How Developers Are Putting Data To Work

The PYMNTS.com Developer Tracker^TM is designed to provide the payments ecosystem with a view into how software developers are using new technologies to create innovative business opportunities and enable merchants to optimize the ways in which they engage with shoppers today.

The developer community within the tracker is separated into three categories: Shopping and Payments, Operations, and Marketing. In the January edition, we have profiled 70 developers who are spurring innovation within the channels and payments technologies consumers rely on most.

Fighting Failure At The POS

The restaurant industry has a huge revenue opportunity – $700 billion annually to be exact – and embracing innovation at the point of sale may hold the key for businesses to attain a piece of the market pie. Despite the growth and value creation efficient POS systems can bring, nearly two-thirds of businesses are holding back on making digital POS innovation a priority. However, industry researchers believe these systems have the power to help establishments fight against the staggering restaurant failure rate, as well as spur financial growth and optimize the customer dining experience.  

Here’s a sneak peek at the January Developer Tracker Cover Story:

“Point of sale systems can make or break a business. And when POS systems are unable to bring value beyond simply accepting card payments, they may actually be doing more harm than good to the businesses that deploy them.

According to Eric Elwell, CEO of point of sale solution provider 2TouchPOS, having the wrong fit between a business and the POS system it utilizes can be a recipe for disaster, especially for restaurants, bars and nightclubs, which bring in roughly $700 billion in annual revenue.

In those sectors, research shows that nearly 50 percent of businesses are out of business by the time they are ready to emerge from the “terrible twos” and celebrate their third birthdays.

With pressure to stay current with the latest and greatest technologies coming from both patrons and an ever-growing number of competitors in the market, innovation may need to begin right at the register.”

January Highlights

Where consumers move, payments are following – and developers are significant in enabling payments providers and merchants to help make this happen. As the availability of new and improved wearables continue to increase in the market, the effort to ensure payments are available on these devices is strengthening. Businesses are working to support transactions whenever and however consumers want, making connected and smart wearable devices an ideal medium to facilitate secure payments on the go.

However, as payments continues to expand to new horizons, the threat of cybercriminals looking to take advantage is never far behind. According to new research, companies remain extremely fearful of falling victim to attacks on the payment data they are responsible for safeguarding. As new payment technologies make valuable and sought-after payment data even more accessible, companies are faced with the increasing likelihood of this data being severely at risk and the challenges that come with protecting it.

The effectiveness and reach of beacons is being boosted by the power of data analytics. Companies are taking a new approach to location-based technologies by incorporating the use of behavioral data collected from shoppers, which may help to support in-store customer engagement efforts that are both smarter and better targeted.

To download the January Developer Tracker, click here.

For more updates from Vantiv, click here.