According to a new report from BIA/Kelsey, mobile payment options are rapidly picking up steam with 40% of small businesses surveyed reporting they are now using mobile point of sale options. PayPal and Square are two of the top mobile payment options that brands are embracing. Beyond the 40% who report they are now using mobile point of sale, 16% say they will add the option within the next year.
Steve Marshall, director of research at BIA/Kelsey, states “A closer look at the data shows adoption of mobile and social varies across SMB industry sectors. The LCM data reveals professional and home and trade services are embracing mobile in a big way, with service providers essentially becoming walking POS terminals.”
Steve goes on to point out how mobile and social media are working together to transform small business, “Together, mobile and social tools are transforming the way SMBs acquire and retain customers,” said Marshall. “With the heavy use of social media, SMB marketing is quickly becoming a two-way engagement rather than a one-way promotion.”
As for how small businesses are engaging in social media, BIA/Kelsey’s report found that those that responded say they are ‘responding’ to comments, blogging, Tweeting/Updating social pages and pushing a loyalty program.
Clearly accepting mobile payments is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to utilizing mobile with small businesses as great opportunities exist for virtual displays and other ingenious ways to market products and inform customers. Augmented reality options will soon become the norm in retail rather than hovering out there as the next big thing.
One of the hottest new trends in retail, thanks to the Apple stores, is allowing retail associates in stores to complete transactions on the spot rather than making customers walk all the way to a register and stand in line to complete the transaction. Giving retail associates the tools to do this is taking customer service to a whole new level and rapidly making the cash register obsolete.
At the last Mobile World Congress, mobile payments and mobile payment systems were one of the hottest topics. We are entering an age of mobile and mobile applications taking retail to a new level, especially if you consider the opportunities offered by augmented reality.
As Charler Napier says: “Small business owners represent the segment driving mobile payments adoption most aggressively today” in an interview with Bloomberg. But we are still in the early stages of development so opportunities are abound. While we are hearing about names like Square and GoPayment right now, there are sure to be other solutions providers to follow.
In the near future cash registers are going to disappear in favor of mobile payment systems and since 66 percent of retail transactions are made with plastic today and 180 million Americans carry a credit or debit card, it’s no surprise that retailers would switch to mobile payment platforms that will change the face of retail.
If you are planning on building an app, consider integrating new mobile payment systems into your iPhone app or Android app. Passbooks and digital wallets are also extremely hot topics in the industry right now and its better to plan for the future with mobile application development.
There are several apps currently in existence that can augment your reality. Examples of these include augmented reality apps that overlay historical street images over modern views, simply show you where to point a satellite dish or they can even label the universe right before your eyes. Juniper Research estimates that the prevalence of augmented reality apps will soon take off as more and more consumers take advantage of what these high powered apps can do for them. In fact, they estimate augmented reality apps could reach as high as 2.5 billion downloads within five years.
As we see consumers becoming aware of these apps like the tech savvy are, growth will start to explode with augmented reality applications. New AR projects from heavyweights such as Google’s AR glasses will help create awareness and launch augmented reality into mainstream attention. With this incredible device the small screen is practically invisible when you are walking or talking. You practically can forget about it. But when you focus on the screen, the display is quite effective.
The potential of devices like this and augmented reality applications is obvious. And when paired with a device like Google’s Glasses, you can share and have instant access to information in an absolutely hands-free way. To control software, you simply swipe a finger on the earpiece in different directions. Your swipes guide you through menus.
Recently the first-ever video created using video filmed by Google’s Glasses was published on YouTube. The video was taken by Diane von Furstenberg to chronicle the debut of her Spring line at New York Fashion Week. “We live in such an amazing world,” Von Furstenberg says, “Things that we thought would be science fiction exist; Where you can reach everything, at every time, any time. And it goes so fast. But fashion, technology — it’s all about life, and it’s all about being the woman you want to be.”