Packaging vendors serve as manufacturers who handle procurement, distribution and often, customisation to match specific branding needs. They deal with customers on a regular basis, as they negotiate deals for packaging with their goal of managing the logistical sourcing of materials, ensuring businesses have the packaging needed to protect goods during transport.
The main problems start to arise for packing vendors when there’s payment friction between them and their customers, as mispayments can significantly impact the business and lead to huge financial losses. This guide will explore how packaging vendors can eliminate payment friction with their customers, helping to improve their supply chain and keep their business moving in the right direction with better budgeting. Continue reading to learn more.
Reducing Payment Friction
Offer Digital Wallets
Giving customers more options to pay for their packaging can be great in eliminating payment friction. You can include options for Apply Pay and Google Pay to give them a one-click checkout that will reduce cart abandonment and eliminate the need for manual card entry, which can be time consuming. Using payment orchestration platforms for all-in-one integration or direct API/plug-ins to support online and contactless payments is going to be the best solution, as it eases the burden of customers having to go through a long checkout process.
Support Local and B2B
For international clients, offer local payment methods and currencies to avoid conversion confusion, as when you don’t offer what they want you run the risk of them avoiding your business entirely. Your best solution is to use B2B-specific solutions like ACH or virtual card payments for faster B2B settlements, so you can streamline the process and reduce the chances of customer deterrence.
Buy Now, Pay Later
Providing flexible financing options to reduce the immediate financial burden on purchasing managers can be great at easing any mispayment issues. It can give clients a little bit longer to get together the finances needed to complete their purchase. There are now multiple platforms that can be used to allow customers to pay in installments over the course of weeks or months, such as Klarna and PayPal.
Guest Checkouts
Not every customer wants to create a permanent account, especially for one-off orders. Forcing a registration process can lead to checkout fatigue, where the customer abandons the purchase as they don’t want to fill out extra steps. By offering a guest checkout option, you lower the barrier to entry and allow customers to complete their transactions quickly. Having a frictionless experience also demonstrates that you value their time as much as their business.
Reduce Form Fields
Information overload is a major cause of payment friction, as it can take too long for customers to fill out. If your checkout page asks for unnecessary details, you increase the likelihood of manual entry errors or user frustration. Audit your payment forms to ensure you are only requesting essential data, such as shipping address and payment info. Auto-filling is now a great addition to websites, as it can further shave seconds off the process.
Recurring Payments
For businesses that require a steady supply of shipping boxes or protective materials, manual monthly ordering is an unnecessary chore. Implementing a recurring payment model or subscription service automates the billing process, so customers can pay for products or services without them even realising it coming out of their account. This ensures that you receive your funds on time, while your customers never have to worry about their packaging supply running dry due to a forgotten invoice.
Credit Insurance
Payment friction can also occur with the risk of non-payment. Trade credit insurance protects your business against the risk of a customer failing to pay their debt, which secures your receivables so you can confidently offer more competitive credit terms to your customer. This helps you to figure out if your bottom line is protected even if the customer encounters financial instability.
Final Thoughts
Eliminating payment frictions is very important no matter the industry. With packing businesses in particular, they rely on the supply chain to run as smoothly as possible so when there’s any payment friction it can completely stall operations. You need to ensure that all your processes are carefully selected, along with the right type of insurance and payment methods.