#PaySmarter and Carry Less this Holiday Season

This post was sponsored by Regions Bank.  All opinions are my own.

#PaySmarter and Carry Less this Holiday Season

If there’s just one thing I have perfected during the holiday shopping season, it’s “less is more“. Of course, I am always looking for the cheapest prices on anything I purchase and I never pay full price for anything (neither should you). The less stores I have to travel to the better, and the less stuff I have to carry is an ever bigger bonus. Nobody likes to lug around a ton of stuff when they are trying to fight a mob of people who are getting their holiday shopping done in a crunch. This year, I am thankful I have found a way to pay for all of my purchases with my phone! Yep, you read that right.

Being that I work in social media, I am on my phone all day, it was only a matter of time before I could use it to pay for all of my purchases. Regions Bank has made it super easy for me to do all of my banking on my phone, so why not make purchases with it as well? Gone are the days of counting out cash or carrying a bulky checkbook. Regions brings you the convenience and security of tap and go technology with Apple Pay^® and Android Pay^™. Plus, Regions also offers Regions Personal Pay^® and Visa Checkout, which is the fast and convenient way to make your online purchases this holiday season. Total score!

If you have yet to hear about Apple Pay^®, Android Pay^™ or Regions Personal Pay^® let me fill you in:

Apple Pay^®  

• Apple Pay^® allows you to store your Regions cards on a variety of Apple products (iPhone 6^® or iPhone 6 Plus^® and later, Apple Watch^® paired with iPhone^®, iPad Pro^®, iPad Air 2^®, iPad mini 3^®, iPad mini 4^® and later).

• It’s fast and convenient in stores because you can now make purchases with just a touch of your Apple Pay^®-enabled mobile device.

•    Greater simplicity – It’s easy to set up and use.

• Greater convenience – Pay on the go at participating merchants who accept contactless Visa^® payments — just look for the contactless symbol or Apple Pay^® icons at checkout.

• Greater security – Your card number is not being shared with the merchant.

•    How it works:

◦ Add your Regions card to Apple Pay^® using your Wallet app.

◦ At the cash register or checkout, use the Touch ID on your iPhone^® by placing it near the merchant’s card reader to authorize your payment.

◦ You may also use Apple Pay^® to pay online with your fingerprint in many merchant apps with your compatible Apple^® device.

• Apple Pay^® lets you use iPhone^® or Apple Watch^® to pay in over a million stores accepting contactless payments.

◦ Look for the Apple Pay^® mark or contactless symbol at the checkout counter.

Android Pay^™  

•    Android Pay^™ allows you to use your Regions cards with your

Android^™ device.

• It’s fast and convenient in stores because you can now make purchases with just a touch of your mobile device.

◦     Simplicity – It’s easy to set up and use.

◦ Convenience – Pay on the go at participating merchants who accept contactless Visa^® payments — just look for the contactless symbol or Android Pay^™ icons at checkout.

◦ Security – Your device doesn’t send your actual card number with your payment. Instead, Android Pay^™ uses a virtual account number to represent your account information.

•    How it works:

◦     Download the free Android Pay^™ app from the Google

Play Store.

◦ Add your Regions card and make sure to select it as your default payment choice.

◦     Pay with a tap of your phone.

• Accepted at over one million stores across the US, and will soon be available in thousands of Android^™ apps.

◦ Look for the Android Pay^™ mark or contactless symbol at the checkout counter.

Regions Personal Pay^®

• Personal Pay^® is an easy online personal payment solution to pay for items like holiday dinners with friends, gifts, and fundraisers.

•    Personal Pay^® Advantages:

◦     Secure electronic personal payments.

◦ Powered by Popmoney^®, a personal payment service that links over 2,400 banks and more than 56 million registered users.

◦     Just a $1 fee each time you send money.

◦ Send funds with just the recipient’s email or cell phone number or account number.

•    How it works:

◦ If you are a Regions Online Banking customer, simply select the Personal Pay link from the Payments tab to send money today.

◦ If you don’t use Regions Online Banking, enroll today.

◦ Send money in as little as a few business days to your family and friends with only an email address or mobile phone number or an account number. They receive an email or text message to let them know that you have sent them a payment. They just register with their bank account information to receive the funds.

◦ There is a charge of $1 each time you send a Personal Pay payment. There is no cost to receive funds through the service.

Since I take my cell phone with me everywhere I go anyway, using these easy forms of payment work out perfect for me. No more fumbling through my bulky purse looking for my debit card! I am sure all of you busy parents can relate to such chaos.

Shopping online is one of my favorite things to do. It’s so easy and convenient, plus it’s always open. So when I can’t sleep at 3am I hop online and do some deal hunting. Visa Checkout is perfect for all of my online shopping needs. I literally filled out a simple form with my address and card info and I never had to worry about any of the stuff again. Not only is it secure to use, but it makes my online shopping life so much easier.

With holiday shopping in full swing, this is the perfect time to look into any of these options to make your life a little less complicated. I will be using this method of paying with my phone from here on out. It’s genius, super easy to use and a lot less to worry about.