apple pay – CoCard

May 29 2018

5 Organizational Apps To Make Your Days That Much More Effective

Advice, Blog, Business, business owners, EMV, Industry, Lifestyle, Merchant Cash Advance, merchant services, mobile payments, New Product, Point of Sale, small business, Standard, Tech

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Apps these days are a dime a dozen, so we wanted to assemble some of our favorite apps for organization. From file storage to organizing trip details to content management, these apps have the power to make your work life that much easier, and more effective.

Evernote

Take notes in meetings, and attach documents, articles, and presentations to these notes. You can also record meetings as a part of the note so that you can stay focused on what a client is saying, or doing your best in a presentation. Evernote is available on Android and iOS, and also has a desktop version to sync to a tablet.

Dropbox

Dropbox is great for file storage, especially files that are too large to attach to an email. Keep both business and personal information in your Dropbox account. The great thing about this app is that it offers a free 30-day trial for a relatively inexpensive cost of $12.50 per month. It also has a snazzy camera upload feature where your pictures automatically upload to your account.

TripIt

Keep your flight confirmations, restaurant reservations, and hotel information in this app. For many business owners, travel is a given whether for business or in your personal life. Keep photos and information about cherished destinations—where to dine again, for example, or an article about a particular workspace. The premium version also gives access to frequent flyer miles.

HabitList

If you are a person who wakes up at 5am, you likely understand the benefit of forming good habits. And HabitList is one way to form even more habits. It allows you to proactively decide which things in your life you’d like to be more consistent so that they, in fact, become habits. Do you want to schedule small meals throughout the day? Or do your most difficult tasks first? HabitList tracks progress and offers positive reinforcement along the way to make forming habits more achievable.

CoSchedule

This app is available via desktop, not smartphone or tablet yet. However, it is excellent with content management. Schedule your blog posts and other social media posts through this program which offers more organization. CoSchedule also integrates seamlessly with Google Docs and Evernote.

These apps will make your work life more efficient. And of course, chances are you already have a great organizational app that you already use that isn’t on this list. Don’t hesitate to try something new to make the most out of each day.

Apple Pay Expands to Canada

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Advice, Blog, Business, business owners, EMV, Industry, merchant services, mobile payments, New Product, Point of Sale, POS, small business, Tech

If there wasn’t any before, Apple Pay’s recent expansion has given merchants throughout the country of Canada a strong incentive to provide point of sale solutions compatible with the service. Although Apple Pay isn’t necessarily a service that is new to Canada, May 2016 marks the first time that customers will be able to make transactions with cards not exclusive to American Express.

For those that aren’t familiar, Apple Pay is a relatively new mobile payment feature powered by Apple that allows customers to pay for goods and services through their iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch. Launched in October 2014, the application is synced with a user’s credit card and is utilized by holding your device near the contactless reader on a merchant’s POS system. The application then requires a user’s fingerprint Touch ID to authorize the transaction, and is a replacement for traditional ‘Chip and Pin’ or ‘Chip and Signature’ security methods.

Although Apple Pay has been available in Canada since November 2015, it has only recently become available for merchants that process cardholders not affiliated with American Express.

On May 10, Apple Pay’s services were expanded to customers of Royal Bank of Canada, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, ATB Financial and Canadian Tire Bank. This expansion now supports Visa, Mastercard, and Interac, servicing a majority of cardholders in Canada. Services will be further expanded to TD Canada Trust, Scotiabank and the Bank of Montreal in order to fully accommodate Canada’s ‘Big 5’ banks, as well as two additional credit unions (iMore).

Apple Pay has potential to make a big splash in the Canadian market, primarily due to its cooperation with banking institutions. American Express is infamous for charging higher processing rates than its competitors, so Apple’s expansion beyond AmEx as sole proprietor of mobile transactions greatly increases its potential consumer base. In terms of customer protection, LoyaltyOne’s Senior Director of Research and Development believes that Apple Pay’s combination of security and branding are among its strongest selling points in foreign markets.

“Trust and security has remained a big issue with digital wallet adoption to-date, but studies show that consumers are more likely to adopt a mobile wallet platform and engage with the app if they trust a brand, and because banks are some of Canada’s most trusted brands, they are well-poised to get the most out of this digital trend,” says Berry. (MobileSyrup).

Having anticipated this major market shift, CoCard is fully equipped with a number of POS solutions that can quickly and efficiently service Apple Pay users in the United States. For more info about Apple Pay devices, call CoCard today at (800) 317-1819 or email at info@cocard.info.

What You Need to Know About Mobile Payments

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Advice, Blog, Blog, Business, business owners, EMV, Industry, merchant services, mobile payments, New Product, Point of Sale, POS, small business, Tech

Cartoon anthropomorphic EMV enabled terminal smiling

Terminal talks about mobile payments!

Like any new technology, mobile payments might seem a bit complicated. Don’t worry, we’re covering what you need to know about the latest mobile payment technologies— without all the technical jargon.

How do mobile payments work?

Apple Pay and Android Pay

Apple and Android Pay rely on NFC technology. NFC stands for “Near Field Communication,” as in the phone and terminal must be near each other to work. Both the phone and the terminal must have NFC chips.

Samsung Pay

Samsung Pay is different than Apple and Android pay because it involves MST technology. MST stands for “Magnetic Secure Transmission” and interacts with a terminal just like the magnetic strip on your card.

Both of these technologies allow your phone to internally store your payment info and to communicate with a terminal in order to authorize the transaction.

Are mobile payment technologies safe?

Yes. In general, today’s mobile payments are secure. Your card information is encrypted in your phone to combat fraudsters. Essentially, your phone holds a virtual card—a decoy that you use to make payments. Unlike a physical card, your financial information (i.e. your name and card number) is not directly used.

Here’s a few tips to make your mobile wallet even more secure:

Make sure you have a passcode on your phone. If your phone gets lost or stolen, it will be more difficult for someone to use your phone to make payments with your card.
Set your phone up to be able to be turned off from anywhere in the event your phone has been lost or stolen.
Monitor your card statements for any fraudulent charges. If you see anything suspicious, call your bank.

Apple and Samsung Pay also utilize fingerprint verification (biometrics) in order to access your chosen payment.

Comparing Mobile Payment Apps

Apple Pay
Introduced 2014
One of the first mobile payment options to utilize NFC technology in phones
Works with iPhone models 6 and newer
Works with wearables (Apple Watch)
Accepts most Visa, MasterCard and most large organizations
Larger banks (like Bank of America) support Apple Pay, but support varies across smaller regional banks

Android Pay
- Phone must be supported by NFC, which is available in newer Android models
- Utilizes a downloadable app
- Works on any compatible smartphone
- Currently supported by fewer banks than Apple Pay

Apple and Android Pay are not yet widely accepted in stores due to the fact that this technology is relatively unknown to consumers.

Samsung Pay:
Works with newest Samsung phones like the Galaxy S7
Uses MST technology to mimic the magnetic strip on a card
Works by hovering your phone over any terminal
Use is not restricted to NFC enabled terminals
Does not work (due to weak signal strength) if your card has to be inserted into the terminal, like at a gas station

Have more questions about mobile payments, or wireless terminals, our customer services representatives will be happy to help- just call us at 1(800)317- 1819!