--- title: "Friday Buzz: Why Mastercard Decided to Ditch Signatures" id: "40249" type: "post" slug: "friday-buzz-why-mastercard-decided-to-ditch-signatures" published_at: "2017-10-20T20:58:24+00:00" modified_at: "2026-03-16T20:38:07+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2017/10/20/friday-buzz-why-mastercard-decided-to-ditch-signatures/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2017/10/20/friday-buzz-why-mastercard-decided-to-ditch-signatures.md" excerpt: "Mastercard's decision to not require signatures for purchases reflects a push toward simplicity that might prove inspiring for your own organization. Also: Wikipedia uses emojis to teach on Twitter." taxonomy_category: - "Marketing / Communications" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "consumer convenience" - "Digital Transformation" - "Technology" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" - "C-Level" - "Director" - "VP" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Friday Buzz: Why Mastercard Decided to Ditch Signatures Now that nearly everyone has credit cards with chips in them, it seems a little antiquated to have to sign our names for in-store purchases. To make the purchasing process smoother, Mastercard is currently taking steps to eliminate all signature requirements by April 2018, according to a [new statement (opens in a new tab)](https://newsroom.mastercard.com/2017/10/19/no-more-signing-on-the-dotted-line/) . “At first glance, this might sound like a radical proclamation, especially to people who have had credit and debit cards for decades,” writes Linda Kirkpatrick, the firm’s executive vice president of U.S. market development. “However, the change matches all of our expectations for fast and convenient shopping experiences.” This news comes in the wake of Delta recently [introducing automatic check-ins (opens in a new tab)](https://www.cnbc.com/2017/10/12/delta-launches-automatic-check-in-on-its-mobile-app.html) on the airline’s mobile app. It seems likely that other airlines will follow suit, which is good news for travelers who don’t like doing the time-wasting task. In the midst of this technological streamlining, associations should take a cue from these major consumer companies. How can your group use tech to help your members save time? ### A Little Twitter Fun > Send us an emoji and we’ll find a related fact to send back. > > — Wikipedia (@Wikipedia) [October 20, 2017 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/Wikipedia/status/921388335318339584?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) **It’s easy to fall into the habit of sending out** the same old tweets, but Wikipedia’s fun tweets today should spark new ideas for any social media managers out there. The Wikipedia Twitter account is asking its followers to reply to a tweet with an emoji, and they’ll tweet back with a little fact related to it. Check out this interesting little factoid about peaches: > Peaches were mentioned in Chinese writings as far back as the 10th century BC. [https://t.co/V1BcNUZKu7 (opens in a new tab)](https://t.co/V1BcNUZKu7) > [https://t.co/eVTV7LgG8u (opens in a new tab)](https://t.co/eVTV7LgG8u) > > — Wikipedia (@Wikipedia) [October 20, 2017 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/Wikipedia/status/921390233643573249?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) ### Other Links of Note **Members don’t always have time** to take a course or watch a webinar. *Beth’s Blog* shares a few ways your organization can [provide micro-learning opportunities (opens in a new tab)](http://www.bethkanter.org/micro-learning/) . **What’s your association’s leadership capacity?** The Tagoras blog shares a few ways [you can measure your group (opens in a new tab)](https://www.tagoras.com/leadership-capacity/) . **LinkedIn reveals more demographic data than you may think.** *Social Media Examiner* tells [marketers what they need to know. (opens in a new tab)](https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/linkedin-website-demographics-what-marketers-need-to-know/) (slobo/Getty Images Plus) [Raegan Johnson](https://associationsnow.com/author/raegan-johnson/) Raegan Johnson is a contributor to Associations Now. 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