The metaverse, a fictional world where pixels and virtual shopping merge, is developing at a rapid pace, making the online payment experience increasingly important for all businesses. How do you optimize the customer journey and leverage the latest technology at the same time? Video games shed light on the subject.

1. Pay special attention to the onboarding process

You never get a second chance to make a good first impression. It is indeed possible to successfully onboard new customers and leave them with a positive image of your company, despite KYC and AML procedures!

To achieve this, the players in the game use technology, but above all, they make sure that they can identify the customer as early as possible in the purchasing process (via Apple Pay for example) so that the verification work can begin without having to wait until the end of the account opening process.

2. MAKE SURE PAYMENTS ARE INSTANTANEOUS

In the game world and especially in the online betting world, speed is key. The player expects to be able to bet immediately and withdraw their winnings right away. In horse racing, over 50% of bets are made at the last minute!

Whether confirming a purchase or processing a refund, the speed of the checkout process is critical to maximizing customer satisfaction and reducing frustration, both on the user end of the checkout process (with the absolute fewest clicks) and on the payment provider end (with the shortest possible processing time).

3. OPTIMIZE THE PAYMENT PROCESS TO BOOST CONVERSIONS

By monitoring the right indicators (conversion rate, abandonment rate, successful payment rate, chargebacks...) and adopting an A/B testing approach, you can increase revenue significantly!

One of the best practices you should implement in this regard is localizing the checkout and payment process, meaning adapting them to local preferences and regulations in order to reassure the buyer. This would require some communication work on the security of your environment. Alternatively, you could explore the possibilities offered within your regulatory framework, Open Banking for example.

4. DEEPEN RELASHIONSHIPS WITH PAYMENT SERVICE PROVIDERS

Because payment is now part of the product, it is a shame to reduce the relationship with its Payment Service Providers (PSPs) to a simple client/supplier relationship instead of seeking to make it a deep and lasting partnership. Indeed, PSPs have genuine know-how and a unique expertise (for example, a Belgian PSP can share its experience with Bancontact, the most popular online payment method in Belgium).

What's more, some PSPs offer services that extend far beyond payments. For example, HiPay has an analytical solution to help its customers solve strategic problems and deliver concrete business results!