Shopping online is so common today because there’s no lines to wait in, online stores are always open, and you get what you want delivered right to your front door. Check out our 3 Reasons You HAVE to Sell Online for more on this. This’s why you want payment processing that’s uncomplicated and accessible for all. When someone purchases something through your site, the checkout page is their final stop, and that’s when they become a paying customer. It’s easy to just throw PayPal on your site, but increasingly business owners want to have more control over the payment process. Here’s what you need to do to gain that control and keep your customers happy.

Provide a Number of Payment Methods

About 56% of online shoppers expect a variety of payment methods on the checkout page. Try to accept as many payment methods as possible, especially all major credit cards like Visa, American Express, MasterCard, and Discover. This should be pretty obvious, but many companies don’t accept cards these because there’s a higher processing fee. But if you don’t accept all cards, you’re likely losing out on sales.

Don’t Require a Customer Account

From experience, making an account is time consuming and redundant. When I want to purchase something, I don’t want to come up with another username and password to remember, I just want to purchase my item and move on. This’s just another wall for customers and will prevent them from making that purchase because they will feel they are giving away too much information. Not saying it isn’t okay to have the option to create an account on your site, but have an additional option where a customer can make their purchase without all the hassle.

Keep Customers on Your Site

Don’t direct your customers to a third party site. You want to keep them on your page only. One of my biggest pet peeves is being directed to another website or having a window separate pop up when I am trying to make a purchase. You want your business’s name to be the last thing they see as they complete their purchase, so keep them on your site.

Make Errors Easy to Correct

Everyone makes mistakes. Sometimes you mistype your email address or forget to fill your birthday or phone number. One of the most annoying things is getting an error message and having to retype all your information. It’s time consuming! It’s best to tell your customer what the error was, what they forgot to fill out, and have all their other information saved. You can easily lose customers because of submission errors.

Only Ask for the Information You Need

Now a days, companies ask for so much unnecessary information. Only ask information that pertains to the sale. You really only need a name, address, email, and payment info. Maybe a phone number if something goes wrong, but email is generally the best way to communicate with your customers. Don’t include surveys or ads, this is distracting and takes away their attention from your site.

Security and Privacy

Online identity theft is common today, so you need to let your customer know their information is secure and private on your site. It’s said that 58% of shoppers end up not buying something online because they believe there’s a lack of privacy information and security from the merchant. Don’t let that be your company.

If you follow these online payment processing tips, you are sure to have an increase in sales, keep your customers happy, and bring people back to your site.\