Debunking Some Mobile Payments Myths

Sometimes we take for granted that mobile payments is the way of the future, but for millions of consumers and thousands of small businesses out there, skepticism surrounding the technology remains.

While there are some valid reasons why mobile payments isn’t for everyone, many reasons people give for a lack of willingness to adopt are due more to distrust and misunderstanding than they are to fact and reason.

With that in mind, Intuit brings us an infographic detailing six common mobile payments myths, as well as some simple arguments with which they can be dispelled. We bring you three of our favorites below. 

The Fees Will Kill Me

Many merchants worry about fees – both for installation and on a per-transaction basis – when it comes to mobile payments. The first worry is often ill founded, as a card reader or even a tablet-based POS system often cost far less than traditional wireless terminals, although POS terminals with NFC acceptance can be pretty pricy. In terms of transactions fees, many mPayments providers offer pay-as-you-go transaction rates for smaller businesses, and lower swipe rates overall for businesses with higher transaction volumes. It’s oftentimes more affordable than you might think,

Cash Is Enough

This is one of the least-defensible positions you can take against mobile payments: the notion that if your small business is doing well with cash-only transactions, there’s no need to accept card payments as well. While you can see how some might fall into this trap in terms of not investing in traditional POS equipment, as we cited above, not equipping your store with a cheap mobile reader if you’re at all able to do so is a mistake. Intuit points out that over 50 percent of its new GoPayment card users made over an additional $1,000 a month from allowing customers to pay with cards. That percentage is likely to increase over time as well.

Concern Over Mobile Security

This is a common concern for both consumers and retailers alike. But while mobile payments come with risk, it doesn’t really come with any more risk than traditional card payments. Through card encryption, use of secure element and cloud data storage, mobile payments can be perfectly safe. Just make sure to adhere to online banking standards when buying via phone, and you should be fine. Plus, it’s not as though carrying around wads of cash is the most secure way to transact either.

To see more mobile myths, view the complete Intuit infographic below.