How and why are payment options important for an eCommerce store?

This article is brought to you by Retail Technology Review: How and why are payment options important for an eCommerce store?.

By Ed Smith, freelance journalist.

The UK leads the world in online shopping with over a third of consumers buying online multiple times a week. The past 18 months has seen a sharp increase in consumers propensity to shop via eCommerce.

It's no secret that we're living in the digital age. Driven by convenience, mobile shopping has evolved with the needs of its consumers. Alongside this rise, the want for multiple online payment options for eCommerce stores have become paramount.

While there's still a need for traditional bricks and mortar stores, there's no denying the power that eCommerce holds, so it's crucial your site is optimised for mobile payments. When choosing the right eCommerce platform for your brand, you need to ensure it can support with the following:

Increase conversion rates

On average 69% of people abandon their online carts, with mobile shoppers more likely to do so compared to desktop users. This suggests that having a mobile-friendly checkout layout with multiple payment options and a streamlined experience can improve conversions.

Many users abandon carts when account creation is required. Adding a guest checkout option prior to purchase would help limit abandoned carts in these cases. Once the purchase is complete, the consumer is then able to create an account if they so wish. Adding a sign-in before the purchase only slows the whole process down and will lead to higher rates of abandoned carts.

Offers flexibility and convenience

A few years ago, PayPal was one of the only ways people were able to make purchases online. But in today's online environment, customers prefer to have a range of choices when completing a purchase. If your current eCommerce platform only offers one method of payment, then it could be viewed as outdated and, more importantly, could be costing you sales.

Having a variety of payment options available broadens the net for more customers to do business with you, which in turn could lead to more long-term customers who trust you and your brand.

Provides security and trust values

Understandably security is a big concern for customers when purchasing online and the payment gateway has a big part to play in these trust values. Having recognisable payment gateways will help increase trust from consumers. On the other hand, less-established gateways make the customer think twice about inputting their payment details.

Improves user experience

In a cash rich, time poor society, convenience is king. An experience that’s quick and efficient will be beneficial for not only the consumer but the business too.

When considering eCommerce platforms, it's important to understand which devices the majority of your sales are coming from. If it's mobile, then choosing a platform that offers payment via digital wallets can help increase sales. The main reason UK consumers choose digital wallets as their most preferred payment method is because of the ease and convenience.

Mobile eCommerce is only going to grow so ensuring your business is ready now, will help build solid foundations for the future.