Each month, we’ll help you navigate the emerging trends and forecasts for card-not-present (CNP) merchants with (what we think) are the best pieces of advice from Verifi and across the web. We promise to keep this newsletter short and sweet so let’s get started with this month’s …
What impact do chargebacks have on the overall payments ecosystem and how can both merchants and Issuers effectively prevent and fight chargebacks without negatively impacting customer experience?
iStock_000048432246_SmallNo one can deny the amount of damage that chargebacks can do to a business. From excessive fines and fees to the potential loss of processing privileges, chargebacks threaten CNP merchants from a number of angles. But merchants don’t suffer alone; Issuers are at risk too. Cardholder disputes drain resources and time and significantly increase operational costs. So how do both merchants and Issuers protect their bottom line while preserving an outstanding customer experience? By working together. Another hot topic for both merchants and Issuers alike is the optimization of omni-channel to retain current customers and attract new ones. This requires the perfect combination of technology, data and fraud protection to ensure consistency and security across all channels. Omni-channel will open doors to new opportunities for merchants and Issuers who can harness its power but both players should remember to master the basics when it comes to payments and ensure that payments are protected from end to end.

EVERYONE WINS WHEN MERCHANTS & ISSUERS COLLABORATE
Business Teamwork
Chargebacks are a $40 billion problem for merchants and a big problem for Issuers, who rely on excellent customer service to retain current customers and attract new ones. In an already difficult business climate, chargebacks can significantly – and detrimentally – impact an Issuer’s bottom line. By collaborating directly with merchants, Issuers have the opportunity to conserve valuable resources, reduce operational cost and maintain exceptional customer service that keeps profits growing.

OMNI-CHANNEL ISN’T JUST FOR MERCHANTS
Mobile banking and finance conceptOmni-channel is changing the game for both merchants and Issuers and both must adapt their processes to meet customers at various channels in which they interact with brands. Many Issuers are already ramping up mobile efforts as a stepping stone to a larger omni-channel strategy. Issuers need to take advantage of the different channels to pursue new customers and retain existing ones.

MERCHANTS: DO YOUR HOMEWORK—GET OMNI-READY
NFC - Near field communicationLast month, we discussed the blurring of online/offline payments – a trend that is not slowing anytime soon. The collision of card-present (CP) and card-not-present (CNP) worlds is the result of market forces, including the upcoming EMV migration as well as emerging technologies like NFC and mobile wallets. These events and technologies will continue to unfold, having big impacts on mobile commerce and fraud and risk mitigation and security as a whole.
Mobile commerce is a big focus for 2015, prompting merchants to create a solid channel strategy; however, fraud does not discriminate between channels or technologies.  Whether through in-house resources or by employing the help of a third-party vendor, merchants need to focus on protecting payments from end to end and across every channel:


TOTAL CHARGEBACK MANAGEMENT
Point A to Point B with Stratight Line
Chargebacks affect everyone in the payment ecosystem. Merchants get slammed with fines and fees, Issuers carry the burden of increased operational costs and drained resources and – in the long run – consumers pay more to make up for the losses from fraud. Total chargeback management helps both merchants and issuers resolve disputes on the front-end, avoiding costly chargebacks. Since some chargebacks are unavoidable, chargeback representment gives merchants the opportunity to recover revenue that would have otherwise been lost.
Get real about the serious chargeback problem—it’s costing you $40 billion:

