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Two thirds of US shoppers plan to use mobile payments for holiday shopping

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American shoppers are expected to spend an average of $1,048 during the 2019 holiday shopping season – and a large portion of that spending will involve using a mobile payments or rewards platform.

According to the 2019 Holiday Shopping and Mobile Payments Study survey of more than 1000 US-based consumers conducted by Ibotta, nearly 60% of shoppers say they have three or more rewards and/or payments apps on their phones, whereas 15% of all shoppers have eight or more.

And while more than half (52%) of these shoppers say they feel overwhelmed by the large number of mobile payments and rewards programmes, nearly 60% of say they are likely to use a mobile payments solution for some of their holiday purchases this year.

Another 39% are interested in learning more about mobile payments and rewards programmes. 

The mobile shopping solutions and reward platforms detailed in the survey included, but were not limited to: Apple Pay, Google Pay, Pay with Ibotta, Samsung Pay, Starbucks Rewards, Target Cartwheel, Target Circle, Walmart Pay, and Zelle. 

According to Ibotta’s survey results, the majority of consumers would make the switch to mobile payments if rewards and saving money were among the top benefits. Of the 61% of survey respondents who have used their phones to make an in-store purchase, 63% are motivated by payment methods that offer rewards, rebates and cash back, while 55% would be inclined to adopt mobile payments if the solutions saved them money. 

Consumers want convenience, with 54% of respondents saying mobile payments solutions are more convenient than using card payments in-store. They are also curious as to the benefits of adopting mobile payments and rewards programmes: 53% want to know if these programmes will save them money, 37% want to know if they will save them time and  35% want to know if they can expect faster checkout times. 

Shoppers are also more apt to try using mobile payments with well-known brands, with two-thirds of shoppers saying they’re most likely to use them at major retailers. 

“The way in which consumers shop this holiday season will be drastically different than how they’ve shopped in the past, signaling a major milestone in user adoption, comfort, and trust of mobile payments,” says Bryan Leach, founder and CEO of Ibotta. “Our hope is that this is simply the tipping point, and that we might finally experience the long-awaited breakthrough in mobile payments during the 2019 shopping season.”

Barriers to adopting mobile payments and rewards programmes

Even with the growing popularity of mobile payments and rewards programs, there are still several barriers to widespread consumer adoption. For example, when asked why they have notyetused mobile payments, or are hesitant to do so, approximately 10% say they view mobile payments as a hassle, 10% feel uneducated about the options, and 14 percent still think paying with a card is easier.

When asked what their first instinct would be when invited to sign up for a new retailer app or rewards programme at the register, 21% of survey respondents would immediately dismiss the offer because of the large number of programs they’re already signed up for, 20% assume it requires too much work and 34% assume there is a catch.

“Since we started rolling out Pay with Ibotta earlier this year, we’ve seen first hand that consumers are interested in and willing to use solutions that provide rewards and maximize their savings,” Leach says. “Heading into 2020, we are focused on growing our payments ecosystem with instant cash back that results in a fun and rewarding shopping experience for consumers.”

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