What percentage of retailers accept Apple Pay, and should you?

According to Apple, over 85% of retailers now accept Apple Pay, the company’s digital wallet option, to make purchases. 

Considering that the first iPhone was not introduced until 2007, this truly is an impressive statistic. Numbers don’t lie. If over eight out of 10 merchants are accepting this payment option, you probably should, too.

How does Apple Pay work?

Apple Pay is the premier form of contactless mobile payment in the U.S. for many reasons. It is fast, secure, and easy to use – both for customers and merchants.

Buyers get started by linking their bank account or credit card to the iPhone’s built-in wallet feature. Their payment details remain securely stored, unavailable to hackers or thieves because they are protected by a passcode or biometric ID according to the customer’s preference. 

When a shopper wants to make a purchase, they simply hold their iPhone near the card reader, taking advantage of the system’s secure near frequency communication (“NFC”) technology for a secure and fast transaction.  

This is different from the Tap to Pay on iPhone feature where the card reader is the iPhone and not the terminal.

On the merchant side, you must first be sure that you have the right hardware to accept contactless NFC payments. If you don’t have the updated equipment, your retail merchant account provider can lease or sell it to you. 

Then ask your provider to enable Apple Pay on your account for online purchases, and be sure that your developer sets up a “pay with Apple Pay” button on your website. 

Finally, train your store staff on how to help customers make Apple Pay payments, and post signage indicating that you now offer this as an option. Before you know it, you will be ready to delight customers and boost your profits with Apple Pay.

Why you should offer Apple Pay in your business.

There are many benefits to be gained from incorporating Apple Pay into your retail business model. For starters, cash is no longer king. 

If you want to set your physical store or website above the rest, it is crucial that you offer the full range of modern payment methods that people can use to complete their purchases. Apple Pay is certainly one of these, and failing to furnish it to customers may lead them to make their purchases elsewhere.

What’s more, the actual process of transferring funds is amazingly fast. The customer’s purchase can be made in just seconds, enabling them to get on with their day and simultaneously creating efficient, frictionless checkout lanes for you and your staff.

Although the transaction is lightning-fast, security does not suffer. In fact, the customer’s information is protected by both the hardware and software in compatible devices. 

In addition to encryption and tokenization that mask the data from hackers, biometric authentication measures help to ensure that no one besides the customer has access to their digital wallet or its payment capabilities.

Moreover, this technology is hygienic. In an age when buyers continue to want to reduce the number of surfaces they touch when out in public, the contactless nature of Apple Pay is a huge plus.

For you as a merchant, Apple Pay can make your bookkeeping process easier. With this method, paperwork is minimized because digital receipts are sent directly to the customer. In addition, integrated payments can be viewed and manipulated from a single screen. That makes handling your cash flow smooth and less prone to human errors.

Finally, don’t underestimate the power of convenience. With Apple Pay, buyers don’t need to wait around to receive a paper receipt that might end up getting lost eventually. 

Instead, the merchant’s POS can be configured to send proof of purchase via email, which can be stored for later retrieval. Should disputes or questions arise, both you and the buyer can readily retrieve every detail of the transaction with just a few clicks.

Recent years have seen the decline of cash and checks, and the concurrent rise of a host of alternative payment solutions. Digital wallets, with Apple Pay as the premier example, are proving to be customer favorites when making purchases, whether they occur online or in-person. 

If your company remains on the sidelines and has not yet embraced the new digital payments revolution, there is no time like the present to update your systems, train your staff, put up attractive signage, and get the Apple Pay ball rolling.