Payment Pulse – Ep. 18

Payment Pulse: The Power of Social Proof: Learn how influencer endorsements, online reviews, and peer behavior shape our buying habits.

Status Spending and Luxury Psychology: Understand why consumers use high-end payment methods to signal prestige and how brands capitalize on the “Keeping up with the Joneses” mentality.

FOMO and Impulse Purchases: Explore the role of limited-time offers and BNPL services in reducing purchase friction and triggering rapid spending.

Digital Trends on Social Media: See how platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube are revolutionizing product discovery and checkout experiences.

Cultural Influences on Spending: Discover how global payment preferences vary and why adapting to local norms is key for businesses expanding into new markets.

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Episode Transcript

Shannon: Welcome to the Payment Pulse Podcast by Xplor Pay. I’m Shannon, and joining me is Michelle. We’re part of the marketing team at Xplor Pay, and we’re here to help you simplify payments.

Today we’re talking about something that’s changing the way that businesses accept payments. It’s called tap on phone, and it’s designed to remove the friction that usually comes with taking payments, and it’s helping businesses create a smoother, more natural checkout experience for their customers.

Michelle, do you wanna kick us off with what that means?

Michelle: Sure thing. Tap to phone is the ability for a merchant to accept a payment right on their smartphone, so there’s no need for extra hardware or a card reader. Customers can tap a contactless card, a digital wallet, or even a smartwatch directly on their phone to pay. It turns an everyday device into a payment terminal. And because everything happens on a device that people already use all day, every day, it makes the payment experience feel simple and seamless.

So Shannon, people hear the phrases “tap to pay” and “tap on phone”. Rhey might be using these terms interchangeably or believe that they’re the same. How would you explain the difference?

Shannon: So tap to pay is a secure way to use your card, smartphone, or smartwatch at checkout, like you mentioned a minute ago. So instead of swiping or inserting your card, you hold the card or your device near a compatible reader for a moment to process the transaction wirelessly and tap on phone.

On the other hand, that turns the merchant’s smartphone into a digital payment device, and it helps business owners accept digital payments anytime, anywhere without the use of additional hardware.

So either way, the idea with these two concepts, it’s really the same. You tap and go, and that’s really what customers want these days. They want a quick, clean, frictionless way to pay without slowing anything down.

So Michelle, contactless payments have exploded. Why is the timing perfect for tap on phone?

Michelle: So people are now used to tapping their cards on their phone at checkout. Gone are the days of the swipe, and personally, I already get annoyed when I have to insert my card into a chip reader! Tapping my card is just second nature to me now.

Consumers just don’t wanna be inconvenienced by digging for their wallet or waiting for a hardware to connect. Instead, they just want the payment part to happen without any extra steps.

Also, the proliferation of digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay are huge drivers in the adoption of tapping to pay. More and more consumers are leaving the house, expecting to pay with a phone or a watch. And then there are even some brave folks out there who aren’t even bringing a physical wallet with them anymore.

On the business side, merchants just wanna reduce the amount of hardware that they have to maintain, and this gives them a way to accept payments with a device that they already use for everything else. It’s just really amazing to see how the stars have aligned for this technology. And, it’s a great way for vertical SaaS platforms to differentiate their offerings with a sleek, mobile first payment option.

So going back to you Shannon, what kinds of businesses are best for adopting for adopting tap on phone?

Shannon: Tap on Phone is really a strong fit anywhere mobility matters. So take for example, field service teams like HVAC, plumbers, and electricians who need to be able to collect payments in the field right after they complete a job. They need to collect payments on site, in the field sometimes for one-time jobs, and sometimes they also need to be able to set up recurring billing for delivery drivers and transportation teams.

They can also accept payments at a customer’s doorstep, so it’s a great solution for them. And then you also have pop-up shops, market vendors, more mobile storefronts, and even businesses like food trucks. Anyone who moves around can benefit from tap on phone.

So Michelle, I’m gonna kick this one back to you. For software companies that are thinking about adding tap to phone to their mobile app, what do you think they should know?

Michelle: Yeah, so what I would like to tell software companies is that the adoption barrier will be lower than they think. Most customers already use mobile phones for business tasks. Costs can even come down because tap on phone counts as a card present transaction. Integration is usually pretty straightforward with the right mobile SDK. It also creates a much more seamless in-app experience because the payment happens right inside the software instead of on a separate device.

At Xplor Pay, we even use our own mobile SDK in our merchant facing app, meaning it’s tested, proven, and ready for partners to use. It’s also important to point out that security is very strong because there’s no card data stored on the device. And from a revenue standpoint, tap on phone can increase payment adoption and improve retention because it gives merchants real value inside the software.

So let’s discuss some real world scenarios. How could various businesses use tap on phone?

Shannon: Think about a lawn care technician doing his first visit so they can capture a card on file by having the customer tap their card or phone on the technician’s device and tap on phone makes future billing simple. Future invoices can be automated and you don’t have to chase down customers for payment each time a payment is due.

Another great example is a high ticket repair like an HVAC installation. So instead of leaving an invoice and hoping it gets paid in 30 days, the tech can present the total right on their phone and accept a payment instantly. This helps improve cash flow and it also reduces accounts receivable for pop-up style businesses.

The phone becomes the payment terminal, which helps streamline operations by consolidating software and payments into a single device.

Michelle: Earlier I touched on how secure tap on phone is. Would you mind explaining that a little bit more?

Shannon: Yeah, sure. So some people assume that mobile based payments introduce risk, but tap on phone transactions use the same secure technology that powers contactless payments everywhere. Card numbers are never stored on the device or on the payment provider servers, so everything is encrypted. And digital wallet transactions are authenticated with whatever security method the device supports.

That could be a fingerprint, a face scan or even a passcode. Also, if the card requires a PIN, the customer can enter it right on the screen so it keeps the payment safe for both the business and the customer.

Michelle: Great! As we wrap up here, can you sum up why tap on phones should matter for merchants and vertical SaaS platforms?

Shannon: Yeah, sure thing. Tap on phone simplifies everything. There’s no terminals to manage, no readers to ship. Payments become faster and more modern, and everything just feels smoother for the customer because there are fewer steps and there’s nothing to plug in and nothing to connect. Checkout lines move quicker and businesses get paid faster.

And from a SaaS perspective, software platforms get a strong competitive advantage because they offer a mobile payment experience that fits the way that people want to pay today.

Thanks, Michelle! I think this was really great. Tap on phone is really one of those technologies that almost feels obvious once you see it in action.

Michelle: Yeah, it really is. It’s simple, secure, and it’s built for the way businesses operate today, and the customer experience is incredibly seamless from start to finish. So if you’re a merchant or a SaaS leader, it’s definitely worth exploring.

Shannon: Awesome. Well, thanks for joining us today and if this episode helped you understand tap to phone a little better, hit follow or subscribe. This will help more people discover the show.

Michelle: And if you’re a merchant or a SaaS leader and you wanna see how tap on phone fits into your workflow, head on over to xplorpay.com to take a closer look. It might be the upgrade that your customers are looking for.

Shannon: Awesome. Thanks so much and we’ll see you next time on the next episode of the Payment Pulse Podcast.