Drive business growth with payments optimisation

Inflation and a bumpy global economy are both seen as key macroeconomic challenges, with businesses focused on protecting their bottom line by boosting sales conversion and revenue. In fact, over half (54%) of Australian online enterprises surveyed say they are more focused on increasing revenue in 2024 compared to last year, while 37% are focused on reducing costs. Nonetheless, in spite of the plans for reduced spending, 56% of digital businesses are also looking to expand to new markets with New Zealand, the US and Japan being the top three target markets.

The way people pay is becoming ever more diverse, with expectations differing based on a range of factors, including culture, industry, age, and location. While most consumers, such as those in the US and the UK, still prefer to make online payments with credit cards, the relevance of other local payment methods is growing rapidly worldwide. 

In Asia, for instance, digital wallets like Apple Pay and Google Wallet see the highest adoption in markets like Malaysia (58%), Hong Kong (51%), while only 26% of consumers in the US prefer digital wallets. Buy Now, Pay Later is also enjoying its time in the spotlight, gaining popularity in European markets like Norway (38%) and Sweden (34%), surpassing Australia at 19%. Lastly, Pay by Bank is also a rising local payment method in markets like Brazil (41%) and Hong Kong (22%) compared to just 3% in Australia.

Offering a range of up-to-date payment options that reflect local preferences is the key to a smooth payments experience and an increase in conversion. In fact, 81% of consumers surveyed will be deterred from making a purchase if their preferred payment method is not available online, and 51% will abandon their cart altogether. When choosing the appropriate mix of payment methods, these are the three factors to consider:

• Geography – where are your customers located?

• Demography – what age range do your customers fall in?

• Context of the purchase – what are you selling?

Further, a local touch is critical for online businesses looking to accept payments globally. Payments processed using local acquiring often cost less and are more likely to be authorised. 

Over three-quarters (80%) of digital enterprises are looking at data-rich payments insights to uncover new growth areas for their business. This challenge spans a variety of areas; including:

• Leveraging data to build superior customer journeys and drive loyalty.

• Supporting new payment methods as they expand into different markets. 

• Managing risk, even as fraudsters adopt new methods and technologies to carry out attacks. 

Payments data can help with creating a 360-degree business overview based on your customers' payment histories. This overview helps reveal customers' needs, wishes, and preferences, allowing you to boost customer experience, build loyalty, welcome new audiences, and grow revenue. From optimising online promotions and loyalty programs to improving personalisation and adapting to suit consumers' expectations in a new market, payments data can play a vital role in strategic decision-making.

As technology continues to advance, fraudsters are developing increasingly sophisticated methods to cheat the system, and online payment fraud is the most prevalent and fastest-growing. Technological advancements such as one-click payments make it harder for banks to detect and block fraud, while the dark web helps fraudsters cheat the system at a bigger scale. However, advances in technology also mean fraud and risk trends can be managed. By leveraging payments innovation, businesses can now detect and prevent fraud faster, while reducing its negative impact with features such as smart authentication.

Keeping up with challenges in the digital industry means considering the value that payments optimisation can bring – it represents an opportunity for significant returns. While 40% of online businesses globally want to lower the cost of payments, it’s vital for businesses like yours to strengthen your payments setup to boost your customer experiences and scale operational efficiencies.

Build superior customer journeys

Optimising your payments setup has both incremental and long-term benefits for your customer experience and conversion rate. Here are ways to build superior customer journeys, powered by payments innovation:

• Optimise your payment method mix: Offer a range of up-to-date payment options that reflect local preferences.

• Offer Click to Pay: This express flow lets customers pay seamlessly in a few clicks.

• Create the best authentication experiences: Balance convenience and security by offering smooth authentication processes without redirects.

Scale with revenue optimisation

One way to scale with payments optimisation is through revenue optimisation and recovering declined payments without taking up additional operational resources. Revenue optimisation solutions enable digital businesses to increase revenue with the help of AI and payments data.

Unlock our full report today – discover expert analysis on the research, plus insights and best practices for online businesses, including:

• Key insights to simplify global complexities. 

• Ways to leverage data to grow revenue and lower operational costs. 

• Drive strategic growth through increasing customer loyalty and combating fraud.