PARTING WORDS
Chargebacks are the universal enemy to the payments world. They cost merchants and Issuers time and money and negatively impact the consumer experience. As CP and CNP commerce continues to merge and emerging technologies open up new vulnerabilities, both merchants and Issuers need a practical, cost-effective way to fight this nuisance – one that involves working jointly to combat the problem.
Omni-channel has extensive benefits for merchants and Issuers who have a solid strategy in place. Merchants also need to focus on fraud prevention that spans the entire transaction lifecycle, which means aggregating customer data from all channels to identify both good and bad trends. Issuers need to adapt to omni-channel in the same way their customers are adapting. The end game remains the same: to get people to respond; however, the way in which Issuers accomplish this will be based on deep reporting and analysis of customer and prospect segments and the adoption of an omni-channel strategy that is aligned with those findings.
Looking for a fraud and risk mitigation strategy that protects payments without inhibiting sales? Verifi’s Global Payment Gateway, Intelligence® Suite, Cardholder Dispute Resolution Network™ (CDRN) and Chargeback Representment (CBR) seamlessly combine (without IT hassles) to form a processor agnostic “Super Gateway” that protects your payments from start to finish while ensuring good sales flow through. The “Super Gateway” provides omni-channel, end-to-end payments protection with customizable fraud tools and Total Chargeback Management that can lower your chargeback losses by up to 65%*.
What are your thoughts? Ping us on twitter (@verifi) with #paymentstips and let us know what you think.
 

2014 was a banner year for emerging mobile technologies: Apple Pay made its debut and is now accepted at roughly 200,000 retail locations in the U.S.andGoogle Wallet continues to attract users with various promotions and offers.
However – as most merchants expect – with great opportunity comes great risk and mobile is no different. There are a variety of tools at your disposal to prevent mobile fraud and mitigate mobile risk. Regardless of the solutions you employ to boost mobile payment protection, you should start with the basics to keep consumers happy:

  • Utilize identity verification – one of the greatest risks in mobile as viewed by merchants is identity theft, which can be mitigated by simple steps like device verification or digital fingerprinting
  • Stay current – make sure your fraud prevention tools are active, updated and properly calibrated and make sure you are always compliant with regulatory requirements

Boost consumer confidence – if your site is secure, let people know by posting a secure logo or message

With the growing popularity of NFC, the upcoming liability shift in EMV and other emerging technologies and fraud, how do I ensure that payment processing remains safe, secure and agile?
The release of Apple Pay in 2014 has put NFC technology on the map. Additionally, the migration to EMV standards are pushing merchants to opt for readers that enable the NFC technology, prompting wider adoption. Due to the types of security and authentication measures involved in NFC, these transactions are garnering card-present interchange rates, blurring the lines between online and offline transactions. As the technology – and consumer behavior – continues to shift, merchants need to ensure their payment processing allows them to provide a top-notch customer experience while protecting payments and remaining competitive.
This month, we searched for insight from the experts on current NFC payments trends, the related impacts of EMV and how merchants can remain agile and process safely to best protect payments and boost profits.
Here is what several sources are saying:

  • Adopt a mobile wallet strategy. Given the hype around proximity mobile payments, retailers should be swift in adopting a way to reach consumers anytime and any place. In addition to seamless payments for customers, mobile wallets can reduce operating costs for merchants by preventing more fraud and allowing them to qualify for lower interchange rates on these transactions. Additionally, loyalty and promotional opportunities for merchants that optimize big data and omni-channel have the potential to significantly boost revenues.
  • Believe the stats. Apple Pay has caused quite the ripple effect in payments. NFC has been around for years but Apple Pay – with help from the EMV migration, which encourages NFC-enabled readers – has catapulted the technology to the forefront of the industry. com offers some stats to digest:
    • 1 million cards registered with Apple Pay within 3 days of its launch
    • Verifone’s sales topped $1.9 billion in the last fiscal year as a result of Apple Pay pushing a new wave of POS upgrades to support NFC
    • Merchants that opt to use CurrentC will have to wait approximately 61-151 Days, if it meets its predicted launch date of March 2015.
  • Navigate the Divide. Visa and MasterCard are still pondering how to handle the imminent blurring of card-present and card-not-present commerce, specifically as it relates to interchange rates. According to Ralph Dangelmaier, CEO, BlueSnap
  • commenting for cardnotpresent.com, card brands are treading carefully to avoid losing ground to Merchant Customer Exchange or the anti-credit card camp (CurrentC) that is fighting for dominance in the payments industry. As part of this ecosystem, merchants must remain agile in figuring out how to navigate this somewhat shaky chasm.
  • Focus on seamless and safe transactions. The line between card-present (CP) and card-not-present (CNP) continues to blur with mobile payments. Currently, mobile transactions are classified as card-not-present but as technology like NFC enables them to become as – or more – secure than CP transactions, there may be a change in interchange treatment. NFC is quickly becoming the de facto method for mobile payments and, as merchants gear up for EMV and adopt NFC-enabled terminals, its popularity will continue to skyrocket. Verifi recommends that merchant re-evaluate their needs based on the unique challenges of 2015, directing efforts at creating a seamless and secure customer experience that prevents fraud and protects payments across channels and card brands along every step of the transaction lifecycle.

