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ApplePay is quickly becoming a preferred method for merchants when handling contactless payments. Using an iPhone 6 device or higher, customers will no longer need to fumble in their handbags or wallets for credit or debit cards. Using the Near Field Communication antenna in each iPhone 6, customers can now pay in stores simply by placing their finger on the Touch ID near a contactless reader to make any payment. This method of payment is also extremely time efficient in todays busy world, as customers will not even have to look at their screens for payment confirmation, as a beep and small vibration signal successful transaction. Recent reports show that a whopping 26% of smart phones are iPhone’s, and that retailers are already seeing thousands of contactless Apple PayTM transactions via “tap and go”.
As a merchant who accepts payment for goods and services, you should be able to offer your customers various payment options. Whether you are a fan of Apple or not, the current rise in Apple PayTM transactions will also see a rise in the number of customers seeking its specific form of payment. As a significant number of your customers are likely to carry some type of Apple iOS device with them on a daily basis, you do not want to turn customers away by failing to offer a payment method that suits their needs.
So what are the benefits of offering Apple PayTM services to your customers?
Apple PayTM is easy to setup. Every new iPhone comes factory ready with Passbook, an application that can store tickets, boarding passes, coupons, debit cards and credit cards. With a simple snap of a photo, Passbook detects and saves a customer’s credit card data. Customers may also opt to type the information into their device manually, and cards may be added or swapped easily in Settings.
Apple PayTM also helps to make payments secure. If a customer is uneasy with uploading certain information to Passbook on a phone they may lose, Apple’s Find My iPhone app can place the device into “Lost Mode,” which makes all data contained on the device inaccessible. Apple PayTM eliminates the security flaw of visible information at point of sale such as the card or PIN number. iPhones Passbook assigns each phone a Device Account Number uniquely encrypted to the Secure Element, a security-dedicated chip. The Device Account Number, which is never entered or available on Apple’s servers, combined with a dynamic security code that is transaction-specific, is used in payment processing. Apple PayTM completely eliminates the ability of anyone to ever seeing or having access to a customer’s specific credit card information. Since your customers’ cards never have to leave their wallets, Apple PayTM guarantees you and your customers convenience and security.
