The new payments playbook

Written by Maria Parpou, Executive Vice President, Payment Gateway Services

As consumers we feel the constant drive to adopt new digital innovations. Take for example ChatGPT which launched in November and set record adoption rates by reaching 100 million active users in just two months. We’ve seen this focus on digital increase over the past decades in the payment space as well: new players come into the ecosystem and the opportunity to enrich the payment journey widens. 

The challenge behind digital by default

Digital by default has affected the entire commerce experience from discovery to fulfillment, where specific data elements like customer biometrics, loyalty programs, payment preferences, acceptance and optimization are now an integral part of the end-to-end payment journey.

If payment providers are going to win in this new digital ecosystem, they need to adopt a new playbook and move from payment execution to commerce facilitation, creating curated services which help merchants navigate the increase complexity of digital commerce.  

Time to get ‘phygital’

Like everything, the lines between physical and digital have blurred. Building a consistent customer journey across every touchpoint, whether digital or physical, is key to creating a satisfying phygital experience in this newly blurred world.

Unlock your data

One of the keys to growing successful customer loyalty through payments will be through unlocking the power of data. Behind each brand interaction is a breadth of data we can gather on the consumer and their preferences. Armed with these insights, merchants can offer consumers a more personalized experience where the commerce journey is centered on their preferences, driving increased conversion and heightened customer satisfaction. 

Network tokens supercharge your digital strategy

Enabling digital by default commerce journeys relies on the power of network tokenization which providers consumers a seamless, secure and fast checkout experience whether they are a returning or one-off customer.  

Creating your new playbook

In this new digital ecosystem, if payment providers are going to succeed, they need to step outside their traditional payment execution role and act as a partner in every step of the digital consumer’s purchasing journey.  

To learn more about winning in the new digital by default ecosystem, join our keynote at MPE Berlin, March 28 and catch our download of the event afterwards on our Gateway Unlocked podcast.