 
To skillfully navigate the dynamic payments landscape, merchants will need to stay on top of NFC payments trends, the related impacts of EMV and how to remain competitive by providing exceptional, seamless customer experience. Main points of focus include:

  • Adopting a mobile wallet strategy – NFC and mobile will surely continue to revolutionize the payments ecosystem. Smart merchants will adopt a mobile wallet strategy that allows them to efficiently protect payments and boost revenue.
  • Believing the stats – The Apple Pay adoption numbers speak volumes about what merchants can expect for the future of NFC. Embracing this technology and the security benefits it brings early on can be beneficial for merchants.
  • Navigating the divide – Pay attention to the blurring lines between CP and CNP commerce and adjust your security, fraud prevention and payment processing tools accordingly.
  • Focusing on seamless and safe transactions – the key will be balancing security optimization with a streamlined payment experience for customers with emphasis on ease-of-use.

Verifi can help you manage your current and future payment processing needs with our Super Gateway, which combines the payments protection power of the Global Payment Gateway, Intelligence Suite®, Cardholder Dispute Resolution Network (CDRN™) and Chargeback Representment (CBR), to form a processor agnostic platform with the flexibility to manage all of your current and future needs. The “Super Gateway” provides omni-channel, end-to-end payments protection with customizable fraud tools, chargeback prevention that stops up to 40% or more of your chargebacks, chargeback representment that recovers up to 50% of revenue lost to chargebacks and feedback loops to help you manage your front-end fraud prevention while protecting payments and boosting profits. Contact us to find out how to secure your payments from end-to-end while maintaining a superior customer experience. What are your thoughts? Ping us on twitter (@verifi) with #paymentstips and let us know what you think.

Each month, we’ll help you navigate the emerging trends and forecasts for card-not-present (CNP) merchants with (what we think) are the best pieces of advice from Verifi and across the web. We promise to keep this newsletter short and sweet so let’s get started with this month’s …
Q> How is NFC, EMV and other alternative and emerging technologies impacting the payments ecosystem and how can I ensure that my business can continue to process payments safely and securely?
 A> NFC is here to stay. Apple Pay has all but solidified is present – and popularity – as a payment method, and a secure one at that. Given the security standard that NFC has set – one that also happens to be EMV-compliant – what effects will this have on merchants from an interchange perspective? As the CP and CNP lines continue to blur, merchants will need to reevaluate their payment processing from a security and efficiency standpoint to make certain transactions remain safe from end to end without adding obstacles to the process. Merchants should do their homework and properly plan for channel convergence to protect data, fight emerging fraud and stay up-to-date with payments standards like EMV. Staying one step ahead of the game will be key this year.
BRACE YOURSELVES, INCREASED CNP FRAUD IS COMING
Not to be a broken record, but CNP is slated to dramatically rise in the next several years – Merchants take note. As EMV rolls out in the U.S., CNP fraud is predicted to
more than double by 2018, from $2.8 billion to over $6.3 billion.[1] Merchants should direct their efforts toward strengthening their fraud and risk management strategies as the EMV rollout continues to compound an already-alarming problem.
To effectively combat this increased fraud, merchants should take steps to protect every part of the transaction lifecycle and across all channels:

