The buzz about mobile payment is turning into a roar.  Just a couple days ago, ISIS, the NFC-based mobile-payment venture founded by AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile, announced that it has teamed up with Coca-Cola, Foot Locker, Macy’s, and several other retailers to adopt in-store smartphone payment systems later this year.

Google Wallet, ISIS’s biggest rival and frontrunner in the mobile payment race, already has check-out scanners in more than 100,000 retail locations, including the Gap, Office Max, and Walgreens, and many retailers will even offer both ISIS and Google Wallet as mobile payment options. However, there is little word regarding the lack of smartphone support for either system – Google Wallet, for example, is currently available on only four Sprint smartphones.

ISIS’s concrete stake in the race has launched the discussion of the future of mobile payment straight from conjecture into plan-of-attack. Our most recent Potty Posting offers a whole slew of information about the implications of mobile payment for brands and marketers, the technology used, category competitors, and the possibilities of what’s ahead. We’ll continue to track developments in these trends as the push for mobile payment progresses.

But as for now, it’s clear that brands, retailers, and even marketers who aren’t fast enough to keep up with the demand for mobile payment will undoubtedly be at a disadvantage when it comes to leveraging the opportunities it offers. Stay smart about mobile payment by keeping up with the Awesome Blog – we’ve got you covered.