Retailers Cite 'Insufficient Customer Demand' as Biggest Reason for Not Supporting Apple Pay

[Bryan Bowler]

No, it isn't, but it's in my pocket just like my credit card. Paying with Apple Pay is a gimmick right now, but it won't be in the future.

It's not a gimmick. Apple Pay is radically more secure and private than swiping a credit card.

Aside from that though, I realize you're referring to the physical act of pulling out a phone versus pulling out a credit card. I agree with you there, but I will say that is an entirely different outcome with the Apple Watch. The Watch is incredibly convenient and trumps them all.

 

[Hog Milanese]

As a person that worked at the home office of "the world's largest retailer" for several years, I can tell you for a fact the only reason they don't want to support Apple Pay is data.

They want/need every bit of data they can acquire regarding their customers/Members, and use it for practically all of their marketing and in-store/in-Club efforts.

Everything else being suggested is tangential at best. They want your data, and thankfully, Apple is saying no. Good for Apple, I say.

 

[eortizr]

Apple Pay affected NFC payments technology by trying to be the 'Creators' of contact-less payments. Once Apple Pay started to roll out, CVS a long time supporter of NFC payments stopped accepting contact-less payments. I used to pay using Google Wallet for years in CVS, now is gone...

 

[macduke]

Funny, they've never asked me, but I ask all the time. Problem is the people who are hearing it make $8/hr and don't give a crap. I've been there, done that. As more places support it they'll start to see a difference—especially among customers who typically spend more money. I know I prefer locations that support Apple Pay. Since getting my Watch it's even easier to pay with that and I use it even more. Bottom line is that it's easy for them to blame it on something like that and not the real reason—which is that they can't mine all of our private data. I'm curious since many of these places use CurrentC, how many of their customers really asked for that?

I'm sure they heard this all the time before adopting CurrentC: "Oh you don't support CurrentC? Well I guess I'll take my business elsewhere! Nothing is more convenient than using some app to scan a series of QR codes connected to my social security number, drivers license, bank account, birthdate and a bunch of other data in the cloud which will likely end up getting hacked soon. Tokenization and biometric security? Who needs that crap anyway! I prefer inconvenience and lack of basic privacy."

These companies can actually go screw themselves. No really. SOD OFF. They should consider it a privilege that as a customer, I chose to spend my hard earned dollars at their store over the myriad of other options. They have no right to look into my spending habits. They have no right to track my information and store it in the cloud. They have no right to ever ask me for my social security number. I hope that every single one of these companies goes out of business because that's no way to treat a customer. And yes, I do have a recent marketing minor and understand the benefits. But those classes also made me even more of a privacy advocate after learning about what they do. But customers are wising up and realize how ridiculous the whole situation really is.

 

[John.B]

Apple pay is neat, but paying with cash or plastic isn't a pain point and is a very efficient process.

Efficient. Right. Get back to us after your credit card data gets hacked because the retailer couldn't keep their website and/or POS terminals properly secured.

 

[The Deepness]

The McDonalds by my house I noticed says you can do Apple Pay in the drive thru, but there is no equipment outside to do it so you'd basically have to ask them to provide you with the equipment to do it...or hand over your credit card like everything else.

The handheld terminal makes it easy. With an Apple Watch, there's nothing faster. Or safer.

 

[Scooterman1]

Despite Apple dubbing 2015 "the year of Apple Pay" in its January earnings call, a number of big-name retailers remain skeptical over the contactless payments service, according to Reuters. The service launched last October in the U.S. and has steadily gained support from numerous banks and retailers in the months since.

Working through the National Retail Federation's top 100 United States merchants, of which Apple said "about half" would begin to accept Apple Pay this year, Reuters found the company's predictions may be "too optimistic," with many retailers remaining skeptical about Apple Pay. After questioning and interviewing a total of 98 of the top 100 NRF merchants, it was discovered that fewer than a quarter of the retailers currently accept Apple Pay while nearly two-thirds of the companies confirmed they would not be supporting the mobile payments service this year. Just four retailers confirmed to Reuters that they would in fact be joining the support of Apple Pay in 2015.

Apple has still made significant progress since the service's debut last October, increasing retail acceptance to over 700,000 points of sale as of the last financial Apple Pay update in March. According to one retailer not accepting Apple Pay, the Cupertino-based company comes on strong when pitching to possible partners.
When searching for a reason why so many companies were against backing the service, "insufficient customer demand" was the biggest reason cited by merchants. This was followed by lack of data access granted through observing customer buying habits, cost of installation, and support of other contactless payments solutions like Current-C. Twenty-eight total retailers noted that lack of data access, and the inability to send customized advertisements to individual users like traditional credit cards allow, is a "key reason" they won't accept Apple Pay.

Despite questions about the future of Apple Pay, its current partners echo enthusiasm in customer satisfaction and ease-of-use with Apple Pay. Whole Foods spokesperson Michael Silverman told Reuters that Apple's mobile wallet accounted for 2 percent of its sales dollars as of March, with an expected increase in the future. "Our shoppers are really enjoying the speed, convenience and security of Apple Pay," Silverman said. With WWDC around the corner, and rumors of much-requested features such as a rewards program coming to the platform, its likely additional companies will come around to Apple Pay as Apple beefs up the still fairly nascent service and consumer traction continues to improve.

