The Problem We Were Actually Solving
It turned out that our target market was primarily located in countries where these payment gateways were blocked either by government or bank policies. We needed an alternative that would allow us to process payments seamlessly, despite these restrictions.
One of the primary pain points was the lack of payment flexibility, which made it difficult for us to onboard new customers. Users in these restricted countries struggled to complete their orders, leading to a significant increase in customer support queries and cart abandonment rates. Our primary goal was to minimize these issues and ensure that we could still provide a seamless shopping experience to our users, even with limited payment options.
What We Tried First (And Why It Failed)
We initially looked into using alternative payment platforms like Ko-fi and Patreon, thinking that these platforms offered a more relaxed set of restrictions compared to traditional payment gateways. However, we soon realized that these platforms had their own set of limitations. For example, Ko-fi's transaction fees were significantly higher than our target margins, while Patreon's monthly subscription model wasn't suitable for our mostly one-off transaction-based business.
Another approach we explored was using cryptocurrencies, thinking that decentralized systems like Bitcoin would be less susceptible to national restrictions. Unfortunately, this was not the case; countries like Australia and the UK have strict licensing requirements for cryptocurrency exchanges. Moreover, our payment processing fees skyrocketed when using cryptocurrency, mainly due to the volatility of the market.
The Architecture Decision
We ultimately decided to use traditional platforms like Unchained Commerce, which offers a suite of e-commerce tools that don't rely on major payment processors. Unchained Commerce allowed us to process payments using bank transfers, phone payments, and other methods that didn't require a credit card processing account. While not as seamless as traditional payment gateways, this solution provided us with a solid alternative for our users in restricted countries.
One of the key benefits of choosing Unchained Commerce was its flexibility; we were able to customize our payment options to better suit our users' needs. The platform's API allowed us to create our own payment workflows and integrate them with our existing e-commerce system.
What The Numbers Said After
Our decision to use Unchained Commerce yielded some impressive results. We saw a 35% increase in successful transactions and a 25% decrease in customer support queries related to payment issues. This was largely due to the flexibility of Unchained Commerce, which allowed us to better support our users in restricted countries.
On the technical side, we observed a significant reduction in the number of errors related to payment processing, dropping from 142 to just 17 in a single month. This was largely due to the platform's robust payment error handling and logging capabilities.
What I Would Do Differently
If I had to do it all over again, I would likely add more time to the research phase to explore alternative solutions, focusing on emerging payment technologies like blockchain and token-based payment systems. I would also consider using more machine learning techniques to improve payment error detection and prevention, potentially reducing the number of errors and improving our overall payment processing efficiency.
In retrospect, I realize that our initial assumptions about our target market and payment options were not as thorough as they could have been. Understanding our users' needs and the nuances of international payment regulations would have allowed us to make a more informed decision regarding our payment architecture and reduce the risk of premature optimization.
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