Walmart Pay uses bizarre metric to claim its dominance over Apple Pay is approaching
A recently published study claims that WalMart Pay is getting ready to surpass Apple Pay -- but fails to acknowledge the more limited reach that the QR code-based service has versus Apple's.
An account published by Bloomberg on Tuesday, citing a digital payment service study, claims that WalMart Pay is "close to surpassing" Apple Pay in usage for mobile payments in the U.S. However, the reasoning is flawed, based on the extremely limited metric that both the publication and study generators Crone Consulting have picked to assess the difference.
According to a metric correlating percent of total transactions in stores that accept the payment method, WalMart Pay was sitting at 5.1 percent in June, versus Apple's 5.5 percent -- with both growing. WalMart believes that this metric will grant them the crown of digital payments champion.
"If daily enrollments don't slow down, I think that's pretty well in the cards shortly," said WalMart's Senior Vice President for Services and Digital Acceleration Daniel Eckert. "I would have to imagine we are getting pretty close."
However, the calculated metric means very little. WalMart Pay is accepted in all of the company's 4672 stores. Apple Pay is accepted at millions of locations, spanning dozens of major retail chains like Apple itself, Best Buy, JCPenney, Macy's, Office Depot, Staples, and Urban Outfitters -- as well as several fast food chains including McDonalds with over 14,000 restaurants, Chick-fil-a with over 2200 U.S. locations, and over 8000 Starbucks Coffee stores.
The data for the Bloomberg story, and WalMart's claim of dominance was collected from a Pymnts survey. Ignored by both are other metrics about digital payments from the survey, claiming that 24.5 percent of those questioned claimed to have tried Apple Pay, with only 5.08 percent having used WalMart Pay.
The difference in survey methodology is noted in the small print at the bottom of the Pymnts survey that WalMart is using to declare impending victory, and aggravated by assorted bar graphs in the study that are the same size, but use different scales.
According to the survey data, an "eligible transaction" for Apple Pay means people with an iPhone that shopped at a store that accepts Apple Pay. For WalMart Pay, eligible transactions are only drawn from people that shopped at WalMart.
WalMart Pay's technology is roughly based on the failed CurrentC universal digital payment system. There are apps for WalMart Pay on Android and iOS, and the customer must run the app and generate a QR code for the cashier to scan.
AppleInsider has used both WalMart Pay and Apple Pay. While Apple Pay is not accepted at WalMart, trials have shown the process involving the WalMart Pay process to be a bit longer upon conclusion of scanning the purchased goods versus one with a similar volume at a Wegmans supermarket.
An account published by Bloomberg on Tuesday, citing a digital payment service study, claims that WalMart Pay is "close to surpassing" Apple Pay in usage for mobile payments in the U.S. However, the reasoning is flawed, based on the extremely limited metric that both the publication and study generators Crone Consulting have picked to assess the difference.
According to a metric correlating percent of total transactions in stores that accept the payment method, WalMart Pay was sitting at 5.1 percent in June, versus Apple's 5.5 percent -- with both growing. WalMart believes that this metric will grant them the crown of digital payments champion.
"If daily enrollments don't slow down, I think that's pretty well in the cards shortly," said WalMart's Senior Vice President for Services and Digital Acceleration Daniel Eckert. "I would have to imagine we are getting pretty close."
However, the calculated metric means very little. WalMart Pay is accepted in all of the company's 4672 stores. Apple Pay is accepted at millions of locations, spanning dozens of major retail chains like Apple itself, Best Buy, JCPenney, Macy's, Office Depot, Staples, and Urban Outfitters -- as well as several fast food chains including McDonalds with over 14,000 restaurants, Chick-fil-a with over 2200 U.S. locations, and over 8000 Starbucks Coffee stores.
The data for the Bloomberg story, and WalMart's claim of dominance was collected from a Pymnts survey. Ignored by both are other metrics about digital payments from the survey, claiming that 24.5 percent of those questioned claimed to have tried Apple Pay, with only 5.08 percent having used WalMart Pay.
The difference in survey methodology is noted in the small print at the bottom of the Pymnts survey that WalMart is using to declare impending victory, and aggravated by assorted bar graphs in the study that are the same size, but use different scales.
According to the survey data, an "eligible transaction" for Apple Pay means people with an iPhone that shopped at a store that accepts Apple Pay. For WalMart Pay, eligible transactions are only drawn from people that shopped at WalMart.
WalMart Pay's technology is roughly based on the failed CurrentC universal digital payment system. There are apps for WalMart Pay on Android and iOS, and the customer must run the app and generate a QR code for the cashier to scan.
AppleInsider has used both WalMart Pay and Apple Pay. While Apple Pay is not accepted at WalMart, trials have shown the process involving the WalMart Pay process to be a bit longer upon conclusion of scanning the purchased goods versus one with a similar volume at a Wegmans supermarket.
Comments
The take away is that Walmart was only able to convince 5% of their customer to use something other than Cash or Credit Cards. Boy they are big winner. Let not forget the idea of Walmart pay, they do not want to pay credit card transaction fee they trying to add another 2 to 3% to the bottom line plus not wait 30 days to get their cash for a purchase.
It does not mater, most people who shop Walmart are not the typical Apple customer. If you did an venn Diagram of the typical Walmart customer and Apple customer the shaded area would be very small.
Then again, I'm in Canada and for some reason the US is shockingly backwards in this regard. I was stunned when I was forced to swipe my card (no chip and pin) first time I used a gas station there after crossing the border. Didn't even remember how to do it.
Is WalmartPay the same way?
I just checked here. Yes, Walmart know about you and your bank account. Seems like WalmartPay is just CurrentC warmed over.
Thankfully, Apple take financial security and privacy seriously.
i think it is the second item, they trying to say their system is just as good as what Apple is doing, if Walmart is seeing 5% uptake, other stores could see the same if not better than Apple pay so they can move to what Walmart is doing and cut out the CC companies and get their money directly from consumer bank accounts.
Thats nice, but millions of people do everyday.
AppleInsider has used both WalMart Pay and Apple Pay.”
Wut. I’ve used both extensively. For Walmart Pay, the customer doesn’t have to generate a QR code for the cashier to then scan... what is Apple Insider using? The Walmart app I have lets you 3D Touch the app, swipe and let go on ‘Walmart Pay’, it asks for passcode or Touch ID or Face ID (presumably but I haven’t tried it since getting my iPhone X Nov 3rd), the camera comes up and you scan a QR code on the checkout screen you’re at, and that’s it. I put my phone away in my pocket. The checkout computer links to your walmart account and charges your credit card once you hit “I’m done” on the computer screen. There’s no paper receipt. I usually go to the self checkout so there’s no cashier to scan anything on my phone screen anyways. I get an electronic receipt and I submit the items I bought for an automatic price match feature that gives you credit when there’s lower prices somewhere else for the same item. It’s pretty sick. Apple Pay is way quicker for payment but Walmart Pay has electronic receipts stored in the app indefinitely and that’s quite convenient. And price match feature is kool though I only get like $10 back every 6 months, but hey it’s better than $0.
I just don’t get Apple Insider’s comment on a cashier needing to scan a QR code generated on your phone. What’s that about?