Macy's to Offer Digital Wallet Application

Macy's announced last week that customers can access a digital wallet application — My Wallet — via the mobile web or Macy's mobile app to make purchases with credit cards already stored on their Macys.com account. There are no extra fees for signing up for or using My Wallet.

With consumers increasingly making purchases via their mobile devices, retailers are evolving their payment processing options to meet this growing demand. Digital wallet applications such as PayPal, Google Wallet and Apple's Passbook, which enable consumers to store credit card and loyalty card info on their phones, have become popular among retailers. Macy's joins a growing list of retailers that are accepting payments via digital wallet applications, including Home Depot, Toys"R"Us, J.C. Penney, Foot Locker, among others.

While retailers are diving headfirst into mobile payments, consumers appear to be a bit more hesitant. Usage of digital wallets remains at less than one-third, even though a surprisingly high number of U.S. consumers — 80 percent — recognize the technology as an alternative to cash-based transactions, according to a survey of more than 2,000 smartphone, tablet and desktop users from local search and digital marketing research firm Thrive Analytics.

Security concerns remain the top barrier to consumer adoption of digital wallets, followed by lack of usability versus credit cards or cash (37 percent), and not being top of mind as a form of payment at the time of purchase (32 percent), according to the survey.

It appears I fall in line with the majority of consumers. I've never made a purchase with a digital wallet application, nor do I plan on doing so anytime soon. I just don't see the benefit that would compel me to do so. Taking out cash or a credit card to hand to the store cashier isn't what I would consider an overly burdensome task. So if there's not really any time or cost savings (brands aren't giving discounts to customers using digital wallets — at least to my knowledge) associated with paying via a digital wallet, why would I begin doing so?

While I'm not bullish on the future of digital wallets, maybe you are. Let me know your thoughts — either from personal experience as a customer or your company's usage of the technology — by posting a message in the comments section below. I'd love to hear from you!