Visa Study Shows IoT Will Drive The Future of Payments

Today Visa and PYMNTS.com are giving the world the first look at the results of the “How We Will Pay” study.

We’re bringing you the in-depth analysis as well as a quick break-down. The survey of 2600 American adults found that nearly 80 percent of Americans are strongly interested in shopping via connected devices — though concerns about data safety and security tend to be paramount. As of now the average number of connected devices (outside the usual suspects of phones, computers and laptops) has increased to 4.4 per person in these early days of the internet of things. Those devices include game consoles (47 percent), activity trackers (41 percent), smartwatches (15 percent), voice-controlled assistants (14 percent), connected thermostats (9 percent) and virtual reality headsets (7 percent).

The study also found that three quarters of all consumers have at least one connected device, and 83 percent of those connected device customers report that using it both saves time and reduces frictions while shopping by creating an unattended checkout experience, regardless of device or platform. This seamless purchase experience is of interest to all respondents, with auto-pay at the pump and in-store topping the list at 40 percent.

The study also found that the more connected devices customers have, the more purchases they are likely to make.  Not only will customers shop more, they will also shop across a greater number of product categories (apparel and footwear seem to be the most favored.)

And consumers are getting more comfortable shopping via device. The study found that in 11 out of 19 product categories ranging from healthcare to accessories to food, 50 percent or more of the consumers studied made online purchases through a device within a week of the study.

And though consumers did report appreciating the speed of commerce in the IoT driven world, they also place a high value on trust and security. When asked about their biggest concerns about their financial security, more than 75 percent of respondents cited ‘data privacy,’ while 69 percent cited ‘order verification and accuracy.’  This, perhaps, makes it no surprise that consumers tend to lean toward banks as their most trusted institutions — over 65 percent cited card issuers and bankcard networks as the entities they most trusted to manage IoT purchases — over retail channels, social networks and mobile device manufacturers.

“The category of payment-enabled devices is still in its very early days, yet this research shows just how much consumer interest and understanding is starting to build for what these experiences can offer,” said Jim McCarthy, executive vice president, innovation and strategic partnerships, Visa Inc. “As we work with our banking partners to make it easier to put payment credentials onto devices, a few new consumer use cases will inevitably breakthrough and start to really change the game.”