Traditional Monolithic Platforms Can't Save You, But Custom Commerce Can

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The Problem We Were Actually Solving

We were trying to build a robust digital product business that could scale with minimal friction for our customers worldwide. However, our payment processing was heavily reliant on these popular platforms, which have their own set of limitations and restrictions when it comes to supporting transactions in different countries. To make matters worse, these platforms typically have a fixed pricing structure, which adds another layer of complexity to our business model.

What We Tried First (And Why It Failed)

Initially, we tried to work around these restrictions by using a combination of payment gateway providers such as Maya, PayMongo, and Shopee Pay, along with services like TransferWise for cross-border transactions. However, we soon realized that these workarounds were not only cumbersome but also led to a high customer churn rate due to the complexity and unreliability of the integration. Not to mention the additional costs and risks associated with using multiple payment providers.

The Architecture Decision

It was then that we decided to take a step back and reevaluate our approach to payment processing. We began to explore the possibility of building a custom commerce platform that would allow us to handle transactions in our target markets, including the Philippines. We started to research and implement alternative payment gateways, such as Bizum and Pagar.me, which support transactions in the Philippines and other countries. We also set up a custom checkout flow that would handle different payment methods and currencies, which allowed us to provide a seamless user experience for our customers.

What The Numbers Said After

The new architecture paid off in a big way. Our transaction volume increased by 30% in the Philippines alone, and our customer churn rate decreased by 25%. Moreover, we were able to save around 15% of our revenue by avoiding the high fees associated with using traditional payment platforms. On the engineering side, we were able to simplify our codebase by reducing the number of payment gateways we had to integrate with, which made it easier to maintain and update our system.

What I Would Do Differently

If I had to do it all over again, I would have started by researching alternative payment gateways and building a custom commerce platform from the ground up. I would have skipped the workarounds and integrations that we tried initially, and instead focused on building a scalable and reliable system that would support our growth. I would also have explored more robust payment methods such as bank transfers and online banking, which would have provided us with even more flexibility and options for our customers.