For most consumers, their first touchpoint with a business almost certainly takes place online. According to Forbes, 24% of all retail purchases are projected to take place online by 2026.

As the way in which consumers shop evolves, so do their needs and demands. Consumers are busy; they increasingly don’t have the time or patience to deal with frustrating, time-consuming, clunky purchasing experiences. Forbes also reports that on mobile devices alone, the cart abandonment rate is 84%. Customers want to interact with businesses through the channels they prefer, not the other way around. It pays for businesses to invest in a seamless purchase journey and customer experience.

To deliver an enhanced online purchase journey with minimised friction, businesses need to first tackle common user pain points. A convoluted and time-consuming online purchase journey can often be a case for why customers drop out at the payment stage. A lack of choice around payment methods, having to re-enter bank account details and long waiting or page loading times simply fuel these frustrations.

So, what are the top three ways in which businesses can improve the purchase journey and experience for consumers?

1. Enable quicker transaction settlements

Since its inception, open banking has sought to deliver significant advantages for both businesses and consumers. For businesses in particular, its many benefits include quicker transaction settlements, lower fees, and higher conversion rates.

Using open banking to collect payments can help businesses cut down on payment processing times and help move money more efficiently. It is particularly effective for reducing more manual processes and minimising human error. We know that, in business, time is money.  And systems that reduce card transaction fees, improve payment completion rates, and drive increased revenue are more beneficial and cost-effective in the long run. By minimising re-directions and facilitating transactions with speed and ease, businesses can actively help prevent cart abandonment, recapturing previously lost transactions.

As more and more businesses who operate online begin to integrate open banking payments within their e-commerce platforms, more consumers will come onboard and help accelerate its mainstream appeal.

2. Facilitate safe transactions

For many consumers, access to personal data is often a top concern. Forbes reports that more than half (54%) of online shoppers say they’d abandon a shopping cart if a business asked for too much information. Businesses can alleviate these anxieties by adopting open banking solutions that do not require access to a customer’s bank account details. By automatically authorising payments through their own banks, customers don’t need to enter their card details or have their billing data stored.

The payments industry is tackling this by offering consumers and businesses new ways to easily collect and send payments online and in person. Single-use mobile payments, such as those that generate a link or QR code to receive payments instantly from customers prevent the risk of human errors more commonly seen with manual processes. They have no access to a user’s login credentials and do not store or share any of their personal bank account information. These methods allow customers to make instant online payments, resulting in a safe, simple, and fast payment experience for users.

Confirmation of Payee (CoP) checks can also help in the fight against fraud and scams, guaranteeing added peace of mind for both businesses and their customers. The functionality is designed to help stop fraud and prevent accidentally misdirected payments by verifying whether the name of a payee’s account matches the correct name and account details. CoP can also play a pivotal part in reducing operational costs, ultimately improving the digital journey for customers and the user experience businesses are offering as they strive to maximise conversions.

3. Offer customers greater control over their finances

As consumers become more concerned about how and when they spend their money, visibility over their personal finances has never been more crucial. Open banking payment solutions allows customers to view their bank account balances prior to completing transactions, providing them with greater clarity and control over their finances. Having a clear oversight of this can help customers manage their money more confidently, get better value, and support their overall financial wellbeing.

In addition, businesses can make users aware of how their data is used, how they can control it, how it is being stored as well as what regulation practises are in place. Businesses can then proactively begin informing customers about their financial data, encouraging them to engage with it. Promoting data transparency not only gives customers a sense of trust, but also gives them the confidence that they are in control.

Equipping consumers with a transparent view of their financial situation before making a purchase adds greater flexibility and can effectively influence their purchase behaviours and journey, helping to prevent ‘regret’ purchases.

In the world of e-commerce, the experience of in-store shopping has disappeared entirely for some businesses. And this is where high-end customer experiences can help a business get ahead of its competitors. Particularly for businesses in their infancy, having the right technological tools and processes in place can often be a barrier for effectively scaling a business. Therefore, by embracing the benefits of open banking payments and technology, businesses can build safe, transparent, and trustworthy relationships with their customers, while also facilitating fast, efficient, and secure transactions.