The release of Apple Pay is the most exciting new technology to hit the eCommerce industry in quite some time.
Apple Pay was announced in September, tucked away amongst several other new feature updates from the tech giant.
It will be some time before we start feeling the impact of Apple’s new feature, but the significance of Apple Pay is definitely starting to be appreciated more widely. It is a new mobile payment service, like Google Wallet but with some crucial improvements.
Unlike Google Wallet, Apple made sure that many large retailers were able to take payments in-store from the word go. Already you can use Apple Pay at 220,000 stores nationwide, and this number is growing constantly. In addition, the service accepts all of the major card types; something that Google Wallet notoriously did not.
Beyond this, Apple Pay is easier to use than other mobile wallet options. Instead of having to unlock the phone and/or punch in a code, Apple Pay only requires that you touch the finger print sensor.
Apple Pay Doesn’t Even Require You to Unlock Your Phone
As a result, Apple Pay already boasts a far more dramatic adoption rate than current digital wallet solutions have had. To illustrate this, McDonald’s has reported that over 50% of mobile payments in their restaurants are already made with Apple Pay.
Although Google Wallet has been around for years, it has been plagued by issues, is not profitable or sustainable, and has seen a tepid adoption rate. With the outstanding adoption rate Apple Pay has already demonstrated, you can bet it will dominate the mobile payment space as the iPhone 6 and other Apple Pay supporting devices become more widespread.
Apple Pay Will Shore Up Apple’s Dominance of Mobile Shopping
Although Apple already dominates mobile shopping, it’s position of strength was slowly being eroded, especially by Samsung and Amazon.
Data from the Custora Ecommerce Pulse Mobile Report in August 2014 shows that 52.4% of mobile phone shopping was completed on iPhones. But by September that figure had been eroded to below 50%.
Data for shopping online using tablets is even more dramatic. 80.5% of all tablets transactions are done on iPads. This compares to less than 10% of tablet shopping being done on Samsung tablets. In this area, Apple has also recently seen other companies taking bites, well nibbles, out of their market share.
So the launch of Apple Pay is a timely attempt at creating a long-term strategy to stop the slide on their ecommerce domination. Cornering the in-store, in-app, and online mobile payment has the potential to both create a strong hold on mobile commerce market share and give their mobile device market share a large boost at the same time.
Why Is Apple Pay Going To Be Important For Online Retailers?
Apple Pay will offer the ability for people to purchase items through online shopping without completing shopping cart forms. It will even be simpler than pressing the PayPal button and entering your PayPal username and password.
Using a combination of an onboard encryption chip within the iPhone and fingerprint recognition scanning to make the payment work, suddenly a one touch online shopping transaction becomes a reality most people would feel comfortable with.
The benefit of this to retailers can not be overstated. The longer or more complicated a checkout process is, the more shopping cart abandonment and user drop-off will be observed. What could be simpler than a one-touch checkout?
Apple Pay Is Going To Be Vital For Your Online Store
As with everything in technology, where we are now is not where we are going to be in 12 months time.
The Apple Watch is Making Apple Pay Even More Convenient
As it stands, there is no real option for online retailers who wish to integrate Apple Pay into their online stores. There is an API which allows for its its integration into dedicated mobile shopping apps. However, this is not fully developed, and at present only a small number of shopping apps from large retailers are supporting Apple Pay technology.
You can rest assured that Apple will seek to get their own pay with Apple Pay buttons as widely used as possible. It is guaranteed that you will see off-the-shelf options within 12 to 18 months that will allow you to integrate Apple Pay into your online store in exactly the same way as you can add the PayPal button to your shopping cart checkout options right now.
What Can I Do Now About Apple Pay For Online Transactions?
If your brand is intending to develop an online shopping app, or you already have one, then there is an API available which could allow you to integrate Apple Pay right now.
If you are in that position, then I suggest you speak to a developer who can look at integrating it into that app. Not including Apple Pay in any new online shopping app will be a major missed opportunity.
But for most online retailers, it’s a case of keeping a careful eye on developments and waiting for an online API to be released.
More than 1 million people added credit card details into Apple Pay within the first 72 hours after its launch. That should give you some idea of the potential this payment system can bring you in the next year or so.
The way it works already demonstrates that it can take all of the friction out of online purchases, which will mean less shopping cart abandonment and a dramatic boost to conversion rate.