Most businesses have a subset of leads who would love to buy from them but don't feel confident about payment. These individuals value what's on offer but can't commit because of fears over how the brand will handle their money.
That's why building customer confidence with secure payment options is essential. If consumers can see you are protecting their money, they are more likely to make a purchase.
If you are worried about the secure payment options at your business, this post can help. It explores several strategies you can deploy to improve trust during transactions, enabling you to drive revenue and win new customers.
Advertise your secure payment methods
Advertising your secure payment methods is one of the most effective ways to convince prospective customers that transacting with you is safe. Putting labels next to your cash register or online cart incentivises sales and makes people want to buy from you.
Options include:
- Arranging payment signs from card processing companies, like Visa, Mastercard and American Express near the till
- Using secure payment methods tailored to your business with built-in security features and logos
- Ensuring your checkout pages display the padlock symbol in the browser header
- Using third-party payment processors with additional card verification (outside of your website)
Once you have these systems up and running, you should notice people are more willing to buy from you. Inspiring confidence reduces checkout friction and the need for additional steps to secure a sale.
Provide easy access to your privacy policy
Another tactic to build customer confidence with secure payment options is to make your privacy policy widely available. It should state how you intend to use clients' data and what they commit to when using your services.
Unless you're a tech company, your privacy policy should reassure customers you don't collect their data or pass it on to third parties. If you do use their information, tell them how and where. For example, you might keep it on a local server and use it for customer relationship management (CRM) purposes.
Offer two-factor authentication
At the same time, it makes sense to offer two-factor authentication at checkout. Providing customers with a second way to secure the payment (besides a PIN) can help inspire confidence you take their well-being seriously.
For online payments, two-factor authentication often involves sending a unique passcode to their phone they can enter into the payment portal. Some card services, like Verified by Visa, require cardholders to confirm payments in their banking apps. These add an extra layer of security, preventing PIN-skimming and other fraudulent activities.
Provide multiple payment options
You should also provide multiple payment options to win customer confidence. Providing them with alternatives to conventional credit or debit cards shows you take your relationship with payment services seriously.
Offering e-wallet payments, like Neteller or PayPal can encourage people to spend with you (especially if they never shopped with you before). These provide in-house dispute resolution services, allowing them to claw back money in the unlikely event of a problem.
You can also offer the ability to pay in cryptocurrencies. Many users feel more secure sending tokens via the blockchain than committing cash through the banking system.
Use strong encryption
Savvy customers will also want you to use strong encryption on your website and point-of-sale devices. Ciphering data prevents scammers from intercepting it while in transit.
Check your website to see if it has SSL/TLS encryption. These standards stop hackers from seeing any data that might contain sensitive information. Algorithms scramble everything the user types in and only unscramble it once it is safe and at its destination.
Use tokenisation
Lastly, you might consider using an advanced technique called "tokenisation". This approach eliminates the need for customers to type in credit card details. Instead, they receive a unique identifier that replaces the original information, preventing cybercriminals from obtaining money fraudulently even if they believe they have the real details.
Keeping your customers safe
Ultimately, offering secure payment options keeps your customers safe. Protecting them online and offline inspires trust and encourages them to return to you in the future.
Avoid the temptation to skimp on security measures for payments. Hackers and scammers are always looking for new ways to exploit your systems and take people's money. Always secure your website with the strongest encryption and advertise how you prioritise payment security. Over time, people will naturally feel attracted to you and start buying your products and services.
Copyright 2024. Featured post made possible by Universal Smart Cards: working independently, Universal Smart Cards' mission is to provide quality products and services together with exceptional customer service to provide the latest smart card technology on a global basis.