Forrester Research in the 2017 Global Mobile Banking Benchmark.

The app is characterised by various money management functions and the possible use of cashless payments. It also includes a groundbreaking system called “Login Call” that allows customers to call customer service directly without requiring any additional personal data.