Spreading the word

During my obligatory mid-morning Facebook log in (I can't possibly wait until lunch, I need to know what my friends have been up to), I came across a Visa sponsored link which took me here.

Pretty cool page, I must say - lots of useful info such as a map showing the contactless retailers closest to you. I blogged last week about an FStech contactless and mobile payments roundtable. One of the key messages to come out of the roundtable was that the industry as a whole needs to look at how it deals with messaging at various levels because at the moment it is all over the place. So it's good to see Visa attempting to connect with millions of Facebook users in a clear and concise way.

I still think that in many ways contactless is a solution looking for a problem, a problem that many people just don't have. Ultimately, cash works very well for them. But I will leave that 'rant' for another day.

From ‘cashless’ to ‘less-cash’ society

Visa Europe has released its first Contactless Barometer to benchmark consumer take-up of new payment methods. The research, of 2,000 UK consumers, showed positive feedback about contactless technology and a hunger for wider availability in mainstream retail outlets. No great surprise there…

Mark Austin, head of contactless at Visa Europe, comments: “We are now taking the first steps on the road to becoming a ‘less-cash’ society. The Barometer offers a snapshot of changing attitudes towards payment technology and consumer experiences of using it on the high street. The two key takeaways for me are the need for retailers to keep pace with consumer demand and also for our industry to take steps to ensure consumers are reassured about the security measures present in all contactless cards.”

The key takeaway for me is that ‘cashless’ society has been replaced by the not so grandiose ‘less-cash’ society . A long overdue recognition by the contactless brigade that, however much they might want it, cash ain’t going away any time soon.

Further info on the Visa Europe research here.