“Wendy’s is rolling out a program that lets customers pay using their smartphones, following a similar plans unveiled by Burger King this week,” Candice Choi reports for The Associated Press. “The Wendy’s Co., based in Dublin, Ohio, has been testing the mobile payment option over the past year and said the majority of its roughly 5,800 U.S. locations are now ready to accept the payments.”
“Burger King Worldwide Inc. also said this week it would introduce a mobile payment program at its U.S. restaurants in April,” Choi reports. “McDonald’s Corp., meanwhile, has acknowledged the importance of mobile payments and offers but is still in a testing phase after hiring its first chief digital officer this past October… McDonald’s isn’t alone in still figuring out exactly how it wants to approach mobile payments and loyalty programs. Chipotle is still experimenting with the options as well.”
“Wendy’s saw promising trends in tests, including increased visits. The app doesn’t yet offer discounts or a loyalty program, a feature that’s considered a way to help cultivate customer loyalty,” Choi reports. “To pay with the My Wendy’s app, customers tap the app to pull up a six-digit number they tell the cashier, rather than holding up their device to a scanner. Burger King also said its app will give customers a four-digit number they tell cashiers to make a payment.”
Read more in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Readers “Sarah” and “Lynn Weiler” for the heads up.]
How does this actually work? Is the Wendy’s app directly tied to my credit card payment details?
I believe it is similar to how the Starbucks system works.
You load $$ into the account up to $200 and the amount is deducted as you use it. Your CC info will be required.
This seems like more effort than it is worth. Does this suppose a future in which I must have an App for every firm with whom I do business. This seems more like tech fetish than time saver. The only advantage I can see is that it would be a good way to give money to you children for food. Otherwise, you would really have to just be dying to pay for something with you phone for this to be appealing.
Wake me when Apple gets around to including Tim Hortons.
I’ll take it!
it’s a good way for these businesses to generate advance sales. u pay them upfront, by loading up your App with money from your credit cards, then u pay with that app. similar to the starbucks set up, except that u use a code to pay, rather than scanning your app/phone, then the cashier will use that code to pay for the sale. the money gets deducted from your prepaid account.
Y “u” n not “you”?
Seems like a better application for iBeacon. I wouldn’t have to do anything but TouchID as I drove by. The screen could show me my order so I knew I was paying for the correct items.
Get your grease with a swipe. Fast food isn’t food, it is disgusting. Really for the cheapo android crowd. Higher end apple users eat real food, not artery clogging, cholesterol enhancing fast crap food.
Yes. We all drive Bentleys and have personal nutritionists.
“McDonald’s isn’t alone in still figuring out exactly how it wants to approach mobile payments and loyalty programs”
They are waiting for Apple to tell them how it should be done.