  • Get schooled by Goldilocks and score ‘just right’ fraud prevention
  • Maintain a secure, fraud-free mobile experience
  • Know which tools to use for mobile fraud prevention
  • Do you know who you’re doing business with? Protect CNP revenue without sacrificing customer experience

WHAT’S NFC GOT TO DO WITH IT?
Near-Field-Communication or NFC payments have swept the payments world this past year. From the release of Apple Pay in 2014 to preparation for the shift to EMV, NFC continues to gain momentum with both merchants and consumers, and was responsible for almost $20 billion in sales in 2014.
The EMV migration to the chip-based card will catapult NFC since many merchants in the U.S. will be replacing their readers and many of the replacement will support NFC. That’s because security-wise, NFC is top-notch. In NFC-based mobile payment transactions, there is a secure element – protected by a unique digital signature – that has all the authorization power and is tamper-proof.
The proliferation of NFC and mobile will also have an impact on loyalty programs and how purchasing and retention marketing will evolve. According to retail TouchPoints, there are three key elements that will boost loyalty, and these are – coincidentally – the same three tents upon which Apple Pay is based:

  • painless enrollment
  • frictionless participation
  • effortless security

NAVIGATING THE BLURRED LINES OF CP AND CNP TRANSACTIONS
According to Aite Group, the blurring of CNP and card present will be one of the top trends for 2015. The fact of the matter is the online/offline payments divide is melting away.
The prevalent notion is that, as NFC grows, we’ll see an emerging new category of interchange. That is, while mobile is technically a form of CNP transaction, NFC technology used in mobile payments utilizes the same secure element that garners card-present rates as the POS today and may merit CP rates.
We’ve already seen this with Apple Pay the transactions of which are viewed as “card present” and carry a lower discount rate than their CNP counterparts. Additionally, Apple was able to reduce the card present rate 15 to 25 basis points.
More will be revealed as the migration toward EMV continues and the liability shift occurs in October. Many of the card readers that merchants are ordering to comply with the EMV standard are NFC-enabled, allowing for wider adoption of the technology and a payment frontrunner.
Merchants should do their research on NFC technology, its implications with EMV and the potential impacts to channel interchange rates. Employing the help of a third-party vendor can be helpful when trying to maintain safe, secure and streamlined payment processing across the entire transaction lifecycle. 
TOO BIG FOR YOUR BREACHES?
The number of data breaches in 2014 was staggering, hitting a record total of 783.  The sheer size of the retailers attacked as well as the financial ramifications of these breaches should strike fear into all merchants – card-present or not.
Thankfully, tools like tokenization and P2P Encryption can put a stop to the madness. By using encryption, merchants can protect data from the very beginning and throughout the entire transaction lifecycle. Tokenization returns a unique “token” to the merchant in place of the actual card information, allowing for authorization without exposing the actual credit card number.
 

