Monthly Archives: November 2014

Introducing Tappy

Posted by & filed under Photos & Videos, Softcard News.

-Cie Nicholson, SVP Marketing, Softcard

People are excited when I tell them about Softcard. An app that holds payment cards, special offers and loyalty cards? Sign me up. Consumers are eager to learn more: How does it work? Where can I use it?

Today, I’m pleased to announce Softcard is launching a new campaign aimed at educating consumers on Softcard and mobile payments in a fun, social, and sharable way.

In the coming weeks, you’ll see a series of videos, photos, and fun content featuring Tappy, a payment terminal mascot we’ve brought to life. Whether he’s taking the big stage at McDonalds, hanging with Jared at Subway, or wrestling with Rowdy Roddy Piper, Tappy brings lovable humor to his job. That’s no surprise given Tappy’s pedigree. He was built by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop – the same folks who build the Muppets.

Despite how often consumers use point-of-sale (POS) payment terminals, our research indicates consumers tend to overlook the hardware. Swiping is an engrained behavior – however, mobile payments changes that experience, replacing a swipe with a tap. The challenge, of course, is that acceptance is not yet ubiquitous. We need people to look for the contactless EMV symbol Contactless EMV Symbol to know where to pay.

This new campaign was designed for social consumption and sharing. We’re reaching out to the consumers most likely to use mobile payments. As a result, the campaign will live in digital channels, specifically social, mobile, and video. Our customers live phone-first lives, and we need to reach them on the platform where they’re consuming information.

Choosing a puppet to bring Tappy to life allows us to quickly turn out fresh content. For example, in the middle of a recent brainstorming session, we popped over to our creative agency’s in-house studio. In 10 minutes, we shot a short clip highlighting taxi acceptance, and after some light editing, it was ready to go. In a marketing world dominated by high-tech special effects and celeb partnerships, this is a simple approach – and we believe it’s spot on given our audience and need to turn out fresh, timely, and topical content.

The Tappy campaign will launch today on Softcard’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr and YouTube channels where we’ll be targeting the 60 percent of the market who use Android and Windows devices.

We think you’ll enjoy the campaign as much as we enjoyed creating it. Happy watching.

Softcard and the associated logos are property of JVL Ventures, LLC. Contactless Symbol is property of EMVCo, LLC. Android is a trademark of Google Inc. Other third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Get Closer to Your Next Trip with United MileagePlus® and Softcard™

Posted by & filed under Softcard News.

Softcard is pleased to announce United Airlines and Chase are adding support for United MileagePlus® credit cards by Chase. Cardholders can now add United MileagePlus credit cards to Softcard, using the app to tap-to-pay and earn award miles at over hundreds of thousands of locations nationwide that accept contactless payments. This is a great solution for busy, on-the-go travelers interested in a convenient, easy and safer way to pay with their smartphones.

Users receive special perks, too: Now through February 28, 2015, earn 2,500 miles when you connect any United MileagePlus credit card by Chase to Softcard and make your first mobile payment. You can also receive 500 additional miles every subsequent month you tap-to-pay with Softcard, up to a total of 4,000 miles.

United MileagePlus cardholders will be reminded of this great opportunity in United Airlines terminals in major airports across the country, including Chicago O’Hare, Denver, Houston, Newark, and Washington-Dulles, as well as when they visit United.com.

Softcard uses state-of-the-art technology and layers of security including PIN protection to limit unauthorized access and remote lock if a user’s phone is lost or stolen. Additionally, payment information is stored in the phone’s Secure Element to enhance the security of user’s information.

United MileagePlus credit cards join dozens of other cards supported in Softcard from issuers such as Chase, Wells Fargo and American Express. The American Express Serve Account also allows Softcard users to add money from a preferred debit card, credit card or bank account.

Softcard is currently available on more than 80 devices across AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless, including more than 30 devices that preload the app.

–Jim Stapleton, SVP Sales

Softcard Extends Its Leadership As First and Only NFC-based Mobile Wallet App Supported on Multiple Mobile Operating Systems; Will be on More Than 100 Devices by Year End

Posted by & filed under Softcard News.

Today I’m at the Money20/20 conference in Las Vegas, where attendees are talking about the future of mobile payments. It’s an exciting time for all of us – as many continue to align around NFC as the industry standard technology, a key to accelerating merchant and consumer adoption.

Against this backdrop, today I’m pleased to announce Softcard has come to Windows Phone, reinforcing our leading positioning as the first and only NFC-based mobile wallet app supported on multiple mobile operating systems.

We believe in customer choice – it’s one of our core principles and an important factor in driving widespread consumer adoption. Giving consumers more choice is reflected in the number of devices supported by Softcard – I’m also pleased to announce that by the end of this year Softcard will be supported on more than 100 devices, another industry milestone.

Over the next 2-3 years this industry will grow rapidly. More phones will ship, more banks will be in mobile wallets and more merchants will accept mobile payments. To understand what the future of mobile payments can look like, we can look back at Softcard’s pilot in Salt Lake City, UT. Two years ago, we launched in Salt Lake City. Here’s what it looks like today:

  • Payment active rates are 2.5 times the national average
  • Taps per active user are 50% higher than the national average
  • Salt Lake City users are 3.5 times more likely to engage with offers and 4 times more likely to use loyalty cards than the national average

This test represents a microcosm of how the mobile payments’ ecosystem will work when we reach scale. If Salt Lake City is any indication of what the future will be like for the rest of the country – it is indeed very bright.

–Michael Abbott, CEO