PayGate has added mobile payment system Zapper to its stable of options, allowing PayGate users to make easier and safer mobile payments.
“We expect that mobile will account for 50% of all card transactions within the next five years — and that’s probably conservative,” says PayGate general manager for business development Brendon Williamson. “As South Africa’s leading provider of payment services for online business, our goal is to ensure that our clients are always able to collect payments using the methods their customers prefer. Mobile is becoming an important part of that, with QR codes currently being the most popular way to enable payments. We offer our clients both Zapper and Mastercard’s MasterPass mobile payment options.
Zapper South Africa general manager Derek Wiggill says the company, which launched in the EU before tackling the home market of South Africa, has already signed up nearly 1000 merchants, mainly restaurants, and is growing at the rate of 50-60 new merchants a week.
For a mobile payment system to work it must add significant value to both consumers and merchants,” says Wiggill. “For the consumer, Zapper adds convenience as well as an important layer of security – your credit card cannot be cloned or skimmed in a restaurant. But merchants need something more. For them, Zapper is a way to engage more meaningfully with their customers. Every client gets a portal where they can see who their customers are, how often and what they are buying, and create rewards and incentives right inside the app to keep those customers coming back.
Zapper also, says Wiggill, makes it easy for merchants to cash up at the end of the day. “We are integrated directly into the point of sale software, so unlike some other mobile payment systems, Zapper payments don’t have to be processed separately. There is also no cumbersome integration needed – it’s just a matter of sending a software update.
“Mobile payments are currently an exciting fringe development,” says Wiggill. “Our goal at Zapper is to make sure they become mainstream. We’re making the transition easy for merchants by carrying the costs of setting up, providing the first three months free and giving customers a voucher for their first Zapper transaction. Those who start trying out the technology now will have a head start in understanding how to use to benefit their businesses.
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