Payment Revolution: How Will It Change The Customer Journey?

The Covid-19 pandemic fast-tracked growth in the fintech space as the need for digital payments soared. By the end of 2022, the total transaction value in the Digital Payments segment is projected to reach US$8.49tn. And the industry continues to change and snowball.

Payments are increasingly able to connect people and their devices across both physical and digital worlds and marketplaces. AI-based systems are automating payment processes. Cryptocurrency is being seriously investigated as a means of payment. Cloud computing is making payments paperless. Machine learning and AI are revolutionizing the cybersecurity and fraud detection spaces. These and other technological advances in the payments industry collectively make up the payment revolution: a wide-reaching set of changes to how we conduct our transactions these days.

What Is the Payment Revolution?

The concept of payment revolution refers to a technology-led payment system with innovative features and tools meant to streamline financial operations.

As digital transformation is completely reshaping the world of eCommerce, SaaS and software businesses need to invest in value-added payment processing services with the ability to ensure the expected level of convenience, ease of use, and security.

Why Payment Processing Matters for SaaS Developers

Consumers have increasingly high expectations when paying for goods and services. Big-tech companies like Amazon and Uber have led the way in creating seamless, easy payment processing, and now customers are demanding it from their other businesses, too. Customers want to pay and get paid anywhere, anytime, and as quickly as possible. For SaaS developers, perfecting the payment process is vital for customer satisfaction and competition in their industries. Not only are cutting-edge payments a competitive advantage, but they have the power to turn your business into a global leader.

Payments as Part of the Customer Journey

The customer journey is the path the customer takes, from discovering your product to purchasing, receiving, and using it.

Have a look at the five stages of the customer journey:
1 ‒ Awareness: The customer discovers the product.
2 ‒ Consideration: The customer researches the product.
3 ‒ Purchase: The customer buys the product.
4 ‒ Retention: The customer receives and uses the product/service.
5 ‒ Advocacy: The customer becomes a loyal user and spreads the word to others.

Each stage of the customer journey is evolving significantly. In the not-so-distant past, we would have become aware of a product through word of mouth, radio, television, or print advertisements. We also would have had far fewer avenues for research. When purchasing, we would visit a brick-and-mortar store and pay for a product via cash or credit card. We would take it home to test and tell others about it – in person – if we liked it.

Now, a customer could become aware of a product via social media, research it through reviews and blogs, purchase it online, receive the product digitally, and share the experience through social media and online reviews to people they don’t even know!

While the payments stage of this journey is at the tail end of the process, it’s perhaps the most important because it’s where customers seal the deal or abandon their cart, leaving you to wonder why.

Integrated, Seamless, Frictionless Purchases

One of the significant trends of the payment revolution is integrated payments. Embedded payments are woven into other processes, so making a purchase automatically includes the payment within this path. From the user’s perspective, the payments are invisible, as they don’t have to think about it. The payment just happens as a part of their interaction.

As a business, payments should be embedded in your existing software and integrated with all the critical software your business uses. Payments should be part of one unified system, feel seamless, integrated into daily life, and require little to no contact with banks. This gives successful businesses the edge - in short, an easy, frictionless payment process that is still secure.

8 Innovative Payment Tools To Keep Track Of

Technological advances and competition drive innovation in payment processing services as they always have but at a much faster pace. These are an essential part of the payment revolution. If you don’t want your business to get left behind, check out some tools and trends we’ve put together. Keeping payment services a key priority will help you meet customer demands and stay ahead of the curve.

Learn more about innovative payment tools and trends on PayPro Global's Blog.