Update 11:19 AM: Apple has provided a statement to iMore standing by its predictions of Apple Pay adoption for this year with some additional context not shared in the Reuters report.

Article Link: Retailers Cite 'Insufficient Customer Demand' as Biggest Reason for Not Supporting Apple Pay

What these bright Retailers that claim we don't ask for it fail to realize is that I no longer deal with a retailer that doesn't have it if there is a like retailer that does accept it. I love using it. Example: I no longer shop at CVS and now shop at Walgreens. I also buy by hamburgers at Whataburger or McDonalds. But I'm sure that CVS or other burger joints just don't care.

 

[Loucifer]

I know this moan is getting old, but in Europe we have had the technology for ever! Most transactions under £20 (GBP) I put through are just a wave of my debit card in front of the machine, I very rarely have to put in my pin (it is required for transactions over £20), even my corner shop (a late opening grocer with questionable selection of goods and customer service) has an NFC terminal! Please could we have it in the UK? Pretty please!!!

 

[mi7chy]

Top reasons for low Apple Pay adoption:

- Inconvenience and not as reliable as plastic that just works and doesn't run out of battery

- Unnecessary risk of dropping phone

- People don't want another company mining data on their purchasing habits

- Very few Apple Pay capable devices and they make up a tiny percent of total phone market share

- No low cost Apple Pay capable device

- Many payment terminals are still magnetic swipe type

 

[CausticSoda]

I was in Istanbul last week. In a shop, I handed them my UAE credit card, and they moved it over a sensor and handed it back. I asked if I needed to sign or enter a PIN, and they looked at me like I was stupid.

 

[mceolsen]

How about: Insufficient Employee Knowledge
Seems to work fine, but ONLY when whoever is working there actually knows how to use it! I've tried a few places that had it available, but the person working the counter had no clue how to get it "ready" on their end...

 

[Hog Milanese]

Top reasons for low Apple Pay adoption:

- Inconvenience and not as reliable as plastic that just works and doesn't run out of battery

- Unnecessary risk of dropping phone

- People don't want another company mining data on their purchasing habits

- Very few Apple Pay capable devices and they make up a tiny percent of total phone market share

- No low cost Apple Pay capable device

- Many payment terminals are still magnetic swipe type

Basically all of these are wrong.

 

[Trius]

The masses don't really care that they get to use their phone instead of their card. It's all the same. It'll be a while before things really change.

I agree to a certain extent. Reaching for my iPhone or wallet really makes no difference to me. The watch on the other hand is where it's at. Apple pay on the watch is amazing.

 

[gijoeinla]

I think Monday will definetly reveal more retailers officially on board.

Personally was at a Trader Joes in Los Angeles and just by chance asked if Apple Pay is available...

The cashier immediately said.... Monday!


I immediately thought...WWDC...

 

[cocky jeremy]

Wait until more people are upgraded to TouchID specific devices. Retailers will start being pushed a lot more towards it then.

 

[dampfnudel]

I asked a few people who have the iPhone 6/6 Plus if they use Apple Pay regularly and they all said no. Most of them tried it, but are pretty much meh about it. When I fly out of airports, both in the US and Europe, I often see people with an iPhone and a paper boarding pass they printed out at the kiosk. When I waited in line at the gate for my flight from JFK to Frankfurt a few months ago, I was one of the few who used my iPhone as a boarding pass. Many of them owned iPhones, but didn't use Passbook. A lot of people for one reason or another seem to be indifferent to new smartphone conveniences. A piece of paper or plastic seem to be good enough for a lot of people. Of course, most people coming here would be "aggressive" when it comes to adopting new tech/conveniences.

 

[mrxak]

Everyone talking about how much more secure Apple Pay is, what a joke. I've had my credit card info leaked/hacked twice over the years from incompetent stores, and it has affected me not one bit. So they send me a new card in the mail, boo-freaking-hoo. If there's any fraudulent purchases made with my card, the company calls me up immediately and tells me about it and I'm not out any money.

I can see how it might be more convenient if you have an Apple Watch, but using it on your iPhone is just as "inconvenient" as using a credit card. There is no difference if you don't have an Apple Watch. Of course Apple Pay comes with the added inconvenience if having to find a place that actually supports it, whereas credit cards are accepted exactly everywhere.

We all know, deep down, why Apple invented Apple Pay. It was supposed to be the killer feature for the Apple Watch. There's very little reason otherwise to own one.

 

[Banyan Bruce]

Get Apple pay into the UK, Germany, France and Scandinavia. We've been using wireless cards for a few years now. Why fight so hard to change the US culture when you can simply jump into the European mindset who are very relaxed about this. Apple stop messing around and bring Apple pay to Europe....now.

