PAYBACK launches digital card

PAYBACK and its partners are set to launch a completely new mobile shopping option in June. “Our 28 million PAYBACK customers can now decide whether they want to continue collecting points as usual with the card, or whether they want to do so using the app. Unlike the card, our new product combines points collection, coupons and mobile payment for the first time,” said PAYBACK managing director Dominik Dommick. Currently, the Germans show the card at partners’ checkouts 3.5 million times a day. “According to market research, 86 per cent of our app users think the digital card is an attractive option, and 36 per cent want to use it to pay in the future,” said Dommick. He presented the new product together with Philipp Blome, director of digital services at real,-, on Tuesday at the EHI conference in Bonn. The current PAYBACK app, which up to now has mainly been used to activate coupons, has already been downloaded over 8.5 million times. Of the 20 billion PAYBACK coupons dispatched in the 2015 financial year, 18 billion were already digital. A pilot phase due to start in June will give customers the opportunity to collect points from major PAYBACK partners on their smartphones. As of this date, customers will also be able to pay with their phones at dm-drogerie markt. The retail chain real,- will introduce the smartphone payment option in July, and partners including Aral, GALERIA Kaufhof, REWE and Alnatura will be equipped for mobile payments in autumn. The solution is based on QR code and NFC technology; the sum of money due is paid by direct debit. “Our service package makes us more effective compared to large payment providers as they only offer one payment function,” said Dommick. Customers’ bank details cannot be accessed by PAYBACK or its partners, nor are they stored on the smartphone. All bank details are stored exclusively by a certified payment provider. “Customers are demanding more and more mobile services. Therefore, it is very important to achieve the best possible integration between the PAYBACK app and the partners’ apps,” said Philipp Blome. “By ensuring the mutual integration of our mobile offers, it doesn’t matter where or how users begin their mobile shopping trip.” With this feature the app has great potential, said Blome.