3 Big Ideas From the PYMNTS Visa SMBTV Series

In the digital marketplace, the effortless nature of eCommerce transactions masks a complex network of systems designed to ensure a smooth customer experience. While consumers enjoy a seamless process — from receiving notifications about products to completing purchases with a few clicks — this simplicity is the result of advanced technologies and meticulous back-end operations.

As Visa’s Sara Craven highlights, achieving this level of efficiency requires intricate mechanisms that support every transaction from authentication to settlement, illustrating the sophistication involved in making eCommerce appear so effortless.

Small businesses must excel in customer experience by offering diverse payment options and using data effectively, while also guarding against sophisticated fraud. Visa’s James Mirfin highlights these businesses, often overlooked in fraud prevention, are prime targets due to limited resources, necessitating strong fraud detection and security measures.

Each of the three points below comes from a different episode of the PYMNTS Visa SMBTV Series, all hosted by PYMNTS CEO Karen Webster.

The Complexity Behind Seamless eCommerce Transactions

The seemingly effortless nature of eCommerce transactions often feels like magic to consumers. Imagine a lunch with friends where a notification alerts someone that a desired item is available. A few clicks later, the item is in their cart, paid for, and en route, all without a hitch.

During her appearance in the episode, “Visa: Behind-the-Scenes Collaboration Needed to Create eCommerce ‘Magic’ for Small Businesses,” Craven, general manager of Visa’s Authorize.net and Verifi, noted that while this experience feels “very natural,” the process involves intricate behind-the-scenes operations.

Beneath the surface, every transaction involves a complex network of systems. From authentication to settlement, each step is critical for ensuring a secure and efficient transaction. Craven’s insights reveal that the smooth user experience is the result of advanced technology working seamlessly in the background. The sophistication of this technology underscores the effort required to make eCommerce appear straightforward.

Leveraging Data and Payment Options for Small Business Success

For small businesses, offering a top-notch customer experience is key to converting casual shoppers into loyal buyers. Alex Burgin, vice president at Authorize.net, stressed the importance of using data and providing multiple payment options to achieve this. Customers expect convenience and flexibility, which includes a range of payment methods from credit cards to digital wallets.

In the episode, “Simplicity Defines the Small Business Online Payments Playbook,” Burgin said, “wherever people shop, they crave convenience. They may want to pay online, in-person or over the phone. They have preferences for what payment types they want to use. Offering multiple payment options is one of the best ways to ensure a positive client experience.”

Integrating a seamless payment experience involves more than just providing multiple payment options. It includes leveraging data to personalize interactions and anticipate customer needs. By analyzing transaction data and customer behavior, small businesses can customize their services and marketing, improving the overall customer experience. This approach increases the chances of repeat business and long-term loyalty, helping small businesses stand out in the competitive eCommerce market.

Small Businesses: The Overlooked Targets of Fraud

Small businesses are increasingly targeted by fraudsters, despite often being overlooked compared to large enterprises.

In “Small Businesses Confront Card Fraud Vulnerabilities,” Mirfin, Visa’s senior vice president and global head of Risk and Identity Solutions, said small businesses are particularly vulnerable due to their limited resources and focus on core activities rather than fraud prevention. This vulnerability creates significant opportunities for fraudsters to exploit online storefronts and customer interaction points.

Fraudsters employ stolen card credentials, synthetic identities and advanced technologies to infiltrate these systems. Mirfin said tools like Authorize.net use risk-based approaches to detect and block fraudulent activities, such as mismatched billing addresses and repeated failed transactions. However, the evolving tactics of fraudsters, including sophisticated phishing schemes, pose ongoing risks. Small businesses must adopt comprehensive fraud prevention strategies and leverage advanced tools to protect against these threats and maintain a secure online environment.

“We monitor those kind of repeat attempts, and we are able to essentially block transactions or identify essentially source IP addresses that multiple failed transactions are coming from,” Mirfin noted. “And we put various thresholds or limits around that depending on what the scenario entails.”