Online payment is usually the final step of any online transaction, and to make customers feel satisfied with services, merchants have to make the online payment safe, fast and easy to follow. It is important for ecommerce owners to make the checkout process as easy and simple as possible to critically increase sales. The importance of a convenient payment method cannot be overstated. Here are 9 tips that will help you to make the online payment method easy for customers.
- Present Numerous Payment Methods
There are websites that offer only one option to checkout and pay for the items. In a study conducted by Milo Mclver Dual Survey Report indicates that 56% of the study participants look forward to a variety of payment methods upon checking out.
Since it may be impossible to offer most payment methods, you’ll have to look at your target market to determine which method they prefer and would likely use more. When you select the best suited methods, you’ll be ready to get the attention of customers visiting your store.
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Let your customers checkout as Guests
Most customers feel very upset and unhappy when they are required to register just to purchase their shopping cart. Smashing Magazine discovered that the principal reason clients hate setting up an account is because they detest opening their email and click on the link to verify.
Also many customers don’t get it why they must sign in an account to purchase a product when brick and mortar stores don’t demand any membership to buy from them. One more concern is that they despise long forms to fill up upon registration.
To be able to address this concern, we can make it easier for the buyers. Instead of asking them to fill up a long form, it will be better to ask less information or make them fill up the information related solely to their transaction. It minimizes effort in filling up — users won’t be baffled anymore.
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Implement Uniformity Across All Platforms
First of all, you need to create the similar feel and look of your website across all platforms. You should use the textual styles, same colors, and layout on your checkout page as on your whole site, so brand recognition stays the same. A great and consistent design delivers a good impression to customers. It is ideal to maintain consistency across all your platforms, especially with the checkout page. Customers get used to what is consistent and familiar with them.
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Keep your Customers in the Website Upon Checkout
Do not cut the funnel short. Once you lure your customers in, it is not advisable to redirect them to another website to pay. Being redirected to another payment gateway frustrates users as it is regarded as another phase of waiting. It makes them upset to go through another process, not understanding that it is indeed part of one funnel.
It distracts their attention to their cart; sometimes, this creates mistrust in the part of the consumer, especially if they aren’t familiar with the payment merchant you selected. Redirecting them to another website to pay for their items creates that dread that they might not receive their items or their information may be compromised. Keep your customers in your website!
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Make Errors Easy to Fix
It is an indisputable truth that your customers will make silly mistakes. At times people mistype important information like excessive zip code numbers or providing a wrong part of the address. To address this issue, you can automate the form to validate the data and auto correct any mistakes.
If you have a returning customer, it pays to make the checkout easier and swifter by saving their important details. Upon registration to their first checkout, you can let them choose the option to auto save their details for faster checkout on the next transactions. Always offer it as an option and do not do it automatically unless disclosed prior saving the details. On some browsers like Google Chrome, it automatically saves the credit card information of the user.
On the other hand, filling up a form shouldn’t feel like answering an exam. If the customer commits a mistake, be sure not to refresh and erase all the data that has been filled up previously. Imagine the horror if a customer enters a wrong detail, only to refresh the data and end up with an empty form once more.
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Only Ask for Important Details About your Customers
Similar to when you’re building a list of email, you have to limit the volume of information that you request from customers.
Customers are bored of filling in a long form with needless information just to buy. A lengthy unwanted list is likely to make your customers rush out of your site to find other sites that have a shorter form.
The most important requirements which boost sales the customers desire to buy everything fast. Once they decide to buy things, make them move fast to save their time. A report made by Forrester found that 11% of U.S. grown-ups surrendered an online buy because they either would not want to enlist on the site which has lots of information. Once you need additional data like a phone number, create a place to clarify why this requirement is necessary, and how you will make use of these data.
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Make Yourself Trustworthy – Display Security and Privacy Badges
If you require personal information from customers, make a special effort to display the securities system you have set up. An assessment by eConsultancy found that 58% of respondents dropped out of the checkout page on account of concerns about installment security.
As highlighted before, giving a consistent and stunning design and not redirecting consumers to a third party website are important in establishing trust with customers. At the same time, you have to do more to convince people that their details are protected from hackers. On a regular basis, you’ll really need a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) for your website to ensure security and safety.
Additionally, you’ll have to accept the guidelines of the PCI Security Standards Council (PCI SSC). Ensure that you display your security accreditations with SSL and PCI identifications on your site.
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Eliminate Distractions on the Checkout Page
The checkout page is the main step towards conversion. It’s the final step. So, while you wait for customers to pay money; do not make anything distract them from completing the checkout process.
Your target is to convert costumers right through to making the final payment.
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Have a clear Call-to-Action
Do not get customers confused on how to proceed. Whenever customers complete adding the things on their basket, ensure it is completely clear they can “Proceed to checkout” or “Keep Shopping.” The trick is making it specific and abstained from being questionable with CTAs like “Proceed with,” “Checkout,” or “Apply.”
Author´s Bio: Henry is the leading strategist and partner for a Dallas SEO Company that focus on Digital Inbound Marketing. He aims to make holistic digital marketing easy for businesses to adopt and transition for maximized business growth and opportunity.
