Contactless payments are already supporting nearly 20% of transactions in Canada, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. As consumers keep their distance, contactless payments are expected to explode in the US. Above all, in a post-pandemic world, having contactless payment is not a matter of when. The technology is already here.
Cash is Gross
These days, customers are pretty cautious at checkout. As they should be. According to an article in Time Magazine, “Paper money can harbor thousands of microbes from every environment it touches—whether that’s someone’s fingers, a waiter’s apron, a vending machine or the dank area under someone’s mattress.”
First of all, cash is 75% cotton and 25% linen, it’s like a sponge for sores and scum. Secondly, a study found that cash was filled with hundreds of species of microorganisms — we’re talking microbes from mouths, skin cells, DNA from pets, and of course viruses. In another study of 10 one-dollar bills, researchers found nearly 80% of them had traces of cocaine.
So yea, cash is pretty nasty.
Paying with Plastic is worse
The fact is those magnetic-stripe cards of yesterday just are not secure anymore. You’d be more protected swiping your social security number! The Federal Trade Commission’s online database of consumer complaints has compiled 13 million complaints from 2012 to 2016, with 3 million in 2016 alone. Similarly in 2018, 1 in 5 people lost money due to new account fraud associated with credit cards
Thankfully, one solution that has been on the market since the 1990s has Americans waking up. You might have even heard of them, enter Contactless payments, better known as chip cards.
The Case for Contactless
With contactless payments, there’s no need for a personal identification number (PIN) or even a signature at the register, and most chips function between 4 to 10 centimeters of a terminal. This breakthrough technology actually helps accelerate debit or credit card transactions at checkout. Giving your customers less to worry about, and you more time away from the register.
Contactless payment requires zero physical contact between the buyer, the seller, and barely the point of sale or (POS) system. This technology uses near field communication (NFC) to process payments. Radio Frequency Identification waves will carry out card transactions.
These (RFID) radio waves enable a card reader to communicate with a smartphone or the card’s chip itself. Therefore, the risk of exposure is greatly reduced and the tokenization of credit card numbers makes the transaction a lot safer.
Known as, “tap-and-go” by some banks there is a designation or symbol for contactless payment. Here’s an example:
Ubiquitous and User – Friendly
According to Mastercard, “ Contactless [payments] are accepted by merchants globally. Everything from retail stores, fast food restaurants, pharmacies, grocery and convenience stores, and even at transit locations. In some major cities, you can find contactless payments in taxis and at vending machines.”
Recently, increased consumer compatibility of contactless payment is thanks to innovations like Apple Pay, Google Pay (also for Andriod), and Samsung Pay. Smartphone carriers typically already have contactless payment compatibility pre-installed in most mobile devices. Americans just haven taken advantage of it yet. For older devices not equipped with NFC technology, updates readily available in your app store of choice.
The Only Rational Step for the US
Prior to the pandemic contactless payments are still in their infancy. In the US T. Kearney reported last year that, “just 0.18% of point-of-sale transactions were contactless.”
But that’s starting to change.
According to Fast Casual, mobile payments in the US are on the rise. With 47% of consumers expected to be using mobile payment and digital wallets in 2020.
If you’re ready to take a Quantic leap forward our processing partners across the country may be compatible with some contactless payment options. To learn more about Quantic, our products give us a call. Let’s find out whether our contactless payment solutions will work for your business. Contact us and set up your free demo call today.
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