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7 questions to ask in choosing a mobile payments solution

The unprecedented evolution of the payments space can be intimidating to any business but it's not an insurmountable challenge.

November 6, 2015

By Gregory Burch

The unprecedented evolution of the payments space can be intimidating to any business trying to accommodate the new mobile savvy consumer while also maintaining an evolving set of compliance and liability requirements.

I recently heard the following statement that echoes the sentiment of many retailers:

"As a merchant who prides themselves on customer service, my top desire is to upgrade my store to use tablets or phones to bring my point of sale with me as my staff and I service customers inside and outside the store. I want to enable checkout on the spot as I answer customer questions. I also want to accept mobile payments. My concern is that I know I should comply with PCI and I am also starting to believe that EMV (chip card) is really happening in the U.S. and the liability shift could impact my business. How can I possibly get all this done? Do I need to put my top desires on hold to focus on PCI?"

Here are the top seven considerations to ask a mobile solutions or software point of sale provider as you consider a mobile project:

What are the network requirements?

Consider the following checklist:

Confirm the solution works off of a Wi-Fi local network and/or long range wireless network.
Confirm the type of network security is supported.
Check to make sure the solution is compatible with your existing network modem or router.
Determine if any additional network hardware needs to be purchased.
Confirm support for networked printers and networked PIN Pads or payment terminals.

What are my options to manage receipts?

Multiple options should be available to handle receipt printing. The most elegant solutions offer several options to collect a signature on the tablet or phone and email a copy of the receipt to an end user.If the user prefers a physical copy of the receipt, confirm you have the option of sending the receipt over Wi-Fi to a networked printer or use a portable printer if you’re outside the store. Many customers conceal the printer in a drawer along a wall near the exit of the store.

How is inventory managed?

Confirm inventory is centrally managed and not tied to any single device. Solutions will continue to emerge that allow central inventories to be accessed by store point of sale, websites and mobile applications to support the cross channel shopping experience.

Is cardholder data being encrypted in a PCI-PTS certified device?

Make sure any card data that is swiped, tapped or entered occurs on a PCI-PTS certified device. The value of these devices is they are tamper proof, allow only digitally signed software to be loaded and encrypt the card holder data at the time of entry.The list of approved devices can be found on the PCI website.

What solutions accept NFC payments? Which mobile wallets are supported?

To accept the major mobile wallets, a solution should have an NFC reader and tests should be completed to confirm the major mobile wallets you want to support have been tested by the solution provider.

Is a solution capable of EMV and what about the issue of being EMV certified?

Most of the top mobile solutions are finalizing EMV integrations or are awaiting their certifications from their processor. Ask your provider when their EMV certification will be live to ensure you have a clear time line of your liability exposure.

Can your solution accept EMV with PIN (Chip and PIN)?

Hundreds of millions of EMV cards have been issued in the U.S. and well over 50 million are PIN based cards. We expect the number of PIN cards issued to increase dramatically in 2016, therefore, to control your exposure to liability, be sure you understand the options to accept PIN based EMV cards now or in the future.

I hope that working through these seven topics will give you clearer insight into the short and long term capabilities of the solution you are adopting.

Gregory Burch is vice president, mobile, business development and ISV partnerships at Ingenico Group.