It’s a lovely Sunday morning. You grab your phone, wallet and keys and rush out for a cup of coffee. Going through all your Visa cards, discount cards, coupons and lots of bills, you realize you have no cash and the guy at the counter tells you the credit card POS is broken. With the next ATM located about 30 minutes’ walk from the shop, no coffee for today.
What if I tell you this hurdle might soon be over? That you’ll need nothing more than your phone to pay for your coffee on Sunday mornings, order your favourite products, get discounts at checkout or buy tickets to the most amazing shows. And you will no longer have to carry that big wallet with you. An innovative app will keep all your credit, debit, discount cards and, on top of that, will allow you to pay for your purchases with just one quick scan and a simple OK’. Done.
And what’s more exciting is that you now have the great opportunity to be part of the team that is developing the app and preparing OK for its national launch.
But first, let’s see what it does and how it is built.
The Story behind the app is simple. We all know that the payments space is fragmented and the mobile payments one, in particular, is sometimes a confusing mess. There are thousands of competitive solutions for payments, dozens for digital wallet apps, just as many for accepting payments and even more banks, Fintech start-ups and merchants all going for the same slice of the pie. And, somewhere in the middle, is the consumer who struggles to keep up with all of these and tries to identify the one solution that will solve all his problems. But nothing seems to work. No one has achieved critical mass.
Enter: OK
Why OK? Because it’s the most simple and universally recognized word that tells the same thing to any person, anywhere in the world. Using OK, you OK basic actions like a sign up, log in or money transfer all the time. Two letters, one outcome. Beautifully simple.
OK addresses the needs of both consumers on one side and merchants, brands/OEMs, banks, media, charities, events on the other side, basically anyone in the retail ecosystem. OK seamlessly integrates authentication, marketing and payment into a consistent and compelling experience across the board.
The phone becomes the universal user ID, card and payment terminal – all rolled into one. And the 5-digit OK-code is the single password that the user only enters. Only on his own phone. The innovative mobile app offers much more than payments. Basically anything you find in your wallet is integrated in OK. Coupons, tickets, receipts, gift cards, punch cards, payment cards, IDs. Everything. Retail will never be the same again. Finally you can reap all the benefits you’re offered, but without the hassle. And pilots have clearly shown that consumers love it.
How it works – the OK app uses barcodes and QR codes which allow the users to scan a code with their camera, or let it be scanned from the screen.
What does it mean exactly? That you can scan codes in any channel, including in print, outdoor and on screen and use them to add coupons, punch cards or even buy products or tickets to a concert. If you shop at a merchant, your phone screen will be scanned and you’ll receive an OK request with all the purchase details. All you have to do is say OK and confirm with your own 5-digit OK-code. You have the possibility to set when your OK-code is required and you can disable it for low amounts. Also, as opposed to the current checkout, where you have to enter all your data before even initiating a transaction, OK allows you to give all the data requested by the merchant to fulfill the transaction, but only after you OK it and with a clear transaction-based usage consent.
In terms of availability you have nothing to worry about. There are two free applications available, one for iOS and one for Android. So, regardless of your technological or brand preferences, your experience with OK will be scalable and seamless. The platform is built around a REST API which does the heavy lifting so that the client apps, the mobile apps for iOS and Android, can focus on providing a pixel-perfect user experience.
We are OK. And so should you – We’re not going to lie to you. This is big and, after the official launch this year, is going to become even bigger. During the last couple of years, a young and highly talented team has been working really hard to make OK what it is today. And the best part is yet to come. The big retail brands are signing up. Once merchants and consumers start using the app, we’ll move onto the next phase of making OK even more complete, smarter and sophisticated while keeping it, most importantly, super simple.
“A developer’s life definitely has its ups and downs: there’s always a bug that can’t be reproduced, a new feature that needs to be implemented as soon as possible or the client’s feedback that seems to turn the entire application upside down. But when you’re doing all of these on OK, knowing you’re actually building the app that will change the future of retail forever, these things are a challenge you’re willing to take. And what’s more important, a challenge you’re really enjoying.” Adrian, OK developer
“Why do I choose to be OK every single day? Because I get to work with passionate, cheerful people who are always willing to spread their wisdom and help you when in need. And because I get to shape the payments space working on a revolutionary app.” Mihaela, OK developer
These bright people are currently looking for a creative, dynamic and committed person to join their team and make OK greater. If you’re comfortable being actively involved in a growing project, sharing and debating your ideas and constantly interested in learning and improving your skills, then this is definitely the best place for you. Take this challenge and you are going to enjoy it, no doubt about that.