 

[buckwheet]

Let's be honest, here on MR we are bias towards apple and believe apple pay should become standard everywhere, though in the greater scheme of things, I doubt the masses care.

To be honest I am Caring less and less, as apple announces a lot of cool features that never go international. Only after a major announcement you realize the feature is only for the U.S.

Awesome for our American cousins, but also frustrating for the rest of us.

I dunno, I kinda disagree. Paying by cash/credit/debit is just deeply ingrained, from years of repetition—but that doesn't make it a particularly good method. I'd love it if I didn't have to have my stupid cards with me all the time. And I don't think it's ever happened to me that I've been missing both cash/cards and my phone... And when my cash/cards aren't with me, my phone always is! So I'd definitely prefer using it, if it were available. That being the case, the "better" retailer, in my estimation, would be the one that supported it. The bottom line is that digital payments will be the standard at some point, so why not now, and why not Apple Pay?

 

[Banyan Bruce]

........

We all know, deep down, why Apple invented Apple Pay. It was supposed to be the killer feature for the Apple Watch. There's very little reason otherwise to own one.

There is space for Apple Pay as a convenient method of payment. Actually don't see the point of Apple Watch, even with Apple Pay !

 

[tmiw]

Get Apple pay into the UK, Germany, France and Scandinavia. We've been using wireless cards for a few years now. Why fight so hard to change the US culture when you can simply jump into the European mindset who are very relaxed about this. Apple stop messing around and bring Apple pay to Europe....now.

Switching to chip and whatever is already going to cause a change in our behavior though.

 

[mrxak]

I asked a few people who have the iPhone 6/6 Plus if they use Apple Pay regularly and they all said no. Most of them tried it, but are pretty much meh about it. When I fly out of airports, both in the US and Europe, I often see people with an iPhone and a paper boarding pass they printed out at the kiosk. When I waited in line at the gate for my flight from JFK to Frankfurt a few months ago, I was one of the few who used my iPhone as a boarding pass. Many of them owned iPhones, but didn't use Passbook. A lot of people for one reason or another seem to be indifferent to new smartphone conveniences. A piece of paper or plastic seem to be good enough for a lot of people. Of course, most people coming here would be "aggressive" when it comes to adopting new tech/conveniences.

I actually do see people using Passbook at airports quite a bit, and in a space of just a few months from the end of last summer to early spring I saw the number dramatically rise. It might depend on the airline and how good the airline's app is, too. United's app is very useful and probably one in every four or five passengers were using a digital ticket on the last fight I was on.

 

[laurim]

I asked a few people who have the iPhone 6/6 Plus if they use Apple Pay regularly and they all said no. Most of them tried it, but are pretty much meh about it. When I fly out of airports, both in the US and Europe, I often see people with an iPhone and a paper boarding pass they printed out at the kiosk. When I waited in line at the gate for my flight from JFK to Frankfurt a few months ago, I was one of the few who used my iPhone as a boarding pass. Many of them owned iPhones, but didn't use Passbook. A lot of people for one reason or another seem to be indifferent to new smartphone conveniences. A piece of paper or plastic seem to be good enough for a lot of people. Of course, most people coming here would be "aggressive" when it comes to adopting new tech/conveniences.

The last flight I was on, so many people used their iPhone in front of me I laughed because the Delta agent didn't have anything to do for a while (since they have people scan their own phones).

I still get a paper boarding pass because a) before Passbook, I would lose internet signal to the Delta app and couldn't pull up my pass and b) often the Passbook pass doesn't have the gate listed on it so I'll get the paper pass checking in and may or may not scan it at the gate. So it's more a negative for the design of the app than the iPhone. I can also add c) I have trouble juggling my phone and my luggage so prefer putting it back in my purse before boarding. Once I get the watch with my boarding pass on it, I anticipating using it more than the paper pass.

I LOVE using Pay to the extent where I actually nag my local merchants to implement it. I just did at the liquor store an hour ago

 

[MH01]

I dunno, I kinda disagree. Paying by cash/credit/debit is just deeply ingrained, from years of repetition—but that doesn't make it a particularly good method. I'd love it if I didn't have to have my stupid cards with me all the time. And I don't think it's ever happened to me that I've been missing both cash/cards and my phone... And when my cash/cards aren't with me, my phone always is! So I'd definitely prefer using it, if it were available. That being the case, the "better" retailer, in my estimation, would be the one that supported it. The bottom line is that digital payments will be the standard at some point, so why not now, and why not Apple Pay?

I'd love to have apple pay to be honest , just for the security element alone, though I am just being realistic most people still use either cash or cards. The masses are not as tech conscious as those of us on these forums.

 

[Blue Fox]

Most of the time, I'm the one that actually tell retailers "look, I can pay with my phone". Most of the employees have no idea what NFC or Apple Pay is, so how is a report like this "accurate" when I tell the cashier "Wish you guys would accept Apple Pay", and look at me blankly because they haven't a clue.

Also, I tend to shop at places more that do offer Apple Pay. Why? Because I find it fun to use it, and it's nice that it keeps a log of my transactions.