As mobile commerce continues to gain momentum, Subway Restaurants is poised to set the standard in the industry of contactless payments. The worldwide sandwich company was the first to hop on board Google’s ambitious mobile wallet project. This move made the company the first global franchise to consolidate transactions on a singular mobile platform. Now, Subway is ready to begin putting mobile payments to the test and will be introducing NFC terminals to five markets throughout the world later this year.
Subway’s acceptance of NFC-powered payments is one of rationality, according to Joost Zimmerman, director of digital marketing for the company. Google Wallet, the NFC payment platform, allows Subway to incorporate a unified platform that can streamline transactions and make for better customer service. Subway is one of the largest franchise chains in the world, boasting of more than 35,000 restaurants, and NFC payments present an economical solution to catering to the wants and needs of smart phone users.
The company is currently preparing to launch a new mobile marketing campaign that aims to expedite the adoption of mobile payments. Some 24,000 stores in the U.S. will be equipped with NFC terminals for the campaign, through which customers can pay for their meals using their smart phones. By 2012, Zimmerman expects this practice to spread throughout Subway restaurants around the world.
Subway may well be among the very first companies to experience major success with NFC payments, placing the company at the head of the pack pioneering mobile commerce.
