Payment systems

The absence of their favorite payment method might push customer to abandon a transaction at the last moment. Therefore, merchants should be very wary in selecting the portfolio of payment methods offered.

According to the ECC Payment Study Vol. 21, 40 percent of consumers stop shopping if the preferred payment method is not offered. It is therefore essential for online retailers to know the payment preferences of their customer target group. Meanwhile, consumers in e-commerce often have a broad overview of current payment methods. On average, every consumer has already used 6.2 different payment methods.

Germany, Austria, Switzerland, France, Great Britain, Czech Republic - Where are the differences?

German consumers prefer to pay through invoice purchase, bank transfer, e-wallet, credit cards, on delivery or charge debit cards. In Austria, invoice purchase is also particularly popular. Most consumers prefer to pay after delivery. The purchase by credit card is also common. Swiss people also buy mainly on invoice. Unlike Austria, however, the credit card usage is significantly lower. If only prepayment is offered as a payment method at checkout, most customers will cancel the purchase. In France, credit card payments are the most widely used method of payment. As an alternative, PayPal is also quite popular. The payment security for mail order is relatively high, as advance payment is common. In the United Kingdom, the market focuses on three payment methods: credit card, debit card and PayPal. Similarly, credit cards dominate the market in Czech Republic. Mobile payment via tablet or smartphone come in at a close second. Bank transfers and other payment methods occupy a small market share.