PayPal has recently made announcement that it will allow Aussies to make payments with PayPal through their social accounts specially Facebook.
This will be know as ‘social commerce’, where the idea involves a user being able to make purchases through apps like Facebook or WhatsApp, along with a focus on new ways Aussies can manage their money through apps.
Smartphone sales accounted for just under 50% of online retail in Australia, but according to PayPal’s Chief Executive for Asia Pacific, Rohan Mahadevan Australia is still lagging in terms of social commerce. However, he does predict this number to increase as customers spend more time on social media than anywhere else online.
According to Mahadevan making use of all these different channels is something PayPal is trying to bring out and communicate to these merchants. Because at the end of the day what’s important is, it’s where people spend their time. The move towards social media will not only affect the everyday Aussie, but online Paypal merchants looking to profit through social media.
At the moment, only 16% of Paypal’s merchant customers sell through various social media platforms, but this is also predicted to increase. Also with social media now being used more than just to post a picture, banks have also shifted their focus into how payments via social media can be improved in order to entice younger customers.
So far, Westpac have successfully launched a service that allows Aussies to make payments through Apple’s iMessage.
As Westpac’s general manager of consume digital Travis Tyler says that they have seen many thousands of transactions occurring on this platform and are receiving positive feedback from customers about its convenience. Paypal currently has more than 6 million Aussie customers and while the system offers a simple and secure payment method, customers should still be wary of the dangers of online shopping. If you do have a Paypal account, here are three quick tips to help you keep cyber thieves at bay:
First link your account to your credit card, not your bank account – If someone where to get a hold of your bank details, they could clean out your account. However, if the account is linked to your credit card, you can dispute the charge with your card provider.
Never click on any links in Paypal emails – Hackers often use realistic and fake emails to get access to a customer’s bank details. If you do ever receive an email that appears to be from Paypal, log into your account to check for any similar messages.
Keep an eye on your Paypal balance – Many thieves also attempt to drain Paypal account through smaller and frequent withdrawals. So if you start to notice your bank balance slowly shrinking, call Paypal immediately.
Already US customers are using Facebook account to pay with PayPal. Here is how to do as it starts soon for Australians too.
