Many consumers today expect that the businesses they shop from will give them a payment system that is easy to use, yet efficient and safe. That is only set to grow, thanks to the increasing number of people expected to own a smartphone by the end of the decade – as estimated by Zenith Media, that number could stand at more than 60 percent of 52 countries around the world.
However, it is still unfortunate that many businesses and major companies are slow at adopting digital solutions for their customers. For instance, a company will use the best resources it has to market itself to customers – both potential and current – yet its systems for payment will remain unreliable, slow, and old. Any software upgrades encounter dozens of problems, and this includes all options you would expect in an ecommerce platform.
Even though this may seem like a no-brainer, the facts on the ground still reveal there are slow adopters to the benefits of digital solutions. You might need to consider a host of factors before installing an ecommerce solution, just like when you are considering installing a VPN service for faster browsing by looking at the list of best VPNs for Australia, but you have no excuse of failing to offer an easier way for your customers to pay you.
Read on to find out some factors you should consider.
The preferences of the customers
There are probably many payment methods that your customers would like you to implement, and you can make all of them available. However, implementing them all at once can become an impractical and costly, especially if the business is still a small one. A better way to approach the issue would be starting with the methods that your key loyal customers would want.
That might be influenced by geography or other factors, as some digital solutions are available in some countries, while not available in others. For instance, if you are dealing with Americans, you will provide solutions that involve bank cards (even those with digital wallets), such as Apple Pay or PayPal. If dealing in the Asian or some African markets, mobile money solutions or cash are the major transaction method, so you can go with those.
The other factor can be the niche of your audience. For instance, if dealing with a working age adult customer base, they can afford to have bank accounts, so banking solutions can be an option for them.
Emerging technologies
It is also important to think about emerging niches. In fact, crypto currency is rising in its profile for the wealthy, particularly those who began investing in the early currencies such as Ether and Bit coin. Thanks to the difficulties experienced when trying to convert the currencies into local money, the investors will try to trade with them. That is already a viable opportunity you can tap into, using services such as Paybear that supports payments in altcoins.
The thing to note here though is the challenge that comes due to supporting cryptocurrency payment. The major risk factor is the wildly fluctuating value of different altcoins due to lack of regulation, such as Bitcoin rising or falling in value within double digits in one day.
The improvements in logistics regarding payments using crypto currencies have sped up their adoption though. Therefore, if you are searching for overseas markets to expand your business, then make sure to do your research before approving these payments.
Another technological perspective that could be considered is the faster performance of the underlying server infrastructure which provides quick server response time. You can read more about it here.
The level of security during transactions
For anyone who is looking to pay for products and services as well as give their data, security is a major concern, and understandably so. This means that any business that seeks to offer solutions to its customers must always offer enough compliance with the standards of security.
When checking up on providers for these services, consumers need to ensure you are adhering strictly to the set standards such as those of PCI Standards.
Many customers will also have concerns about cases of chargebacks and fraud. For instance, a criminal can steal their data and use the information to make purchases online. If by any chance you happen to process any payments form non-verified individuals such as these, you are the one who will be left with the cost of the items and shipping.
The ease of usage
Because of the increasing advancements in technology, user interface designs have also improved immensely. In fact, customers will now look for quick interfaces that are also highly efficient in their processing of data. Therefore, if you want the customer to embrace the solutions you offer, you need to make sure your targeted payments solution is one they can trust – the fewer the clicks they have to encounter, the better it will be for you.
In addition, make sure the system is not too difficult on your end – the last thing you want is have an impatient or angry customer because of mistakes you or employees have done, which could have been solved during the planning stages.
Before releasing it out, ensure you have done extensive testing with your own employees and see if they can handle everything, and have a practice session where you go through the checkout process to confirm everything. If you have any questions, make sure they are solved first, and ensure the system is also integrated with other important information such as inventory management, bookkeeping integration and invoicing.
What are the costs for rolling out the platform?
When you think about it, many businesses will want to maintain the system of cash transactions because the costs of rolling of other methods are too high. For instance, a bank card company can charge anywhere between one and three percent for each transaction, while other services can charge more.
However, crypto transactions charge less than that, due to the use of block chain (except when you are converting the money into real currency).
Final thoughts
The emergence of various payment methods is an advantage for many businesses and customers today, since the methods are safer and more convenient. You must evaluate the situation carefully though – at least before you decide to use any new payment method.