With the New Year just around the corner, what is one of your top resolutions to improve your small business?
For some, the resolutions include making more money, improving customer service, and better utilizing social media.
Now, imagine if you could do all three tasks by offering something your customers may not have access to just yet. Yes, mobile payments could be the best thing you deploy in 2013.
A number of reports indicate that mobile payments are only going to take off in the coming years, so best not be left behind.
According to Portio Research, more than 81 million people around the globe used their mobile devices to complete payments (this includes in-app payments, mobile ticketing and mobile coupons) just three years ago. Before the clock hits 2015, it is expected that mobile payments will be made by some 490 million.
Meantime, Juniper Research predicts that the entire value of mobile payments for digital and physical merchandise, money transfers and NFC (Near Field Communications) transactions will hit a whopping $670 billion by 2015.
So, what piece of the mobile payments pie will your small business take over the next year?
If you have yet to jump on board the mobile payments train, here are some things to consider on why and how you may want to become more mobile:
* More flexibility - While most small businesses feel tied to their point-of-sale (POS) systems, others are seeing the light. With mobile payments, you meet the needs and wishes of more and more consumers. Instead of being tied to making sales at your office or store, you and your employees can make sales while visiting a customer's home or office, along with while attending conferences, roadshows and more;
* Not all customers want to pay with cash, etc. - Even though many Americans have been trying to free themselves of credit card debt the last few years, others simply do not like paying with cash all the time for their products and services. Mobile payments allow for a quick transaction, one in which the consumer does not have to worry about having enough cash in their purse or wallet to complete a sale;
* Go social - Using social media to tell consumers about your ability to accept mobile payments is a great way to go. Use your Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and any other social venues you are on to announce your acceptance with mobile payments. You can also share and tweet special deals on such pages for consumers when they make a mobile payment. Since social media in essence just requires time and effort (not money), it is a great way to tell the world that you are up to speed on technology, and that mobile payments are part of your daily regimen;
* Analyze the data - Another worthwhile feature with mobile payments is that you can analyze the data. You can see what shoppers trends exist as far as the products and/or services they purchase from you, when they tend to buy, how much, and what is not selling well. By keeping track of the credit transactions, you can map out where you need to add products or services, along with where you may be able to cut back and use better elsewhere;
* The competition - If you are not already at least experimenting with mobile payments, there is a good chance your competitors already are. With that in mind, having a mobile payment option for your customers can keep some or many of them from going elsewhere for their products and services, especially when others already may offer mobile payments. Use the fact that you already offer or are going in the direction of offering mobile payments to give customers another reason to consider shopping with you.
While not offering mobile payments is not the end-all for your small business, offering them certainly can't hurt.
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