Online cross-border sales in Europe

What is the effect on payment methods?

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Why is the issue of payment so important?

Why is payment important?

An appropriate payment method can help with some of the challenges of

cross-border e-commerce: gaining internet users’ trust and optimising the

purchasing process.

Payment is one of the main elements which determines

whether an online shopper buys a product or not.

Appropriate currency canreassure the customer and encourage them to complete a purchase.

The choice of currency

Giving consumers the option to pay in local currency willincrease sales figures.

1. 2.

The choice of currency is a strategic one, but

even more so in Europe, where the Euro mixes with local currency

Europe

Retailers should therefore use the currency that fits best with their objectives. However, itis important to take into account the two issues that come with offering differentcurrency types:

Consumers can compare prices between countries and competitors more easily.

Exchange rate fluctuations can have a real impact on sales.

Payment Methods

The most used payment option isbank card.

In Europe, bank cards represent72% of transactions.

You must not forget national preferences. If you do not provide a country’s preferred payment method, you risk losing potential customers.

After bank card, the second mostpopular method is e-wallet (PayPal or local players such as Sofort or iDeal).

Examples: UK and the Netherlands

88% - Visa / Mastercard

10% - PayPal

3% - American Express

60% - iDEAL

14% - SEPA Direct Debit

18% - Mastercard / Visa

4% - Invoicing

Examples: France and Germany

88% - Visa / Mastercard

16% - PayPal

3% - Carte Bleue

3% - American Express

35% - SEPA Direct Debit

16% - Sofort / Giropay

15% - Invoicing

24% - Visa / Mastercard / Amex

10% - Paypal

Payment: A key element

In short…

Choosing the best payment methods for cross-border online sales is a complex process whichhas to be analysed and integrated into a retailer’s overall strategy.

It is important to stay up to date with the latest payment method developments and learn how to use them to optimise the purchasing process. If you do so, conversion rates won’t be impacted by new developments.

Payment & Mobile

of time on the Internet is spent using a mobile device.60%

However, only15% of transactions

are made using a mobile device.

There are normally more paymentmethods offered on desktop websitesthan mobile-friendly sites, as well as different browsing behaviour.

Best practice:

• Make sure visitors do not waste time scrolling.

• Do not add too many pages or steps.

• Add the option of one-click payment.

• Shorten the payment process.

• Do not redirect customers: paymentshould be carried out on the sameplatform as browsing.

• Do not include pop-ups.

Why?

Managing the risk of fraud

One of the main barriers to purchase is fear of fraud. This fear iseven more of a problem when dealing with cross-border sales.

Fear of fraud has a significant negative impact on conversion rates.

Security expectations vary from country to country, so you shouldadapt strategy and payment methods accordingly.

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To find out more about the

features and challenges of

selling cross-border in

Europe, download our

whitepaper!

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