With technology come a whole slew of innovations that allow you to pay for products and services on a cashless basis. Your credit cards are proof of this, which is why you have a specially designed credit card wallet. However, times and technology conspire to make your wallet scary and superfluous. Why?
Recessionary Times
The so called recession requires belt tightening on most of us mere mortals who must work to feed our bodies and souls. (You must be wondering why so called recession. Well, academics, economists, bureaucrats and journalists have yet to come to a consensus with the man on the street on this point. Makes you think if they do work!) And guess what? Your credit card wallet is the first to go!
Most tips on saving money and getting out of debt agree on one thing lay off the credit cards and pay in cash for your purchases. You can put menacing messages like Touch or die on your credit cards, but the most sensible thing is just to leave them inside your credit card wallet, safely hide them at home and temporarily forget you have them. Of course, hide them where robbers, your husband and children will not see them and use them. Whoosh, there goes your tips!
Cellphone Technology
An online survey found out that most people will bring their cellphones than their (credit card) wallet when going out of the house. Well, that makes perfect sense. When you run out of money to pay your fare, you can always call your parents. When you run out of money to buy food, you can pawn the thing. When your cellphone runs out on you, you can always ask for help. Surely, America has angels in disguise.
There is another compelling reason, which technology has made possible. Your cellphone can be commerce enabled, which allows you to use it for both communication and commerce. In addition to the functions of communication such as
* sending and receiving messages and pictures
* providing music and videos and
* allowing for real time chats,
your cellphone can perform commerce related functions like
* reserve movie tickets
* buy meals at a restaurant
* purchase from a vending machine
* send and receive money through banks and
* do stock brokerage
Some of these functions are now widespread particularly in Asian countries like fashion forward and techno lover Japan. So should you discard your credit card wallet given these innovations?
Safety and Security Concerns
Maybe, maybe not.
With this technology, you can carry cash without need for a bulky credit card wallet and bulkier bag. You just swipe your cellphone and voila!
If you are a businessman, you have customers who can almost instantly respond to your marketing efforts wherever they are. You have greater opportunities to increase your profits.
However, there are safety and security concerns that need to be addressed. These usually include, but are not limited to:
* Excessive marketing messages that translate to spam for you.
* Privacy issues due to GPS tracking that can be to your disadvantage
* Compromise of your personal information since merchants do collect it, from both users and respondents
* Interception of your messages that can result in malicious use of information and spread of malicious codes and viruses
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