Consyl Publishing & Publicity Ltd

Consyl Publishing & Publicity Ltd

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More payment options for online shoppers

WITH the introduction of different methods of payments for online purchases, online shoppers are now not just restricted to credit cards - according to the latest Online Consumer Report by leading research company, Nielsen.
The increase in Australian internet users using broadband to connect at home (78 per cent- up four percentage points) has made the Internet a marketplace for transactions. Despite security being a main concern (35 per cent) for online shoppers, almost three quarters (73 per cent) of Australian Internet users are still shopping online.
"In the past, online consumers were predominantly limited to using their credit card for online transactions - this is no longer the case with more payment options being made available to online consumers," said Glenn Wealands, Director, Financial Services, The Nielsen Company.
As evidence of the rise of payment alternatives, Nielsen's latest report shows that online consumers are reducing their reliance on credit cards (37 per cent - down six percentage points in the last six months) as their preferred method of online payment and moving towards alternative options, such as PayPal (31 per cent - up by six percentage points) and Debit cards (7 per cent - up by two percentage points).
"The preference for PayPal is mainly fuelled by eBay shoppers. - with over half (54 per cent) of online shoppers purchasing from eBay in the last six months. As PayPal is a subsidiary of eBay, it is gaining considerable momentum in the online shopping arena".
However, all is not lost for credit card companies as PayPal transactions are mainly funded by credit cards - with Visa (32 per cent) nearly double that of MasterCard (17 per cent).
"As more online payment methods are set to be made available to consumers, such as, pre-paid cards and virtual vouchers - online payment providers will need to become more targeted and emphasise key benefits and differentiations to compete for share of online consumer usage and preference", said Mr Wealands.