Customer purchasing behavior has been significantly transformed since the accelerated adoption of FinTech solutions, known for their convenience, customer-centricity, and emphasis on UI/UX rather than the movement of funds. Technology and experience-focused solutions like PayPal, Venmo, Square, Stripe comprised the first generation, and nowadays—a benchmark—for the most convenient payments experience in every regard.
Retail/commerce has been affected the most by those solutions, which empowered and boosted the growth of SMEs, not to mention e-commerce as the greatest benefactor of FinTech advancements. Mobile-focused, minimalistic, and simple payments solutions have changed the perception of how a purchasing experience should be, forcing industries to adjust to changed expectations. Not only has FinTech challenged existing approaches, but it has also introduced ways for all stakeholders to win—the customers, retailers, financial institutions, etc.
Think With Google has identified certain ways businesses nowadays can connect with their customers in different ways, transforming the purchasing behavior powered by FinTech solutions.
Businesses can reach their customers wherever and whenever they are—thanks to mobile and app fever
FinTech has introduced a different way to speak to customers—to understand them, reach out to them through social media channels or any channel of a customer preference, and even accept payments through the means of social media.Businesses can speak to customers wherever they are at any moment—all thanks to the rate of mobile technology adoption, ubiquitous connectivity, and the growing use of social apps.
Having abetter understanding of how customers behave in their channels of preference also allows businesses to identify the right moment to intervene and develop a comprehensive strategy that works holistically across channels such as search, video, social, and display. This leads to the next important change that happens across industries enabled by their respective FinTech solutions.
Context matters
Nowadays, the context of the conversation between customers and brands is as important as ever. The relevance of the message is arguably the most significant factor predicting the success of the ‘operation.’ Simply being there in these moments isn’t enough, as Google puts it. Companies need to look at how people are searching—the questions they ask, the terms they use—and create ads and content that provide helpful answers.
The waysFinTech has contributed to the opportunity to be relevant to every customer without the need for a million customized solutions are with chatbots and chat commerce. Built into messaging apps, chatbots come as close to the customer as possible to being a personal assistant in any endeavor. They provide a relevant answer and allow users to complete a purchase in an instant. Messenger is an example of a solution that has grown into a platform for chatbots to connect brands with customers, find the exact product customers are looking for, and provide an opportunity to buy that product momentarily.
Simple, convenient payments methods for frictionless experience
Easing the way into payment will not do any good if the payment experience itself does not hit a benchmark. FinTech companies providing payments solutions, however, were able to match the needs and uncomplicate the payments experience as possible with some imaginative approaches. Authentication and security startups have also contributed to removing barriers to a successful online shopping experience with advanced, invisible working solutions.
More importantly, Google notes that the step from research to purchase should be a simple and seamless one. Therefore, customers should be given multiple ways to buy—whether that means driving them to the e-commerce site from a YouTube video or from a local inventory ad to a nearby store.
The variety of options improves a customer’s shopping experience, leading to a lower rate of abandoned carts and higher sales of a higher volume. With APIs being open on the left and right and extremely easy implementation of checkout options, there is no reason not to smoothen the last step in the online shopping journey.
Understand fragmented experience
Most importantly, today, businesses can and should measure every moment that matters. It’s no longer enough to simply measure online conversion. With mobile, the path to purchase is now fragmented, as the purchasing experience itself. As a result, companies need to measure results online, across devices, in apps, and even in stores. Data management and reporting solutions allow businesses to understand and correct their strategies, adjusting customer experience for better results.
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