Money2020 Expo - Key Conversations and Companies & Services to Watch

By Randy Smith,

Mobile Wallet Media

November 2, 2012

Is Bluebird the way to fly in prepaid? This monthly fee free model will do well.

The focus of the event was clear. Mobile and Digital Wallets are the future. Many great insights were shared by top executives, providing a preview of their direction and focus.

You would never have guessed this was the premier event for Money2020 Expo. The abundance, quality and diversity of keynote speakers, presenters, panels, moderators, exhibitors and attendees would, if you were an industry outsider, make you think the event had been held for years. It was impossible to capture it all and attend all panels and meetings! I'll start with companies I interviewed.

American Express

Joanna Lambert of American Express shared with me a bit of the company's vision and focus of the future:

"We want our Serve app to be used several times a day. This requires an intuitive interface focused on saving time and money. Maybe it's saving a trip to the bank or receiving a notification from your local bakery when the when rolls are hot and fresh? . . . We want to help merchants to drive incremental value and increase consumer loyalty . . . We are very open to partnering to reach our goal of being agnostic . . . With Bluebird our aim is to make loading money and transacting as fast and simple as possible . . . We are spending a lot of time asking what consumers want. We are transitioning from payments company to a service company."

I've always seen Amex as delivering extra value via services like OPEN and their concierge services. If they can continue to provide that extra value and merge it with Serve, I believe this is a winning formula. By the way, we all can take part of Amex's upcoming nationwide event, Small Business Saturday. This event on November 24th has the right focus, social strategy and charm to make for a big hit in supporting your local small business. Check it out and spread the word!

First Data

I sat down with Dominic Morea and Mark Herrington of First Data to hear first hand about their new merchant and consumer engagement platform Universal Commerce.

Dominic and Mark shared: "Universal Commerce is a framing strategy. We've realigned product around this concept. We reach over half of the terminals in the U.S. and paired with our Open API - Rapid Connect. New value-added services and offers tied to transactions can be delivered seamlessly. We have the ability to recognize a consumer and link relevant offers.  We can help publishers with precise results."

I've looked far and wide and First Data does have a solid vision about a the future of connected or Universal Commerce. It's worth taking a look at their 3-minute video below about Universal Commerce.

First Data's Vision of Universal Commerce

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Search, Social or SuperCommerce? Future Universal Commerce Gateways

By Randy Smith,

Mobile Wallet Media

October 19, 2012

How will retail sales soar in the coming years?

Search + Social + Savings + Sharing + Reviews + Products + Big Data + Proximity + Security + Fun + Video + Pics + CPG Offers + ? (TBD) + Mobile Wallet = SuperCommerce

The Mobile Wallet will be at the crossroads of ALL commerce by delivering unparalleled convenience!

Google, Facebook, Apple, PayPal, ISIS, LevelUp, MCX, Square, payment networks, banks, processors and dozens more are key players in the battle for transactional revenues and the future gateway to consumer commerce. We'll drill deep to get a core sample of the future of mobile commerce.

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Mobile Contactless Payment Innovations Summit - Key Quotes/Takeaways

By Randy Smith,

Mobile Wallet Media

October 16, 2012

"The one who enrolls, is the one that controls."

Richard Crone of Crone Consulting speaking about the control of 'Big Data' via Mobile Wallets.

"We must get away from the idea of wanting to control the customer. Today the way you control the customer is to provide value. We just need to confirm ID at POS. Does your new product integrate with all systems and will it scale?"

Amir Wain, CEO of I2C, Inc.

Many profound insights were shared at the 5th MCPI Summit in Chicago on October 2-3.

This event delivered expert opinion from a diverse perspective. In writing this article I could have spun up a short and simple summary with just the key takeaways. However, this event had so many relevant conversations I thought it best to just deliver the conversations as they happened, while screening out the non-essentials. Sort of like using your DVR to watch a football game or favorite TV show.

The host and moderator for many panels was Karen Webster, the CEO of Market Platform Dynamics and President of PYMNTS.com. I've always been a fan of Karen's articles and case studies!

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Embracing Innovation is Answer to Tech Disruption at the WSSA Conference

By Randy Smith,
Mobile Wallet Media
September 29, 2012

The Western States Acquirers Conference had high impact statements and speakers delivered in a small package. Two of the general sessions were "Embracing Change; Staying Relevant in the Changing Payments Landscape" and "Future of Acquiring . . . Will you Wipe Out or Catch the Big One?" The wake-up call to reality is ringing and it is time to answer the call. If you can't beat the join them, might provide the answer.



It seems like the overarching message being delivered here was, don't panic, but do take action now! Attending diverse trade shows in this past year and past 15 years, I've come to hear the words 'Disruption' and 'Innovation' a lot. These two words, in 2012 have lead the pack for trendy words used in business and technology. The words address the issue of change and remaining 'relevant,' also another trendy word in our vocabulary today.

The word Disruption in Silicon Valley and the tech industry represents a method of being innovative by creatively solving problems or providing a solution that could be done in a much better, simpler, quicker or more cost-efficient way. Disruption is innovation and vice-versa. It is only when it is you that is being disrupted that it is viewed with disdain or threat. But this is business and competition and change is always the constant. To stick your head in the sand and think that things will remain the same as they have always been is strategy that will deliver your worst fears to become reality.

Innovation is offense. It is moving the ball forward and the best defense is a great offense. The SR-71 BlackBird was developed in the 1960's by Lockheed Corporation. It can fly as high an altitude as 100,000 feet with 3 times the speed of sound (3.5 Mach). It was in use by USAF for 40 years and was retired in 1998. It actually had no defensive weapons, but relied solely on it's speed, stealth and maneuverability to evade it's enemies. In all it's years of service it was never shot down. But even it was retired after 30+ years in service. Why? It was retired because the next generation of technology was ready to replace it. And now is the time that new innovation is replacing the status quo.

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Moneyball-Like Innovative Disruption is Cure for Mobile Wallet Dysfunction

By Randy Smith,

Mobile Wallet Media

September 21, 2012

"When defining moments come along you either define the moment or the moment defines you." Kevin Costner, Tin Cup (movie) - Don't let source of innovation derail you.

Apple's decision to not include NFC in their iphone 5 has extended the runway for disruption via alternative technologies enabling Mobile Wallets and payments.

Every move that is made by PayPal or Apple affects the entire sphere of the mobile payments and Mobile Wallet world. The non-inclusion of NFC by Apple will be sure to alter and delay Google Wallet & ISIS.

All Things Digital just published an article by Carey Kolaja, Chief of Operations for Global Product & Experience at PayPal. This article is a relevant part of the public conversation about the Mobile or Digital Wallets. I will also propose a philosophy that must be adopted to solve problems and engage innovation in general and specifically in this space.

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