One of the biggest enigmas of Brazilian e-commerce is its high cart abandonment rate, which already exceeds over 80%. To better understand the reasons, OneKey Payments released the study ‘Disruptive Payments,’ which reveals the main points that hinder a shopping journey.
– 62.6% of consumers have already given up on an online purchase due to the excess of mandatory data in form filling;
– 92.8% abandoned the transaction because they could not access the device where the authentication code (OTP) was sent;
– 93.7% stopped the purchase because the site did not load correctly.
Complicated payment processes, slow pages, and unexpected requirements are among the main reasons. However, the payment institution responsible for the survey believes that new technologies and payment models have the potential to solve this historical issue in Brazilian digital commerce. ‘What the data makes clear is that payment friction has been a key factor, but little explored, in purchase abandonment,’ explains César Garcia, CEO of OneKey Payments. ‘On the other hand, many of the problems pointed out by consumers can already be solved with innovative solutions.’
Although retailers are beginning to realize the importance of the payment stage in sales conversion, the survey indicates that just over half (54%) of retailers consider the payment experience as something fundamental for the brand’s reputation.
Cesar compares this number with the number of consumers: almost three out of four (73.1%) state that the preferred payment method and process can be decisive when choosing between two competing brands.
“There is still a gap between how much the consumer values the payment experience and how much the merchant sees this value”, he evaluates. Nearly nine out of ten consumers (87.5%) consider their preferred payment process and method as ‘important’ (73.1%) or ‘essential’ (14.4%) in the purchase decision.
Today, the digital consumer expects quick payments, one-click, and easily gives up on long or complicated checkout journeys. “Payment is not just technology, it’s trust, loyalty, and sustainable growth”, he states. “If you offer the Brazilian consumer an intuitive, secure, predictable, and frictionless process, your brand will be as valued as the product or service you deliver.”
The company points to Pix as an example of how technology, when designed with a focus on the user, can overcome barriers to shopping cart abandonment. Pix has already surpassed credit cards as the most used method for online purchases, and is also more popular than cash in face-to-face payments. “It is simple, safe, and fast, in essence, everything a payment should be. And with recurring payments, especially with the recent launch of Automatic Pix, the system redefines how brands can offer convenience and loyalty, eliminating repetitive steps in periodic purchases, such as subscriptions and recurring services. The payment and online retail markets still have much to learn from Pix,” comments the executive.
Technologies such as one-click payment, recurring payments, biometric authentication, and advanced fraud detection systems are already available to payment institutions and retailers and can finally solve the old obstacles of e-commerce. Digital wallets, which function as a ‘virtual wallet’ inside the cellphone, securely store card data and prevent the consumer from having to re-enter everything for each purchase. This makes the process faster and less prone to abandonment. In addition, innovations in fraud prevention, using artificial intelligence and machine learning, make the experience safer without adding barriers such as codes sent to secondary devices.
With abandonment rates still so high, it is now up to payment providers to integrate these solutions with a focus on security and operational effectiveness, demonstrate their benefits to retailers, and, most importantly, deliver the shopping experience that the consumer not only expects but demands,” concludes César.
