In this new retail environment that favors personalized choices and innovative methods, merchants who stick with the big credit card companies may find themselves at a disadvantage.
Yet expanding the field to accept more and more payment methods brings not only additional costs but also new risks. Business owners need to ask themselves whether accepting alternative payment methods is worth the hassle.
Types of Alternative Payments
PayPal
One of the most popular and accepted payment uk consumer data list on the market, PayPal is the gold standard—a convenient and secure money transfer service that many merchants and consumers already trust.
Advantages: Merchants can offer consumers the flexibility to pay with a credit card, a connected bank account, or a PayPal account. Setup is easy, and the checkout process can be customized to match your business and brand.
Disadvantages: There is a growing industry for PayPal fraud, in which customers place an order and then dispute the charge, which often means a chargeback or claim for the merchant.
Android Pay and Apple Pay
Particularly for businesses where e-commerce is conducted through a mobile app, Android Pay (formerly known as Google Wallet) should be considered. Customers still pay with a debit or credit card, but Android Pay pulls billing and shipping information directly from the user’s Google account.
Pros: Purchases can be made in just two clicks for a quick checkout process. For the merchant, the entire process leverages an existing payment infrastructure, so setup is minimal.
Cons: Only available to Android or iPhone users, or users of Chrome and Safari browsers, which can limit reach.
Visa Checkout and MasterPass
Visa and MasterCard transactions have also entered the alternative payments space. Both options offer consumers a quick payment method that automatically inputs the consumer’s shipping and billing information, making the checkout process as simple and efficient as possible.
Pros: Trust in the Visa and MasterCard names is a key advantage with both options. Setting up both payment methods is easy and straightforward, and almost every online consumer already uses at least one of these cards. Merchants can also offer special promotions to customers who use these payment methods.
• Cons: Customers must first install and enable their wallet via the Visa Checkout or MasterPass app. This is an additional step and login for the consumer to remember, which may confuse or irritate some customers.
Bitcoin
The jury is still out on whether Bitcoin is viable in light of its advertising as a legitimate alternative payment method. For now, the most important question for merchants is whether or not their customers are likely to be active in the Bitcoin world.
• Pros: Fast payments, with relatively low payment processing fees. Payments are 100% irreversible, so there is no risk of chargeback or payment fraud.
• Cons: Bitcoins are traded, which means the value of this cryptocurrency fluctuates. You will need to work with Bitcoin exchanges to buy, sell, and trade Bitcoins. This article provides an excellent explanation of how to get started with Bitcoin.
When considering alternative payment methods, ask yourself
several questions – including:
• Which of these payment methods is most likely to be used by your target consumer?
• What e-commerce features do these methods support?
• How much security do these methods provide, both for you and your customer?
• How many payment methods should you offer without unnecessarily complicating your checkout process?
• How do you plan to report and reconcile these alternative payment methods?
Choose a Trusted Partner
In many cases, determining which payment methods to offer is easier with help. A payment partner can help answer some of the questions listed above to help you determine which methods make the most sense for your business—and, just as importantly, which ones you can afford to forgo for now.