New research shows that four in five consumers would spend more online if offered an easier and more secure way to pay.
The survey from Javelin Strategy & Research and PaymentOne also revealed something service providers can feel bullish about: Nearly four in five believe direct carrier-billed mobile payments are more secure than using credit and debit cards for online digital purchases. And that has the potential to result in big spending — online merchants, the study says, could add annual revenue of almost $110 billion simply by offering an alternative to credit-card payments at checkout.
The Online Payment Poll showed that consumers have serious concerns about the safety and privacy of using credit or debit cards for online transactions. More than half surveyed admitted to abandoning online purchases at checkout because of these concerns, confirming a huge loss in potential revenue for online merchants.
Nearly six in 10 consumers are more likely to visit and buy from sites that offer “no-credit-card-required" payment options, the survey revealed. And digital merchants could realize incremental average monthly revenue of $89 per consumer simply by increasing the available payment choices.
“If digital merchants simply offered consumers an alternative way to pay, such as mobile carrier-based payments, 79 percent of decisive consumers indicated they would spend more, driving significant new incremental revenue from subscriptions, transactions and purchases," said Phil Blank, managing director at Javelin Strategy & Research. "With an estimated $110 billion in new revenue for digital merchants being left on the table each year in the U.S. alone, this 'commerce gap' represents a massive untapped opportunity."
Ninety-five percent of survey respondents said they had mobile phones, but only about one in three has used them to make a payment. The 2011 Online Payment Poll finds strong interest for using a mobile phone for payments beyond subscriptions, service bills and mobile apps. Among consumers who have used their mobile devices to make payments, nearly one in four has purchased digital entertainment; one in three purchased entertainment tickets; and approximately one in four purchased travel and apparel.
