Direct carrier biller mopay is making its payment platform more useful to merchants, adding functionality that includes a mobile loyalty management suite. Merchants will have access to customer relationship management, loyalty and gamification tools, as well as a new feature that allows consumers to opt in to mobile loyalty programs, mopay said.

"Merchants are finally able to build customers loyalty through the mobile device," said Kolja Reiss, managing director of mopay. Reiss added that by offering customers a way to communicate with their users in a timely fashion, mopay is helping them to build relationships and drive revenues. "The integration of our mobile customer loyalty suite shows yet another benefit that mobile payments have over traditional payment methods," Reiss said.

As a direct carrier biller, mopay lets digital merchants add charges to customer's mobile or landline carrier bill. It's especially popular in the gaming and social media sectors where younger purchasers may not have access to credit or debit cards.

With the new mobile loyalty suite from mopay, merchants can also provides news about special deals and announcements, and address customer service inquiries. Merchants can also provide consumers who opt in "flash deals," special offers delivered via text message.

Online merchants have previously lacked a way to communicate immediately with customers, but with the mopay loyalty tools, they can now deliver deals, update order status and ensure customer satisfaction, the company said.

Additionally, mopay maintains a purchase history for a customer's mobile phone number, so online merchants can customize and personalize their offers with recommended purchases, driving customer engagement and loyalty, mopay said.

For more on this topic, visit the direct carrier biller research center.