It is in the details that companies working with e-commerce can get ahead of competitors, retaining customers and increasing revenue. One way to do this is to take good care of the payment flow during the purchase. Optimizing the customer experience after they have entered the payment phase is a small adjustment, but it makes all the difference. The potential for additional earnings reaches 20%.
Research recent from Nuvei showed that, in general, optimizing the payment process can generate revenue up to 30% higher in e-commerce, and this includes improving the consumer experience while they are paying for their purchase. The report found that 70% of shopping cart abandonment occurs after the customer enters the payment flow. This suggests great opportunities for adjustments in this stage as well. In other words, it’s not enough to offer good products and services on a user-friendly site, for example: you also need to think about the fluency of the experience at the time of payment.
To improve transaction performance and increase conversion rates, companies should seek to optimize three points: removing friction from the payment process, offering relevant payment and financing options, and minimizing transaction errors.
Low-friction payments are fundamental
Another finding from the Nuvei report was that 42% of drop-offs occur when the e-commerce system asks the customer to enter personal data and payment information. One way to overcome this challenge is to implement the autofill feature through browser plugins and digital wallets, along with express payment solutions, like Apple Pay or Shop Pay. This initiative reduces the burden on the customer, making the experience more satisfactory.
Furthermore, allowing consumers to complete purchases as guests can help capture more sales, as those who are not comfortable creating an account are more likely to proceed with the payment.
It is worth noting that these approaches reduce the number of steps buyers have to go through to complete a purchase of a product or service, keeping their purchase intent high until the transaction is completed. Industry research suggests that removing friction from the payment process can lead to a 35% increase in conversions. This data highlights the direct impact of simplified payment experiences on revenue acceleration.
Plenty of payment and financing options
Although offering various payment options is advantageous and tends to reduce cart abandonment rates, the findings in the Nuvei report suggest the need for a strategic approach. This is because an excess of options can lead to decision fatigue, increasing the perceived complexity by the customer regarding the transaction process.
Therefore, it is crucial to select, test, and prioritize payment methods that align with the preferences and habits of the target audience, in addition to adjusting the payment mix depending on the market. Another important point is the integration of flexible financing solutions, such as installment plans or “buy now, pay later” options (BNPL, in English), which democratize high-value purchases and further stimulate conversions.
Fast and Accurate Transaction Processing
In Nuvei’s survey, almost a quarter of brands reported that their customers permanently abandon carts after rejected payments or error messages. Another 31% cited transaction slowness as one of the most common negative feedback they received. Today, leading market references indicate that consumers expect to complete an e-commerce payment transaction in less than two minutes, while having a low tolerance for rejected payments – 42% of consumers walk away after experiencing a payment error.
Therefore, to align with these standards and customer behaviors, e-commerce brands need to ensure that their payment infrastructures are not only fast: they must also be scalable and accurate, without errors. In this sense, payment technology is a great ally, with tools like cascading mechanisms, account updater, and robust redundancy of acquirers in target markets, especially during peak seasons. Enhancing the system architecture to support faster processing times and more reliable transactions can significantly reduce delivery rates and improve the payment experience. A customer with a good experience is more likely to make a purchase and, more importantly, to return to buy.
