More Mobile Payments Options Hit 7-Eleven

September 13, 2024         By: Steven Anderson

It’s perhaps one of the first names people come up with when the concept of a “convenience store” emerges, and with good reason. 7-Eleven, the home of iconic slushie drinks, gigantic sodas, and random snack treats, is increasingly becoming a center of innovation thanks to mobile payments operations. In fact, the company just added both Apple Pay and Google Pay to its roster, joining a steadily-growing list of options in the mobile payments front.

The duo joins a slate of innovations recently spotted at the convenience giant. There’s 7-Eleven NOW, currently on its way to retailers, that makes on-demand ordering a possibility complete with Apple Pay. The 7Rewards program is providing app-based customer loyalty, and the 7-Eleven Bot on Messenger is allowing closer contact within Facebook. Bill payment is accepted at 7-Eleven locations as well through a connection with PayNearMe. There’s even a new connection between 7-Eleven and Amazon by means of the Amazon Locker program that lets Amazon customers pick up their ordered products at a 7-Eleven location.

As for what was to follow, 7-Eleven’s CDO and CIO, Gurmeet Singh, noted “Frictionless experiences are the future, and digital payments are key to such experiences. Consumers prefer shopping at retailers that offer digital payment capabilities. The ability to pay with their smart device gives consumers one more reason to shop at 7-Eleven.”

Take all this together and it suggests that 7-Eleven will continue to add new options as such become available, giving it the surprising distinction of being at least near the tip of the spear. Most likely wouldn’t expect 7-Eleven to be so ahead of the curve, and yet, that’s what we’re looking at. Given what we know about millennial preferences, especially involving gas stations, 7-Eleven is taking the right stance and keeping up with all the potential new avenues which should earn it loyalty going forward. If this works to any real degree, it’s likely to drive a lot of competitors’ moves as well; this is too big a market to simply cede to 7-Eleven.

7-Eleven knows its market well, and as such, is pushing convenience in all things. One of mobile payments’ great strengths is convenience, so it’s small wonder we’re seeing it so thoroughly in play here.