A majority of online shoppers (81 per cent) have expressed their willingness to spend more in order to have a good customer experience, a new report by Visa Consulting & Analytics stated.
The report entitled ‘Accelerating the shift to e-Commerce’ said this preference by online shoppers could be a basis for small businesses to have an immediate advantage in the marketplace.
According to Visa, small businesses could improve customer experience by providing easy access to information, frictionless payments, a simple returns policy, and personalised shopping options.
The report stated that most small businesses (60 per cent) had taken bold steps to prepare for the seasonal sales activity that kicks-off with Black Friday.
The preparation, according to Visa, included changing their infrastructure and digitising their business.
Commenting on the report, the Vice President, Visa West Africa, Kemi Okusanya, said the study highlighted how the payment experience was a critical touchpoint, a part of the customer journey, which required special attention.
According to her, each time a potential customer reached the checkout page, they had a moment to reflect on whether the effort needed to make the payment was equal to the value they got from their purchase.
To win prospective and repeat customers, she said small and medium businesses needed to have a digital presence during the discovery and evaluation stages of the customer shopping journey.
Okusanya said the impact of a bad payment experience could be devastating because an online shopper could abandon an online shopping cart due to checkout friction and move to another competitor.
She said, “Small and medium-sized businesses that leverage e-commerce solutions, which provide excellent online shopping experience for consumers, have the opportunity to benefit from high spend periods like Black Friday and the coming festive season compared to businesses who have not mastered the importance of holistic back-end design of the customer journey.
“The impact of a bad payment experience can be devastating. When a shopper abandons an online shopping cart due to checkout friction, the data shows that 67 per cent end up leaving for a competitor or never complete the purchase anywhere, and 59 per cent say they are less likely to shop with that same retailer again.”
For businesses, she said, digital payments reduced the friction arising from handling money, limit customer queuing, grow their customer base as a result of enhanced experience and eventually improve sales and profitability.
