Why should you have multiple options at checkout? What are the benefits?
Until recently, the majority of the eCommerce businesses were able to offer only credit and debit cards as payment methods. But ever since the start of digital wallets and alternative payment options, things have changed quite a lot. PayPal, Google Pay, Apple Pay are only a few of the most popular e-wallets brands.
E-shops in general, are trying to integrate as many payment options as possible to enable online shoppers with multiple choices and avoid that they abandon the purchase at the last minute.
Today, if you are not providing many payment options to your customers, you may lose out on conversions, and you would not want to see the visitors leave when they are on the final step of their checkout.
Why should you offer Multiple Payment Options?
Offering various payment ways has the following advantages:
- High Conversion Rate
- Minimize Abandoned Carts
- Customer Satisfaction
- Brand Credibility
- Hassle-free Checkout
How would you feel when you are about to make the product payment but do not find your desired payment option? A bit frustrated, right? The disappointment can be intense if you were really planning to buy that product.
Conversely, you would be happy if you could find the payment way you were looking for or find the only payment source that you can use to pay among the listed payment modes.
This is normal consumer behavior.
Different people have different preferences. So it is on you to meet your customers’ preferences.
What types of payment options should you provide to your customers?
Credit / Debit Cards
The most common method of online payment existing in almost every e-shop is credit & debit cards. It needs users to share their card number, Expiration Date, and CVV. And then for 3D Secure cards, a One-Time Verification Password (OTP) is sent to the user on their phone to confirm that the payment is executed.
To save customers from completing their details every time they shop in your store, you could provide them with the option to save their card details so that they do not waste their time putting the same information set time and again.
Cash on Delivery
Called collect on delivery or cash on demand too. It sells products by mail/courier service where payment is made on delivery rather than in advance. If the consumer is not willing to pay or refuses to receive the product or cannot accept the order, the products are returned to the retailer. This usually comes with an agreement with a courier service, and there are additional charges to the merchant when delivery is returned or not received.
Bank transfer
A bank account transfer works when someone directs their bank to send money into another bank account. This is usually done via online banking. For this payment method, you will need to have your bank account details visible on site. When bank transfers occur between different banks, there are additional charges, and consumers need to send proof of transfer for the payment to proceed.
Automated payments
Options like PayByBank, which automate the whole procedure of money transfers, saving time for both consumers and merchants, are solutions that e-shops need.
Explore here the benefits that PayByBank provide for merchants
When consumers choose to pay in an automated way, a unique payment code, link or QR is created in that instant that identifies the order and leads to the completion of the payment.
PayByBank’s unique payment code looks like RF12345678912345678912345. Consumers receive it by SMS, email, or on-screen, depending on the e-shop they make their purchases.
PayByBank payment code enables payments in 5 different ways.
- Online via web banking, mobile banking, phone banking, and at bank locations, without interbank costs.
- In cash, at selected PayLink locations of a network of over 1.200 service points in Greece.
There is no need for the Customer to fill in credit card details or have their card stored in every e-shop they make purchases from, and what is more, any Customer can buy online, even without having a credit/debit card!
To sum up
Offering various payment alternatives can scale up your conversions and improve customer satisfaction significantly. The more choices you offer to your customers at checkout, the more satisfied they will be.