PARTING WORDS
As Apple Pay paves the way for streamlined NFC payments, the card brands are pondering how to treat these types of transactions moving forward. Currently, these transactions are eligible for lower interchange rates, due largely to their approach toward authentication and security and the use of biomentrics and geolocation for authentication and tokenizing the Device Account Number. As this technology continues to shape payments security and transaction authentication, card brands are anticipating new and different levels of charges.
NFC, emerging payments technologies and migration toward EMV will continue to influence the payments ecosystem – from a security standpoint and in terms of fraud prevention – and merchants should prepare for how the blurred lines of CP and CNP commerce will affect their business. Streamlining omni-channel payments while maintaining a safe, secure experience from beginning to end of the transaction lifecycle is a tall order for merchants, particularly those who may be stretched thin in the IT department. Remaining agile in security and fraud prevention will be essential to staying ahead of the curve in 2015 . for merchants who want to protect payments and boost profits as the landscape continues to evolve.
Re-evaluating your needs for the unique challenges of 2015?
Verifi’s Global Payment Gateway, Intelligence® Suite, Cardholder Dispute Resolution Network (CDRN™) and Chargeback Representment (CBR) combine to form a processor agnostic platform with the flexibility to manage all of your current and future needs. The “Super Gateway” provides omni-channel, end-to-end payments protection with customizable fraud tools, chargeback protection and prevention that stops up to 40% or more of your chargebacks, chargeback representment that recovers up to 50% of revenue lost to chargebacks and feedback loops to help you manage your front-end fraud prevention while protecting payments and boosting profits.
What are your thoughts? Ping us on twitter (@verifi) with #paymentstips and let us know what you think.
[1] Aite 20140630-Merchants-and-Cybercriminals-Duke-It-Out-Note-pdf_5983_18210_10125)10241-3.pdf

How can I optimize the mobile channel to streamline the payments process for customers while maintaining security and beating fraud?

It’s no secret that mobile is gaining momentum: According to IBM Digital Analytics Benchmark, mobile was responsible for 52.1% of traffic to e-commerce sites on Thanksgiving Day, a 22% increase over last year. From Apple Pay – which allows users to pay for purchases with a swipe of their smartphone – to location-based coupons and offers, mobile is catering to consumers’ desire for ease of use. While mobile will help to connect savvy shoppers with good deals and streamline both online and in-store payments, some are still skittish about the security implications. How can merchants take advantage of the mobile push while maintaining a secure, fraud-free experience? We dug deep to find the top tips from experts.

Here is what several sources are saying:

  • Mobile will quickly become the norm. Consumers are taking to the channel quickly and the push will be toward more targeted and personalized offers and experiences for shoppers. Near Field Communication (NFC) technology (think Apple Pay) is streamlining in-store payments without sacrificing security. NFC allows consumers to authenticate payments with a PIN code, securing sensitive data. Apple Pay in particular uses tokenization to replace the actual credit card number with a special token to protect the sensitive data. Google posits that a PayPal of the mobile space may come about as a result of the channel’s popularity.
  • According to SeeWhy, 5% of mobile users bail before buying due to unnecessary friction.Marketing Land says the key is making mobile payments quick and easy:
    • Store (and pre-fill when possible) returning users’ information
    • Put the spotlight on security with visible icons and copy to reassure customers that their data is safe
    • Post progress trackers so customers know how many steps are left in the buying process
    • Optimize forms for mobile – make sure text boxes are big enough for people to enter their information easily and use larger buttons so clicking through is a cinch.
  • Don’t be tempted to segregate the mobile experience from the in-store experience; as it turns out, they can go very well together. As Mobile Commerce Daily points out, many shoppers use their mobile phones in-store to help them make a purchasing decision via online reviews, peer opinions and any other information available at their fingertips. Retailers should focus on creating a mobile experience that pushes in-store shoppers from the “assess” phase to an actual purchase.
  • Mobile payments are accepted by more retailers than ever but these merchants are relying on fewer fraud solutions in the mobile channel. This should raise red flags. Independent of what retailers perceive the threats to be in the mobile channel, the fact is that plenty exist and more are emerging every day. Verifi lists a number of tools that merchants can employ to bolster security in mobile payments, protecting customers, payments and their bottom line.

Mobile is the name of the 2015 commerce game and forecasts predict m-commerce revenue to be at 50% of the U.S. digital commerce revenue by 2017.[1]Merchants should optimize the mobile experience not only for online purchasing but also for in-store decision-making:

  • Understand and cater to your customers’ needs along every step of the assessment and purchasing process
  • If you have the capabilities to accept NFC payments like Apple Pay, let people know by posting it on your website or on in-store signage
  • Get creative – in-store mobile maps or games can engage consumers while helping them find exactly what they’re looking for

Verifi can help you streamline omni-channel payments, fight fraud and secure your customers’ data with our Global Payment Gatewayand Intelligence Suite® solutions. What are your thoughts? Ping us on twitter (@verifi) with #paymentstips and let us know what you think.

