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With consumers spending on the increasing in the first quarter of the year, as well as online shopping continuing to increase across all age groups businesses are faced with more opportunity and more competition for consumers' dollars. That means looking for new ways to meet consumer needs by giving them more opportunities to buy from the brand or website you have created. The best place to begin is the checkout process -finding opportunities to streamline this important last step during the purchase and offer the option of payment to your customers to enhance their shopping customer experience.

One of the trends that has rapidly gained popularity in shopping online is the "Buy Now, pay Later" (BNPL) alternative at the time of checkout. BNPL is a different payment method that allows shoppers to divide the price of their purchase into reasonable installments distributed over timesometimes over a few weeks, while in others, it's spread over several months.

Pay later, buy now is getting more popular.

Many consumers are using pay-over-time services when they are accessible. In 2023, online merchants experienced a dramatic growth in sales made through BNPL which saw volume increasing by 42.5 percentage year-over-year. This means that BNPL added around $16.6 billion of sales into merchant books over the course of the final couple of months of the year alone and this trend Adobe projects will continue through 2024.

Around 93.3 million people are predicted to utilize BNPL in 2024 according to EMarketer as well as American Banker reported that the BNPL market in the US could reach as much than $8.3 billion in 2028. BNPL is also being used increasingly by internet-based retail giants like Amazon.com -- which will further accelerate its expansion and making it more popular with consumers who shop on the internet.

This makes BNPL an option that businesses must consider when competing in an increasingly crowded online marketplace.

Offering buy now, make payment later: Some things to take into consideration

The addition of BNPL choices at checkout earlier rather than later offers merchants a greater chance to win new customers and establish an ongoing connection.

If a retailer doesn't offer an BNPL option when they check-out, this might be the perfect opportunity to introduce one into the list of options. In the case of merchants that do offer it by placing the BNPL option more prominent on their websites, specifically at checkout, or advertising its availability through marketing, could help make their brands stand out and increase the shopping experience for their customers.

The more noticeable the BNPL option is on an online store's website and the faster they advertise the service via emails and on social networks and social media, the more likely they will want to learn more about it, which will help the merchant bring shoppers to their website to complete the deal.

BNPL will allow merchants to expand the reach of customers who want to buy in the near future, but wish to control the flow of cash without credit. By allowing the possibility of splitting the cost of a purchase into, for instance, four installments of interest-free payment every two weeks, consumers have the ability to get their needs without delay. Certain BNPL companies, like Affirm provide longer time options that span several months to up to 3 years for carts with large sizes or expensive products.

While adding yet another option for payment to the back end of an ecommerce website might be a daunting task for small-scale merchants with limited time to complete the task There are solutions readily available for quick and straightforward application that could simplify the whole process for the merchant. In this case, they are often able to take advantage of pre-built ecommerce integrations, like the AffirmPayments extension, to easily add BNPL options to their existing checkout process.

Advantages of offering buy today, pay later your Woo store

What advantages can the BNPL integration provide? First, an integration can streamline the purchasing process for the growing variety of shoppers who would prefer to pay over the course of time. Making sure that customers are on your website as they move towards your checkout page is also important, especially when it comes to younger customers who grew up using online commerce. Actually it is reported by the National Retail Federation reports that more than 50% (46 percent) of Gen Z respondents consider a smooth checkout process essential to the buying experience.

One of the most important aspects to consider for integration is the user experience for the shopper. It's crucial that the buyer has the ability to see their payment options and complete the process of approval without having to go to an additional website. With an integrated system, retailers make the process as direct and simple as is possible for customers, ensuring that it doesn't get in the way of the sale.

A smooth checkout experience could also help reduce cart abandonment. A recent Baymard Institute metastudy of 49 studies found that cart abandonment rates still hovers around 70 percent, and hasn't changed markedly in a decade. Among the top reasons for abandonment: A checkout procedure that was either too long or complex (22% of cases) and the site did not offer enough choices for payment (responsible for 13% of cart abandonments). By integrating a tight BNPL solution, retailers can solve both customer concerns at once.

Which is the best buy now, pay later provider

Selecting a BNPL service that is compatible with your needs as a business and with customer needs is essential to determine the most suitable fit. For example, Affirm provides custom payment solutions to merchantsthey can offer both long- and short-term options as well as zero-interest options. Offering the right payment option that is in tune with customer needs and typical prices, retailers can increase affordability for consumers and even win a sale over the competition.

One of the unique features offered by Affirm is their Adaptive Checkout technology, which dynamically offers the most relevant payment options for your shoppers dependent on each product's price and total cart value. With personalization the name of the game online, Affirm customizes the time length and the APR of each purchase by providing several relevant pay-over-time options to the customer, in an easy-to-use experience.

What can you do to let the customers you have already and those who are likely to purchase from you know about the BNPL choice prior to checkout? Depending on your target market it is possible to consider promoting it via social media sites. Retail Dive reports that 85% of customers' buying choices are influenced by social media, so advertising the availability of BNPL on the platforms can be an edge. If you're trying to reach Gen Z and you're interested in their buying habits, remember that 45% of respondents named TikTok and Instagram as the top platforms influencing their purchasing decisions.

Since summer is often a slow time for businesses There's a chance for merchants to focus on getting BNPL up and running on their websites, ahead of the Back to School rush signals that the busiest months leading up to the winter holidays. It offers a chance to make thoughtful decisions regarding vendors, resolve any technical issues and launch the marketing efforts to announce the launch to BNPL as a brand new payment option available at check-out.

Giving a BNPL option at checkout and publicizing it via social media can be a game changer for businesses looking to get higher online spending and beat out competitors.

Are you ready to include flexible payment options to your checkout? Apply for Affirm for a start and use the Affirm Extension for Payments to provide the option of pay-over-time at your checkout.

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*Payment options offered by Affirm is subject to an eligibility check and may not be accessible in all areas, and they are made available by the lending partners listed below: affirm.com/lenders.