The payments landscape is changing to the point where scale need not be the determining factor of success. Plastic may be the big sea change of the last half-century in terms of changing the way people pay at the point of sale and beyond. But the landscape is changing, where physical payments are not the way it is done alone.
Digital, of course, has changed the way we pay, how and across which conduits. Enter the mobile payments push, where buying is a 24/7/365 proposition. Yet, we cling to credit cards and cash even as technology increasingly makes it easier to pay with virtual means. Consider Starbucks, which has seen a highly successful launch across the digital firmament. The coffee giant has seen 25 percent of its volume accrue over the past five years, with a nod to loyalty and apps being ubiquitous to all who want to use them. Apple Pay is not the only poster child for payments in-store across mobile platforms.
But it’s the friction that needs to be reduced at the consumer level that keeps customers coming and using mobile. This means that experiences prior to checkout, from rewards to promos, are paramount.
As we bridge the great digital divide, can you afford not to make it to the Innovation Project panel about the way plastic will give way to bits and bytes?
We’re always on the lookout for opportunities to partner with innovators and disruptors.
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