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GUEST COMMENT How can merchants overcome the cost and complexity of local payment method integrations?

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As commerce becomes more digital and borderless, one of the biggest hurdles companies face is the complexity of facilitating the myriad payment options required to maximise sales in any given market. But, with 77% of global online sales now being made using one of 500+ trusted local payment methods (LPMs), it has never been more crucial for companies to get it right. 

How has the pandemic and rise of e-commerce added pressure to merchants/businesses to integrate local payment methods (LPMs)? 

Offering a diverse array of local payment methods has always been important. The recent e-commerce boom merely turbocharged this need as consumers were forced online in their masses. During this time, digital payment options became a must-have for online brands to be able to compete. What we have learnt since then is that consumer payment behaviours that changed during lockdown are in fact here to stay. Selling across borders without offering LPMs is no longer an option, as consumers demand more choice than ever before. 

For businesses and merchants who do not invest in LPMs at this pivotal time, they are at risk of missing out on potential customers. Our own research suggests that nearly 50% of online shoppers say they will abandon a purchase at checkout if their preferred or local payment option isn’t available. Not only does this mean that merchants will lose out to the competition in their own markets, but it also limits their expansion plans into new locations – as each region has its own LPM preferences. The opportunity for cross-border growth is at an all-time high, but to be able to succeed, a greater focus is needed on local payment preferences.

What is involved when it comes to integrating LPMs? What hurdles do merchants/businesses come up against when beginning this process?

Integrating LPMs is no easy task – it requires a number of considerations before a business can even get started. For example, market analysis plays a huge role – identifying which market you’d like to sell to and gaining insights into the preferred LPMs in that region is an important first step. This is where consultancy from a partner with on the ground local knowledge is extremely helpful. Especially when it comes to negotiating with the LPM directly regarding contracts. And often language can act as a barrier and add additional complexity to this process.  

Time and cost are two of the biggest hurdles to consider. Adding just one payment method means  up to 1 million USD in integration costs and 6-12 months from contracting to initial operations. There is also the additional cost of operational complexity licensing, compliance, managing funds and more! As well as being costly, this process is extremely complex and time consuming for a brand going at it alone. That’s not to mention the added complexities surrounding regulations funds collection that could require the business to set up an entity in the region in order to be able to move any further with the integration process.

What are the financial implications associated with LPM integration? What impact can this have on the merchant’s decision to go ahead?

The costs and complexities can often be enough to stop a business in its tracks when it comes to integrating a new payment method. This can create an awful catch-22 situation whereby merchants are aware they need to integrate LPMs to be able to compete and grow their business, but are unable to keep up with the costs and complexities associated with implementing them effectively. 

To overcome this, merchants need to partner with an expert who can provide strategic consultancy and easy access to new payment methods via a diverse portfolio. Only with this support can merchants successfully expand into the new lucrative markets on offer.

Are there any other factors merchants/businesses need to consider when integrating an LPM?

Even with the right mix of payment methods at the checkout, there are often other reasons why online sales don’t convert and baskets are abandoned. This may be because of a technological problem. A single misconfiguration, and an option unchecked in the backend, can cause payments to time out or fail. 

In many cases, the issues impacting the success of a sale (the conversion rate) may not be entirely technical. Often, a poor user experience causes unnecessary cart abandonment. For instance, poor language localisation, offering a local payment method to shoppers in a country where this is not available, a confusing layout on the payments page or even relatively simple things like only telling a user about a surcharge when they reach the final payments screen — can all depress the conversion rate.

Considering the whole picture will be crucial to not only making LPM integration a success, but ensuring it fulfils its purpose – boosting online conversion rates and unlocking future online growth.

How can businesses overcome the cost and complexities associated with LPMs and implement them successfully?

Using the regional knowledge and the experience of strategic partners will be essential for any business beginning this complex journey. Even for the biggest of payment service providers, LPM integration can be overwhelming. Luckily for merchants, and the payment service providers who support them, local payment infrastructures are on hand to remove the pain points associated with implementation. By offering easy access to a diverse array of payment methods, these infrastructures can empower merchants to take on cross-border commerce.

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