Balancing Omnichannel opportunity and risk requires merchants to consider both the advantages and disadvantages.

Despite concerns about web-influenced customers going to stores to see goods before buying them online from the retailer with the cheapest price, studies show that retailers with cohesive cross-channel strategies in place boost sales. Forrester reports that cross-channel transactions are set to reach $1.4 trillion this year and to hit $1.8 trillion by 2018, due largely to the consumers using smartphones for product research before they buy in-store. Omnichannel has other benefits, too, like helping with market data collection and allowing for social media sharing.
While merchants are competing to quickly stop  omnichannel fraud,  the majority of merchants are still nervous about the blurring of card-present and card-not-present transactions. According to a Worldpay study, Fragmentation of Fraud, 77% of merchants believe their multichannel approach to retail makes fraud prevention harder and 76% actually say it makes them more open to fraud attacks. The majority believe that increasing number of markets, sales channels and payment methods make it harder to prevent fraud.
There are possible vulnerabilities in cross-channel, or omnichannel, commerce. If not careful, merchants could compound their risk by having both online and brick-and-mortar stores.  For example, if customers can buy things online, initiate chargebacks, and then return those things to brick-and-mortar stores for a refund, chargeback fraud might double in cost.  Then there are increased mobile channel risks. Yet, if merchants react to these fear with excessive front-end security measures they might scare away honest customers.
Honest consumers think less of others’ fraud and more of their customer experience when shopping online or in-store. As the digital and physical worlds continue to collide and converge, there are steps merchants can take to mitigate omnichannel risks without hurting conversions. The key is implementing intelligent tools and solutions that span across channels that are user friendly and can be tested and toggled to remain agile as well as adaptive to emerging threats.

Don’t let increased fraud spoil the fun

The notion of digital and physical commerce convergence is not new. Dee Hock, founder and former CEO of Visa predicted digital currency in 1950. With various forms of payment options on the internet what he said has come to pass. We remain, however, far away from an entirely digital economy. McKinsey & Company reports that over 80 percent of U.S. retail sales will still occur within brick and mortar stores in 2020.
Nevertheless Americans are geared toward m-commerce – over 60% of Americans own a smartphone and 80% of those people use it to shop. Nielsen says 65% of tablet shoppers research product information and, even if they buy in store, 66% of smartphone shoppers look up prices while in retail showrooms. They also use mobile devices to look up product reviews and, sometimes, to buy.
The ease of use that comes with mobile shopping has empowered consumers to make purchasing decisions on their own terms and in their own time. But we cannot forget growth of mobile may lead to more troubles fighting mobile fraud.  Still, merchants have the ability to utilize new technologies in order to fight fraud and improve omni-channel business.

These days, better mobile commerce optimization means a  better customer experience.  This translates to more customers shopping across channels. Phone screens are growing and tablets are increasingly common.
Omnichannel business are optimizing sites for mobile so that customers have a seamless experience from computer to mobile to store. As phone screens grow, mobile wallets make for easy payment and the number of tablets increase, Goldman Sachs predicts that mobile sales will continue to soar, both via smartphones and tablets:

  • In 2015, $95 billion in sales will happen from smartphones (31.9% of mobile sales) and $203 on tablets (68.1% of mobile sales)
  • In 2016, $123 billion in sales will happen from smartphones (29.6% of mobile sales) and $292 on tablets (70.4% of mobile sales)
  • In 2017, $147 billion in sales will happen from smartphones (28.5% of mobile sales) and $369 on tablets (71.5% of mobile sales)
  • In 2018, $173 billion in sales will happen from smartphones (27.6% of mobile sales) and $453 on tablets (72.4% of mobile sales)

Given mobile devices’ present benefits and future promises, it is no wonder that mobile payments are growing. Nevertheless, the mobile channel opens up another channel for fraudsters to hack. While built-in mobile fraud prevention tools like geolocation may lessen this risk in some ways, malware, vulnerabilities in NFC, and the like present new challenges.

