There is real shift in consumer behavior, away from regular old card payments and cash towards contactless. A recent study by RFi, indicated 70% of the adult population now owns a NFC based credit or debit card, and whats more interesting is that 22% of Australians would like to make contactless payment transactions but do not have a contactless enabled credit or debit card according to research by Transaction Network Services. So, whats all the fuss about
Simply put, contactless allows you to pay and go, avoiding all the fun of entering your PIN for small purchases. It is not uncommon across the country for people to whip out their plastic and pay, despite cash sitting idle in their wallets, waiting to be spent
Most of the adult population have a NFC based credit or debit card, and have used it at some point. Its easier. Its faster. And, more importantly its less painful compared to cash. The use of tap and go has removed the pain of parting with our hard earned cash
Studies have shown that paying with cash has elicited greater pain than that associated with a card. Cards are great because we remove some of the emotional pain of parting with our funds: the reasoning is straightforward. We create a buffer zone between the purchase of the product and the loss of our hard earned money, when we use a card as opposed to cash.
More and more people are willing to pay using contactless. According to a report by Australian bank Wesptac, contactless payments via mobile will reach A$3 Billion in Australia by 2015. Contactless card transactions are on a major growth trajectory too, given the convenience they support and merchants willingness to use them
Merchants are beginning to love contactless. It lowers the risk of employee embezzlement at the cash register, and provides a better customer experience, in that they can serve more customers through an efficient payment process at the register. Merchant uptake is on the rise across Australia, which is good for consumers who actually have a contactless card, and want to use it. Its also good news for those who don’t, and want to get one…maybe growing adoption will push them over the edge
Whether you like it or not, contactless is here, and here to stay. Your wallet houses a few cards with contactless functionality, and you may or may not have used them before. One thing is for sure, contactless is the new king in a cashless society. And its time to get amongst it.
