Perception has always been a powerful factor that affects businesses. And the integration of high technology to the everyday lives of customers is starting to influence how they evaluate, choose, and pay for products and services today. As the near-omnipotent smartphone pushes the boundaries of convenience, mobile and contactless payments like Apple Pay are gaining more traction, setting expectation, and affecting perception on businesses that could not keep up with the changing technology and behavior of consumers.
Due to their mobile nature, food trucks project a certain expectation of convenience to customers and can greatly benefit from utilizing mobile payments. But choosing the right system is vital. There are many products and services that offer food truck owners the ability to integrate mobile and contactless payments into their operations, but most are designed as accessories to consumer-grade hardware. Some have limited functionality, lacking the ability to process contactless payment transactions like Apple Pay. This can give a “non-professional” impression to customers.
Food trucks need proper mobile point-of-sale systems like the Clover Mini and Clover Mobile that are designed specifically to accommodate any type of mobile payment: conventional Magstripe cards, EMV chip cards, or contactless payments like Apple Pay. In addition to accepting various types of payments, the Clover Mini and Clover Mobile deliver integrated hardware and design that can streamline operations and elevate customer perception, which include:
Neat and compact size
3G and Wifi connectivity
Front-facing camera (barcode and QR code reading)
Rechargeable lithium-ion battery (Clover Mobile)
Built-in printer (Clover Mini)
Antimicrobial touch display with on-screen signature capture (Clover Mini)
Customizable system using applications
Cloud-based data storage
Investing on a mobile point-of-sale system that is feature-rich and “future-proof” is important for food trucks. Apple Pay is the latest contactless payment option now available to customers. With more and more companies adopting the payment service, many believe that use of Apple Pay is going to grow even further in 2016. According to a 2014 Business Insider article, one million credit cards have been registered to Apple Pay in the first 3 days of availability and made it the largest mobile payment system in the US, at that time.
Despite having contactless mobile payment options before Apple Pay, the service is getting attention due to its simple, integrated, and secure features. Utilizing the Touch ID sensor in the latest iPhone models, Apple Pay solved inconveniences and issues that many experience in other platforms. When integrated to your food truck business, there is no need to ask for identification cards or signatures from customers anymore because their identity has been verified by their fingerprint. Business liability for fraudulent cards are also minimized or even eliminated, saving entrepreneurs from financial losses and needless stress.
In addition, the natural motion of holding the phone and touching the biometric sensor speeds up the payment process and turnaround for each purchase. Shaving off even a few seconds by eliminating the act of “getting wallet from pocket, taking card from wallet, handing card to cashier, swiping card, signing receipt/typing PIN/checking ID, giving card back, putting card to wallet, and putting wallet to pocket” results to faster food truck service and more satisfied customers.
Apple Pay is also great for customers who do not want to share their personal information. Without the need to give a physical card, customers do not have to show the cashier their name, account number, or security code. Customers are also reassured that they will not be victims to crimes like card skimming.
With more merchants integrating Apple Pay to their system this year, food truck owners should consider accepting the contactless mobile payment to reap the benefits linked to it. On top of faster and safer transactions, food trucks that can accommodate Apple Pay can enhance customer perception of the business and help boost brand value. If Starbucks, KFC, Domino’s Pizza, and Cinnabon believe it is worth integrating, maybe your business can benefit from Apple Pay too.
Need help on how to start accepting Apple Pay in your food truck business? We can help!
