Why Online Businesses Should Provide Multiple Payment Options To Sustain Long-Term Competitor Advantage

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Provide multiple payment options

Imagine a scenario where you meet a few friends at your local bar for a casual catch up. After an eventful evening and a few beverages later, its time to head home. But before jumping in a taxi, you decide to get a quick bit to eat at a local takeaway, however upon ordering you realise they only take cash and you currently only have your debit card to pay for your order. With great frustration from not being able to satisfy your hunger, you walk out and hail down a taxi and head home.

The above scenario is an example that often happens to online businesses where a customer has added products to the shopping cart, but then suddenly has abandon’s the site. There are many reasons and or causes people choose to abandon the shopping cart, but in this article, we will just focus on one key area, that is; providing different payment options for customers. And so, the question that this article addresses is why a business should provide multiple payment options for potential customers to be sustainable long-term by adapting to changing buyer behaviours.

1. Offer convenience and adapt to market demands

This is expected. And, this point also means that the customers can even come from international markets. Look, there are payment options that are restricted to some countries alone. If you’re selling products or services internationally, you’ve got to make sure you have the necessary payment options to capture for customers across all regions you’re targeting. For example, if you sell smartphones from the US, and you also sell your products in China, you may need a payment or checkout option that’s used by the Chinese market, like WeChat or Alipay, to facilitate ease of use and streamline the whole transaction process. By making it easy and convenient to your market demands in how they buy goods or services, will inevitably set the right foundations to scale your businesses operations and client base. It’s quite simple, with more sales you acquire more revenue and profits, so why would you limit the number of customers to buy from you?

2. To Keep Its Current Customers

Think of the situation where a customer loves your business, and usually uses a Credit Card to make his or her purchases. If you only have Credit Cards as the mode of payment and the customer has, in some way, stopped using his card, you’ll potentially lose this transaction. If you had other payment options, they would have options to make sure they can purchase your goods or services with ease.

This is why taking multiple chances helps here. If you have more options for payment, you’re likely to retain your loyal customers.

3. Grow your sales and customer base

We all know that each payment option always has the threshold amount that can be transacted through it. If a customer wants to make a bulk order of an item and finds that all your available options cannot comply with his checkout amount, s/he may leave.

In a case of you having many payment options, some of which accepts bulky payments through them, such a customer can’t leave. Thus, your business makes more sales.

4. Cost efficiency

You can save a lot providing multiple payment options for your business. You’re perhaps wondering how? Because, some of these payment gateway providers charge quite high fees, whilst others offer quite low cost options. For example, payments via Bitcoins are sometimes absolutely free. At the same time, large card providers like VISA and MasterCard can sometimes charge quite high fees for such transactions, so by making both options available will save you time and money in the long-run.

Not everyone takes tea for breakfast. Some might surprisingly take roast beef for it. As a merchant, your customer needs have to be a priority. Providing convenient payment options means caring for your current customers by making sure they are able to buy your goods and with ease.

About the Author
Pay Advantage is one of Australia’s leading direct debit companies, offering a number of convenient and flexible payment options to small and large organisations. Whether you’re looking for a reliable direct debit provider, custom virtual terminal, upgrade your billing with BPAY or ability to accept credit cards payments, they can provide it all backed by their PCI compliant technology and award winning service.

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