What Impacts Customer Experience the Most? 74% Say the “Successful Completion” of a Transaction

Understanding the value of the customer experience is paramount when it comes to optimizing payments.

In the previous installments of the Exploring Insights from the Payment Landscape Survey series, we examined the growing adoption of payment orchestration, the need to empower payment development teams with advanced technologies and tools, and the top priorities of payment infrastructure initiatives around the globe over the next 12 months. 

Today’s fourth and final part of this series looks at findings from the Payment Landscape 2023 Survey that reveal just how critical the customer experience truly is in the payments mix. 

Published in collaboration between The Paypers and Spreedly, this survey features answers from more than 100 organizations operating in the payments space today. We asked the tough questions to get the best answers regarding the state of payments and the increasing need for payment orchestration solutions.

Take a look at the four key insights we gained by asking respondents to identify which functions within the payments mix impact the customer experience most significantly.

Insight 1: Successful Payments Win Customer Satisfaction

In our survey findings, the most overwhelming factor that impacts the customer experience is the success rate of a transaction. A whopping 74% of survey respondents named the “successful completion” of a transaction as the number one factor influencing the overall customer payment experience. 

Yet, a high authorization rating is not always a walk in the park to achieve. 

Ensuring the success of transactions requires a business to have a fully optimized payment infrastructure with a solid payment orchestration strategy at its core. For payments to be processed smoothly and without errors, a payment system needs the right level of autonomy to automatically route payments to the channels most likely to result in success, as well as to re-route payments when necessary. 

Customers want a secure transaction process they can rely on to work efficiently every time, the first time. Achieving this results in a higher overall level of trust and satisfaction among returning and new customers alike, driving up customer retention while reducing drop rates and customer turnover.

Insight 2: Customers Want Their Preferred Payment Methods 

Unsurprisingly, the availability of payment options proved to be the second-highest factor impacting the customer experience within a payment system.

Roughly 69% of survey respondents “acknowledged the significance” of offering a wide range of different payment methods, including both traditional card payments and more modern and alternative payment methods, like mobile payments. 

Additionally, we saw a clear recognition of the importance of offering localized payments for any organization with goals to expand its reach into global territory. The payment preferences of customers vary from region to region, making it a necessity for global organizations to offer a wide breadth of payment methods that match the clientele within a given area of the world. 

Let’s look at two examples that demonstrate the power of diverse payment methods:

• iDEAL: The Netherlands offers a payment method known as iDEAL that enables customers to make payments directly from their bank account, no card or digital wallet necessary. With more than 1.2 billion payments and 70% of all e-commerce transactions in the region made with iDEAL, the proof is in the pudding when it comes to the importance of offering this payment method to Dutch customers. ‍
• Pix: Pix is Brazil’s instant payment system that allows customers within the country to make fast, secure, and convenient payments and money transfers. The Brazil Central Bank reports that Pix was responsible for around 3 billion monthly transactions in March 2023 alone, up from 2.8 billion at the close of 2022. In April 2023, transaction volume for Pix reached $260 billion USD.

Insight 3: Processing Speed is Vital to a Positive Customer Experience

Aside from payment systems that offer a customer’s preferred payment methods and a high success rate for transactions, the next factor that impacts the customer experience most is processing speed.

Approximately 43% of survey respondents stated that processing speed was “critical” for enhancing the customer experience, especially when it came to minimizing delays and wait times. 

When speedy processing times are achieved, respondents report a more positive customer perception of their payment service, ultimately helping to build trust and customer retention. 

In terms of how this high processing speed can be achieved, we once again see the crucial importance of payment orchestration and optimization. Not only does a payment system need the flexibility to work with multiple payment service providers and tools, but it also needs the autonomy and automated capabilities to route payments in the best ways possible to achieve a fast processing time.

Insight 4: Secure Payment Storage is Essential 

While not as impactful as the speed and success rate of payments, our survey findings revealed that the ability to store payment details for future use was vital for around 26% of survey respondents. 

Stored payments offer convenience for returning customers and can help convert new customers into long-term patrons. However, the reality of storing payment data can be quite complex and requires robust payment security capable of not only keeping this information safe but also meeting all the necessary compliance requirements involved. 

When the optimal payment vaulting solution is implemented — such as Spreedly’s Advanced Vaulting solution — businesses can not only streamline the payment process but also reduce frictions for returning customers and enhance overall convenience within the customer experience.

Key Takeaways: Great Customer Experiences Start with Seamless Payments

Customer experience cannot be overlooked when optimizing your payment mix. With the right approach to payments, you can offer the convenience, speed, and security necessary to win the hearts of customers and transform them into long-term patrons of your business.

Through our research with The Paypers, Spreedly discovered four key factors that proved to have the greatest influence on a customer’s payment experience:

1. Payments need to be successful and without delays: The biggest factor impacting the customer experience is simply the success rate of a transaction. When it takes multiple tries for a payment to go through, a customer can lose faith and you can ultimately lose their business. 
2. Businesses must offer a wide variety of payment methods: Customers want the freedom and flexibility to pay in their preferred methods. Moreover, offering a wide array of payment methods is often necessary for anyone hoping to expand into new regions. ‍
3. Optimizing processing times to be as efficient as possible is crucial: Along with a high success rate, customers also want their payments to happen fast. Businesses need the right strategy for optimizing payment processing times and making this process as frictionless as possible.
4. Enabling payment method storage wins loyalty: To keep customers coming back for more, you need the means to securely store payment data and details. This requires a highly secure and competent solution, such as Advanced Vaulting.

Learn How to Enhance the Customer Experience & Win Customer Loyalty 

Together with The Paypers, Spreedly spoke with more than 100 organizations around the globe to uncover the growing importance and popularity of payment orchestration. The resulting survey report showcases our many crucial findings, including everything discussed here and more. 

To discover the full scope of how you can enhance the customer payment experience and the top factors that impact it, check out the full Payments Landscape 2023 Survey today on The Paypers website.

Spreedly’s payment orchestration solution provides you with all of the tools, connections, and resources you need to build a highly satisfactory payment experience for your customers. From key features like Smart Routing to our Advanced Vaulting solution for storing payment data, we offer all of the capabilities you need to win customer loyalty and keep it. 

Contact the Spreedly team today to join our growing payments ecosystem.

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