New Payment Solutions to Consider in 2015

On the British high street, credit and debit card payments are a popular way to shop in store. But in 2015, we see some new and innovative payment solutions coming to light and as the number of payment avenues increases, it will be important for businesses of all sizes to consider their payment options.

Although debit and credit card payments are preferred by many shoppers, Barclays research has revealed that only 42% of SMEs in the UK are offering this payment option (read more here), meaning that a large number of small to medium sized businesses are missing out on potential business from card carrying customers. The research further went onto reveal that a whopping £7.5 billion worth of business is being lost by these SMEs not accepting cards. To find out more about the cost of card payment terminals and how you should go about applying, click here.

Contactless Payment Terminals

A new and convenient way of paying via credit card was trialled on UK high streets in 2014. This innovative payment solution known as ‘Contactless Payment’ (see contactless card machines here), allows shoppers to ‘tap and pay’ in one simple and convenient action. This eliminates the need for using chip and pin, shortening queuing time for busy restaurants and bars or other retail shops.

With the 2014 high street trial being so successful, there will be a growing demand for this in the coming year.

Mobile Payments UK Launch

Another new innovation to look out for is Apple Pay, which has already launched in the U.S and has become a hugely popular with shoppers. Backed by Bank of America, it has quickly become America’s chosen mobile payment solution. Soon to be debuted in the UK, we could see Apple Pay becoming another option for high street consumers.

Adopting a simple and fuss-free ‘wave and pay’ function, this new solution is a fast way for busy consumers to get their products without the tedious entering of pin codes or writing signatures.

Contactless Accessories

On top of these exciting new developments, Barclays Bank have also been trialling some wearable contactless payment accessories such as gloves, hats and handbags. The gloves were tried and tested for the first time very recently and we could see this hitting the shelves by Christmas this year.

With so many new advancements in technology, it seems that 2015 could be an interesting year for the retail world, with much encouragement of bringing shoppers back to the British high street once more.