What are the e-commerce predictions for 2015 and how can I be best prepared to maximize profits and minimize risk?

2015 is here and it’s no surprise to retailers that mobile is the next hot thing in e-commerce. E-commerce – and m-commerce in particular – are slated to continue their steep growth. While this is great news for retailers, it also means there will be increased risk of fraud and cybercrime via these channels. Merchants should be prudent as they plan their omni-channel strategy for the year and ensure that they employ a comprehensive, agile fraud and risk prevention strategy that can stay one step ahead of criminals.
The New Year is upon us and the experts have forecasted the trends for the coming year in commerce. Big surprise (not!) – mobile is taking off and retailers should pay attention if they want to remain competitive. According to Gartner, there are some major things to keep an eye on in the years ahead:

  • Mobile digital assistants will be exclusively performing over $2 billion in online shopping
  • Mobile commerce revenue will soar to 50 percent of the U.S. digital commerce revenue by 2017, thanks to mobile engagement
  • Traditional product and service advantages are no longer as relevant and customer experience has been deemed the new “competitive battlefield”

Additionally, m-commerce sales are predicted to jump 45.9% to $298 billion in 2015(from $204 billion in 2014), according to Goldman Sachs. By 2016, they will increase 39.1% to $415 billion. Retailers – take note – and keep in mind the shift toward mobile when planning omni-channel strategy this year.

No one likes card declines. For customers, it often results in shock, embarrassment and anger. For merchants, it results in valuable lost sales, decreased lifetime value and lowered conversions. So what can merchants do to insulate themselves against erroneous card declines during the high volume holiday season and optimize authorizations? We scoured the internet for the top insights.

 

Here’s what several experts say:

  • Omni-channel is big this holiday season. Consumers are enjoying the increased ease with which they can complete holiday shopping online – whether on a smartphone, tablet, desktop or laptop. What consumers don’t enjoy is seeing their card erroneously and unexpectedly declined on a legitimate transaction. These declines have quantifiable consequences for merchants and especially Omni-channel retailers: blocked purchases cost merchants $40 billion every year. 
  • Card declines can have a lasting impact on consumer sentiment and loyalty to retailers. According to TrustInsight, 83% of people surveyed reported feeling frustrated or upset after a credit card decline. These sentiments can be enough to push consumers to shop elsewhere, decreasing customer lifetime value.
  • MasterCard also cautions about the overall cost of card declines as legitimate transactions get caught in the security web meant to stop true fraud.  It suggests asking the question “at what cost” when establishing thresholds between allowable legitimate consumer declines and the associated financial impact from false positive declines.
  • Card declines and churn are especially harmful for recurring billing merchants. Properly managing “card declined by processor” declines can decrease churn, increase authorization and boost profits. Verifi has some tips for recurring billing companies to recover revenue that they might otherwise have lost – a helpful guide for the peak selling season.

 

Merchants experience the financial ramifications of declines on a very real level – a level that is amplified during the holidays when volume is at an all-year high.

  • Consider the cost of declines and measure your business’ threshold for false positives.
  • Also ask yourself how much business you’re willing to lose to unnecessary card declines that can be salvaged.
  • Take advantage of best practices merchants can implement to decrease erroneous or unnecessary declines, which can help to boost conversions and profits this holiday season.

 
Verifi can help now and through the holidays with our award-winning Cardholder Dispute Resolution Network™ and authorization-boosting Decline Salvage services. What are your thoughts? Ping us on twitter (@verifi) with #paymentstips and let us know what you think.