Last week, Apple made several announcements. They officially discontinued the iPod classic, offered a free release of U2’s new album to iTunes users, and more. Of all these announcements, a few of them are particularly important to ecommerce – Apple Pay, iPhone 6 & iPhone 6 Plus, and Apple Watch (explore some theories on why Apple is dropping the “i”).
Apple Pay
Coming on the heels of PayPal’s “One Touch” payment system and Braintree’s acquisition of Venmo Touch last year, is Apple Pay. It’s a brand new mobile payments platform built to work on iOS8, which means the iPhone 6 and the impending Apple Watch, plus any devices that upgrade now that it’s released. Using Apple Pay, you’ll be able to quickly, safely, and securely complete transactions with just a tap.
Authorize.Net is already on board, making it an acceptable payment method on their payment gateway. As a tokenized payment solution, Apple Pay “replaces sensitive payment information with a digital account number or ‘token,’ which is passed in place of the actual card number.” It also uses the Visa Token Service. All of this means your credit card information is neither stored on your phone, nor is it given to the merchant.
Much like the goal of Google Wallet, Apple is attempting to replace the wallet. Will it fail or will it fly? Theories abound, but only time will tell.
iPhone 6 & iPhone 6 Plus
Apple advocates are clamoring for the new iPhones. Preorders are pouring in, some already have them, some will get them when they ship on September 19th, and some are waiting it out. In addition to a ton of improved features, users will be able to browse the web faster and on larger screens.
iPhone6 has a 4.7 inch screen, but for the “phablet” lovers, there’s iPhone6 Plus, boasting a 5.5 inch screen with a higher resolution and pixel density, among other features. That’s the most important part for ecommerce companies – your users will be able to browse your site more easily on mobile devices. Add in Apple Pay and the upcoming synchronization with Apple Watch, and you have an opportunity to personalize your shopping experience even further and amaze.
Apple Watch
With a launch date hovering around early 2015, ecommerce companies should take notice. Gordon Kelly wrote an in-depth review of everything you need to know about Apple Watch, so definitely check it out for a full review of the features Apple’s willing to share for now. For ecommerce, the takeaways are the two screen sizes available, the updated user interface (UI), and the functionality.
The Apple Watch doesn’t come with integrated wifi and isn’t quite built for casually browsing the web and reading through websites. Users may not be reading through your site on their Watch; but it does still require an iPhone and is iPhone reliant (the Watch pulls wifi and GPS information from a paired iPhone). On the off chance Watch-users stumble upon your brand, you’ll want to ensure your site’s responsive, so they’ll want to come back and browse it on their phone (or “phablet” if it’s the iPhone 6 Plus).
The biggest opportunities here are with the UI and functionality. Zooming no longer happens by touching on-screen; there’s a “digital crown” on the side to help handle that. Long press recognition and pressure detection are both used to help users navigate the Watch, which means developers can utilize, not only the duration of a press, but its level of pressure as well. Much like the other recent Apple products, Siri comes integrated. All of this functionality, plus Apple Pay, means ecommerce companies are poised to truly amaze and offer completely new ways for users to discover, experience, and buy products.
Technology advances quickly, as do shopping methods and habits along with it. Staying ahead of the curve can seem like you’re constantly passing the relay baton instead of passing the finish line, but making changes to offer your customers an even better shopping experience is an integral part of building a better business.
After all, as an online merchant, shouldn’t you make it as easy as possible for customers to purchase from you on whatever device they’re using? You can’t control where your customers’ lives take them, but you can ensure you’ll be there when they need your products.