by Ngoc
September 13, 2021

How Does Google Wallet Work for Ecommerce?

Using mobile payments, instead of using a credit card or a cheque, is becoming increasingly popular. According to Reuters, global mobile payments are estimated to reach around $50 billion by 2021. Therefore, it makes sense to be able to pay using your smart devices.

Because we can carry them everywhere, and add lots of cards into your favorite mobile payment service without space in your wallet. That is the reason why we should not miss one of the mobile payments called Google Wallet. In this article, to continue the series of e-commerce blogs, ArrowTheme will provide you with useful information about how Google Wallet works for e-commerce.

Don’t worry if you don’t have any idea about this term. We will show you the details. But before finding out “How Does Google Wallet Work For Ecommerce?”, we will take a look at “What is Google Wallet?”. Let’s start.

What is Google Wallet?

Google Wallet is a mobile payment system. It functions as a virtual wallet. Therefore, it allows users to make payments and money transfers directly from their phones. It is free using the service. Moreover, users can store credit card, debit card, gift, or loyalty card information. Google Wallet is a new way of paying at ecommerce businesses that accept it. Furthermore, it’s available to everyone with the modern Android or Apple smartphones.

Mobile payments are a new technique to boost online sales greatly. Now, mobile devices make for below 50% of ecommerce traffic. However, roughly 77% of users purchase products only on a personal computer. Customers are still hesitant to make transactions on mobile devices. Because they are afraid of security and the difficulties of entering bank card information on a touchscreen.

By simplifying the mobile payment procedure through a secure service, electronic wallets solve these issues. Customers simply click to purchase goods, and the wallet already has all of their payment information. Therefore, fast checkout is available in the app as well as on mobile sites.

How Does Google Wallet Work for Ecommerce?

It works similarly to a gift card: users deposit a certain amount of money into their wallet. As a result, they can then use it as they want. For the user’s bank, this transaction is similar to any debit or credit card transaction.

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However, the only difference is that the transactions are performed completely through Google instead of the merchant’s point of sale. In this case, the seller’s payment system is set to accept Google Wallet. So these transactions can perform the same as any other approved payment method. 

The Google Wallet concept is based on a few widely used technologies, such as smartphones and NFC (near-field communication). NFC is a short-range wireless technology. It gives your smartphone a whole new set of capabilities.

Firstly, you have to download the Google Wallet app on your devices. In mid-2013, just a few Android mobile devices supported NFC. However, if your device supports NFC, your cellular carrier must allow you to connect NFC with the digital wallet.

But most carriers do not. Only Sprint, Virgin Mobile, US Cellular, and MetroPCS offered devices that worked with Google Wallet and NFC in the United States in June 2013. Samsung, LG, and HTC all have products in this category. NFC is also supported on the Google Nexus 7 and Google Nexus 10 tablets.

Moreover, you can join up for Google Wallet online when you don’t have a compatible phone or provider. You can utilize the service to speed up checkout on websites on the Internet, as well as for various non-NFC uses. 

After you’ve downloaded the app or signed up online, you may set up your wallet with credit and debit cards, loyalty cards, gift cards, and much more. However, to use your Google Wallet, you have to select shops that have the necessary technology to read your phone’s NFC chip

So that is all about how Google Wallet works. Although mobile app support is still limited, Google Wallet also provides a physical card. Therefore, users can use it anywhere that takes a debit MasterCard.

Google Wallet’s Restrictions

According to Business News Daily, Google is discontinuing the processing of payments for certain digital goods such as e-books, subscriptions, online games, and music. However, Google Wallet’s ecommerce will provide more support for physical product sellers. 

Finally, Google Wallet is not now the greatest ecommerce payment option. However, it is likely to become a useful and even necessary financial service later.

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According to The Economist, Jennifer Schulz, Visa’s global head of ecommerce, electronic wallet companies will develop and then fade away, leaving only a few wallet providers.

While it’s impossible to say which digital wallets will remain, Google Wallet is likely to be one of them.

Google Wallet vs. Apple Pay

Apple Pay is Google Wallet’s biggest competitor. However other businesses like Samsung and PayPal also each have their digital payment systems such as Samsung Pay and PayPal Wallet. So now let’s explore how they work.

Security

Both Apple Pay and Google Wallet are mobile payment systems. These 2 systems use NFC technology to support contactless payments, but their implementations work differently. With complete control over its hardware, Apple has used Touch ID for identification on the latest device versions of iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus.

In contrast, Google uses a traditional PIN-based authentication approach. Therefore, Apple’s system is easier to use and look at. However, Google’s Wallet can run on older technology, including Apple’s own iPhone 5!

Google acts as an intermediary and stores your credit card information on its servers. They then send you a Google Wallet Virtual Card, which you may use on your device. The device only communicates this virtual card during payment. The seller never sees your actual credit card, which is kept securely on Google’s secure servers. When the vendor charges the virtual card, Google charges your stored debit or credit card. Therefore, Google is the only party to view your real card during this transaction.

Tokenization is a different system used by Apple. When the device gets your card information, it connects to the issuing bank directly. And then gets a device and card-specific token called the Device Account Number (DAN), which is kept on a secure chip on the device. The DAN is structured similarly to a credit card number. As a result, you can use it when making the payment

Divergence

In the virtual world, Google Wallet attempts to imitate a real wallet. Therefore,  Google keeps track of your purchases, preserving order details as the way you put your receipt into the wallet. Thanks to this information, Google will display relevant adverts, which is directly related to Google’s business model. With its Google Wallet Fraud Protection policy, Google maintains its function as an intermediary by providing 100% security.

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On the other hand, Apple said that it will never record your purchases. Apple won’t even save your credit card information on its devices. It simply transmits your card to the bank, verifies with the bank, and receives and stores the DAN the bank resends. Apple is a payment medium rather than a payment intermediary. Simply, it acts as a high-end credit card. However, it can be misplaced or rendered useless if the phone’s battery dies.

Fingerprint scan security and the option to remotely disable the phone provide some safety. But in some cases, someone gains access to your Apple Payphone. So you must contact your bank rather than Apple. Furthermore, Apple charges a per-transaction fee to the banks with which it collaborates.

Unanswered Questions

Some consider why banks would pay Apple a per-transaction fee while Google’s approach is free. Maybe Apple has persuaded them that Apple Pay will encourage their customers to shop more. Or banks believe they will gain an exclusive benefit over banks that do not work with Apple. Or Apple simply does a better job of organizing the various stakeholders involved than Google.

As Google Wallet grows in popularity, more people will expect to see it at their favorite shops. Digital wallets, such as Google Wallet, provide buyers with extra payment alternatives. So ecommerce business owners should consider offering them.

Although there are a variety of different options, Google Wallet and Apple Pay are likely to be the most popular in the future. According to The New York Times, both firms are adding new features with the aim of gaining a larger user base for their virtual wallets.

Conclusion

That is all about our article. Hopefully, after reading our blog, you have already answered the question ”How does Google Wallet work for ecommerce?”. Thank you for reading!

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