New e-commerce developments are upon us from brains akin to the likes of Einstein and Copernicus. First, there was ‘ye olde’ methods of paying for things; trading pigs and chickens at the local market or swapping shiny shells for goods and services; next there was actual gold and jewels in rich men’s pockets which were swiftly swapped for paper money because wallets and purses couldn’t handle the weight. In the modern age we have progressed from paper money and cheques, to plastic money, to online digital money and now…now we have some of these offerings below. People want to pay for things with as little hassle as possible and while keeping track of their accounts at the same time.
Apple iPhone 4 (Image Courtesy Of Apple)
Square
The ‘Square’ looks like a sugar lump with an audio jack sticking out of it. This clever device allows you to make payments from your mobile at any location which has the appropriate software, or alternatively if you are a retailer, allows you to take payments from customers if they are also tooled up. It is free to sign up to the service and you can even have your receipts sent to your email or mobile phone to save on paper. What is most interesting is that as a retailer you can set up your Square account to use photo verification, so that whenever someone makes a payment, you can visually confirm they are the account holder.
Pageonce
Pageonce is a free iPhone app which can be used to make payments and help keep track of all your bills and transactions from your phone. Unlike regular mobile banking, this cracking app ties all your bills and services into one handy place to let you keep track of and manage your money. Bank accounts, utility bills and many other types of payment can be tracked and altered from the palm of your hand, allowing you to see a calendar of payments, charts and other stats on your spending. All in all it could be the best way for you to manage and hopefully save money.
NFC
Near Field Communication is a contactless way of transferring data from a mobile device to a receiver within a 10 centimetre radius. This technology was designed with mobile devices in mind and is an ideal platform for people to make close proximity payments with their phones. Currently used in some parts of Asia and Europe, NFC is used to pay for public transport ticketing, to read ‘smart posters’ and to use a mobile phone as a debit/credit card. Phones need to be built with NFC hardware inside, much like Bluetooth, but the infrastructure is already out there, ready for it to be used more widely.
As an online multi-currency payment processer and merchant service operator, Lancore is a market leader when it comes to online commerce and has opened up a world of new markets for new and existing business customers worldwide.
Having worked in money transfer services for over a decade, Martin Able has vast experience in ensuring secure online credit card processing.
