61% of Consumers Prefer Mobile Pay for Holiday Shopping: Survey

Six of 10 shoppers (61%) want to use mobile pay this holiday season, according to a survey by Retale, a location-based mobile platform. The findings are especially significant since Walmart yesterday introduced Walmart Pay to rival other mobile platforms such as Apple Pay and Android Pay. 

“The growth that we’re seeing is undeniable, especially over the holidays, when consumers seek out the best tools to streamline and simplify their shopping,” said Pat Dermody, president of Retale. “For many, mobile pay is a big advantage at checkout, and that’s building strong consumer support and propelling adoption upward.”

The second annual study focused on several key areas, including the benefits, challenges and preferred usage of mobile payments.

Some of the key findings:  

• Some 43 percent of respondents have previously used a mobile device – smartphone, tablet or smartwatch – to make a purchase in a brick-and-mortar retail store. This is a 7 percent increase year-over-year compared to the 36 percent who reported they had used mobile pay in Retale’s 2014 study.
• Some 83 percent of shoppers this year felt that mobile payments were “convenient,” while 17 percent called them “inconvenient.” In 2014, only 76 percent of respondents described mobile payments as “convenient,” versus 24 percent saying they were “inconvenient.”
• Year-over-year, the top two greatest concerns about mobile pay in-store remained the same, with “data breaches and privacy” (59%) and “possible theft or loss of mobile device” (55%).
• This year, when asked what they were most likely to purchase with on-site mobile payment over the holiday season, the top three selections were: clothing (44%); food (41%); and gift cards (30%). 
• When asked to identify the mobile payment service they would most likely use in-store, half (50%) mentioned PayPal. “Your bank’s mobile payment app” was the runner-up, with 27 percent, followed by Apple Pay, at 20 percent. In 2014, the top three ranking was identical. Android Pay (17%) and a retailer’s app (13%) round out the top five this year.