5 Things you should never be doing while accepting digital payments

Digital Payments have been the greatest enablers of global trade and commerce. The wide-spread adoption of digital payments spurred the massive digital economy expected to breach the trillion dollars.This huge and unprecedented demand for digital payments was ideal for the growth of digital payment providers. Today, business, whether large conglomerates or SMEs have multiple choices when it comes to choosing a payments partner to collaborate with.Digital payments did not just give merchants another way to transact business, but these were fast, secure, and very convenient means of conducting business and settling payments. Cross-border financial transactions became easier and seamless.But despite the immense potential of digital payments and the myriad benefits it gives users, there are a few things that must be taken care of to prevent fraud and cyber breaches.Let’s have a look at the top 5 things you should never be doing while accepting digital payments:1. Redirection to third party payment website Once a customer reaches the checkout page, the sale is almost complete. Isn’t? Except it is not. If the checkout experience is not smooth and frictionless, there is a good chance that the customer will abandon the purchase and leave the site.Digital payments go a long way in making the checkout experience as painless as possible for the customer. But at times, businesses make the mistake of redirecting to an external payment website, often a payment processor.Though this may seem like a very genuine redirection, it can annoy the customer who was not expecting another redirection at the checkout page. They might not be comfortable entering their payment details on some external website whom they do not trust. This can be detrimental to your business as well as eventually the customer will lose trust in your website too.Also, keeping customers on your own website is far more beneficial than redirecting them to another website. You will have greater control over user experience, and all crucial information about the transaction like confirmation mail or the checkout details, or payment status, etc.Imagine all the data insights you will be missing out on because the checkout page is not fully integrated with your website. In that case you will be fully dependent on the limited data that the payment processor provides you with. In the long run, these limitations can have negative impacts on your brand.So, no matter what, start accepting payments on your website. Embedding a payment portal in your website will make customers feel more secure and safe to enter sensitive card details and since you get alerts in real time, you will instantly know of any failed payments and can immediately take the due course of action.2. Coercing customers to create an account Customers always prefer to give only information that is absolutely necessary while doing business online. Asking for too much information and forcing them to create an account to complete the purchase will only make them wary and suspicious.Of course, getting the customer to create an account is beneficial for the business. It helps to give each customer a very unique and personalized experience and customers can easily keep track of their order history and status etc. But customers barely appreciate being coerced to create an account.Always giving them the option to “checkout as guest” will reinstate their trust to visit again and do business in future too.Trying to get more information from customers will force them to look elsewhere for products and services and that will be like you driving your prospective customers to your competitors. Businesses try to get mail id of prospective customers to eventually place them in the sales funnel or start sending out targeted marketing campaigns.At times, there are notorious players who will sell customer data to other data mining companies who will use large chunks of data to assess customer behavior pattern so that they can curate personalized marketing to their own clients.3. Ignoring Data Security When it comes to online purchases, data security is the buzzword. Nonetheless, several businesses often overlook data security and data breaches are far more rampant today than ever. Whether it is credit card payments or ACH, or digital wallets, all these highly convenient payment modes come with a lot of risks too.With the astronomical rise of ecommerce, digital payment options became more and more commonplace. In most cases, customers are making these purchases via their home network that is far from secure.A recent study reported that customers blame the company and not the hacker if their information is hacked.4. No proper customer support Extending unconditional and well-intentioned customer support is crucial for maintaining a good customer business rapport. When you are dealing with a customer, you are also laying the seeds for all future sales.And customer support shouldn’t be limited or restricted to after-sales or issues regarding the product alone. Sometimes customers may have payment-related issues and that needs to be addressed too.Resolving issues quickly, being responsive, support available 24*7, a friendly support agent, all figure as the top factors for good customer support.5. Limited Payment Options Offering limited payment options is the sure shot way to welcome the customer’s ire. In today’s world with an ever-expanding digital economy, being offered multiple payment options is crucial to ensure a seamless checkout experience.As of 2020, the most popular payment method was digital wallet payments, following close on heals was credit and debit cards.International customers would definitely prefer to make payments in their local currency. They cannot be expected to go through a complicated currency exchange process.Customer experience is a key word when it comes to business growth and expansion. Much has changed in terms of business and the way we transact, but the timeless adage customer is king remains relevant to this day. Offering a friction-free and seamless checkout experience is vital to any business’ survival. Avoid these mistakes and ensure that you have granular control over your business and customer’s checkout process.