Look back at your chargeback history and fraud related trends. Are there any common themes? Is fraud concentrated in certain geographic areas, at certain times of the year or for certain types of transactions? Take note of the types of purchases, buyers, payments, geographies, etc. where you may see higher occurrences of fraud and create a plan to take extra precautions.
Big ticket items such as automobiles and boats are especially prone to fraud, according to the Better Business Bureau. So, marketplaces must pay close attention to who they are doing business with. Watch out (and advise your sellers) to watch out for suspicious behavior, such as last-minute purchases or bookings, inconsistent contact information and addresses, unnecessary urgency, or other red flag behavior.
- Save (and Make) More Money
Every year, we look for ways to maximize sales and minimize unnecessary expenses. Make 2019 the year you do both.
It’s a given that the easier you make a task, the more likely it will be to complete. When a familiar payment method isn’t available or convenient (e.g. a customer must type in their credit card number), many merchants lose the sale. Find out what types of payments your customers prefer to help facilitate payments and conversion.
And while you’re at it, convert expense generators into money-makers.
Many companies are learning that payments are not just a necessary business operation, but can be monetized. By building payments into a service you provide to customers and sharing the risk and rewards with a payment partner, you can convert payments from an expense to a revenue.
- Create Meaningful Relationships
You can’t build a strong relationship with anyone unless you truly know who they are as person. Thus, you can never know too much about your customer.
One of the most crucial ways you can get up close and personal with your customers is learning how they like to pay. Most of us know that the use of cash continues to decline, but did you know that bank transfers and alternative payment methods are expected to exceed credit and debit card payments in the global marketplace?
As noted in The Paypers, offering local payment choices and local currency pricing can greatly improve customer satisfaction and loyalty. Try surveying your customers to learn more about their payment preferences and what you can do to make checkout easier.
Marketplace companies should never leave their customers high and dry. Invest in stellar customer service to trouble shoot any issues.