Square!
An interesting product has turned up in the world of business and technology. It’s a product that disrupts how we process payments on the go. It allows everyday people to take on the role of merchant. While there are competitors out there, this one is sure to be a hit.
What is this product, you ask? First, a little background.
Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey, co-founders of Twitter, had the idea to fix a problem in a more cost effective way after a purchasing mishap. Jim owns a company, named Third Degree, that sells unique pieces of glass art. Jim wasn’t able to sell to a customer a glass product he created because the customer only had plastic (read: credit/debit cards), no cash. Jim didn’t have a credit card swiping device. The transaction didn’t take place and Jim lost a customer and a sale.
The company is named Square, and thereby, the product is as well. That’s not just the moniker, but also the shape. It’s a small device that (as of this writing) plugs into the headphone jack of one’s iPhone or iPod Touch. The square works with a corresponding app that can be installed on either of these mobile devices.
Square, formerly dubbed Squirrel, has been in the works for some time now and was unofficially announced back in May, 2009. Square has just recently gone public with a simple tweet from Mr. Dorsey himself.
Below, Jack Dorsey is interviewed to talk about the new device. Watch 1:40 into the video for a look at just how it operates.
Here is what an actual receipt looks like:
Receipts can be sent either as SMS Text messages or Emails, or you can decline to receive one and save a few 1s and 0s.
Now, that seems to me to be a little awkward at first, but in time, I believe it will be just as easy as any payment system we currently have today. Progress takes patience. And a whole lotta investment.