Why You Should Include Emerging and Alternative Payments In Your Payment System

Today’s consumers expect merchants to do more, specifically in the form of offering them access to a variety of payment methods. With more than half of Americans already using contactless payments, that number continues to grow year-over-year as consumers look for, and expect, fast, easy, and convenient ways to pay. This substantial increase in the demand for point-of-sale contactless payments necessitates the adoption of emerging and alternative payments. 

From Venmo to Crypto, businesses need to explore a wider range of alternative payments options for consumers. No matter the industry, it’s essential that merchants look towards the future and meet this rising consumer demand. As the demand for more acceptance of alternative payment methods is rapidly growing, having the technology in place for new payment types will be vital for merchants to maintain a competitive advantage. Sooner rather than later, the time will come that not including emerging and alternative payments in your payment system will unintentionally erect barriers to sales.

However, as merchants strive to implement an ever-increasing number of payment options, they often find that the process is complex, expensive, and burdensome to manage and scale. That’s where a payments orchestration partner like OLS can help. A payments orchestration partner helps merchants enhance the customer experience while removing complexities, allowing merchants to more easily implement new payment methods and prepare for the future.

What are alternative payment methods, and how can they help my business?

Alternative payment methods are transactions of funds made without cash or major credit or debit cards. These cashless and often cardless payment methods include mobile payments, digital wallets, bank transfers, prepaid cards, cryptocurrency, and more. Customers increasingly prefer specific payment types, and by offering a wider variety of payment methods, merchants remove friction experienced during the transaction process. These more frictionless experiences provide greater consumer convenience and an easier shopping experience, which ultimately increases revenue. 

Providing a Frictionless Transaction Experience 

When making a purchase, consumers want the experience to be as frictionless as possible, and the rising demand for a convenient payment experience coincides with the demand for alternative payment methods. While there are many reasons, a consumer may choose not to complete a transaction, not being able to use their preferred payment method is certainly high on that list. Quite simply, shoppers don’t want to be restricted by conventional payment methods. 

Merchants need to keep up with an increasingly broad range of payment options, which are quick, simple, and secure and seen by consumers as more convenient ways to exchange money. While certainly not a comprehensive list, some of the alternative payment methods consumers are most familiar with include:

• Alipay 
• Apple Pay
• Cryptocurrency
• Google Pay
• Klarna
• PayPal
• Stripe
• Venmo
• WeChat Pay
• Zelle

A growing majority of consumers have even reported that they would choose where to shop based in part on whether they have the right mix of digital payment options. Global digital wallet spending alone is expected to increase by 83 percent by 2025. In an increasingly globalized marketplace, offering additional payment methods allows merchants to reach international shoppers. As your payments orchestration partner, OLS supports every major payment network in the United States and an increasing number of international payment types as well. 

Simplify Enablement of New Payment Methods With the Right Payments Orchestration Partner

Even as merchants strive to include emerging and alternative payments methods in their payment systems, they may worry that doing so will be complex, expensive, and burdensome to manage and scale. As merchants know, typically, each payment type comes with associated costs, namely a cost for acceptance, for maintaining card network compliance, and for managing consumer disputes. Adopting new payment methods may also pose additional risks, particularly regarding insulating your system from the risk of data theft.

A payments orchestration partner can help merchants handle the challenges and complexities of widening payment diversity with greater ease. OLS Payments allows merchants to enable the acceptance of new payment types while reducing complexity, lowering costs, and enhancing transaction processing security.

Including Emerging and Alternative Payments Leads to a Better Customer Experience 

Don’t risk driving away consumers by not offering the payment methods they prefer. Providing consumers with various payment methods not only encourages purchases but also builds trust, helping them feel comfortable as they follow through with their transactions. 

OLS Payments is an agile payments orchestration partner that can help merchants enable efficiency and prepare for the future. Contact us today to learn how OLS Payments can help you manage complex payments and provide a great customer experience.

Key Takeaways

• Consumers expect fast, easy, and convenient ways to pay.
• Consumers are increasingly choosing where to shop based in part on payment options.
• Offering a wide variety of alternative payment methods removes friction experienced during the transaction process. 
• OLS Payments can help you easily enable the acceptance of new payment types and provide a great customer experience.