By 
A significant majority of U.S. middle-market eCommerce merchants are prioritizing checkout experience improvements to drive higher conversion rates and enhance customer satisfaction.
“U.S. Merchants Want Help From PSPs on Make-or-Break Checkout to Boost Conversion,” produced in collaboration with Mastercard, surveyed 300 middle-market eCommerce merchants across five countries—Australia, Brazil, UAE, the U.K., and the U.S. The findings highlight that merchants prioritize checkout user experience improvements over back-end payment processing issues, with a strong demand for technology-driven solutions.
Conversion Optimization: The Top Priority for U.S. Merchants
The report found that increasing conversion rates is the number one priority for U.S. merchants when requesting new technologies from payment service providers (PSPs). Key findings include:
- 44% of merchants cited conversion rate improvements as the most critical factor in their tech upgrade requests.
- An additional 28% also considered it an important factor.
This emphasis on conversion rates suggests that fraud reduction and customer experience improvements, while relevant, are secondary concerns. As a result, PSPs need to align their services with merchant expectations by introducing checkout features that directly impact conversion rates.
Merchants Proactively Seek PSP Support for Checkout Enhancements
The study also revealed that 78% of U.S. merchants are actively engaging with PSPs to request new checkout features, demonstrating a keen awareness of technological advancements in the industry.
- 55% of merchants have already requested PSPs to implement new features.
- However, 22% feel unable to approach their PSPs for upgrades, possibly due to a lack of awareness about available services.
Additionally, 63% of U.S. merchants stated that their PSPs automatically implement new features, helping streamline the checkout optimization process. However, because new payment features are often opt-in, clear communication from PSPs is essential to ensuring merchants leverage these upgrades effectively.
One-Click Checkout: The Most Requested Feature
Among the top checkout improvements sought by U.S. merchants, one-click checkout technologies emerged as the most in-demand feature, with 45% of merchants requesting its implementation.
Other popular tech requests include:
- Secure card on file (27%) – allowing customers to store payment details for faster transactions.
- Biometric authentication (25%) – enabling secure logins and approvals using fingerprint or facial recognition.
- Gateway tokens (22%) and network tokens (20%) – though less frequently requested, these technologies provide enhanced payment security and reduce fraud risks.
Merchants View PSPs as Functional Rather Than Strategic Partners
Despite the crucial role PSPs play in payment processing and fraud prevention, U.S. merchants do not always perceive them as strategic partners in their business growth.
- Only 44% of merchants felt their PSP made checkout easy.
- Just 15% viewed checkout simplification as their PSP’s most important benefit.
- Less than 30% believed their PSP improved approval rates or reduced false declines.
- However, 65% valued PSP support availability, while 61% appreciated ease of use.
The Future of Checkout Optimization
As U.S. eCommerce merchants continue to refine their checkout processes, the report underscores the need for payment service providers to prioritize merchant needs and introduce frictionless payment solutions.
By offering advanced checkout technologies, such as one-click payment options, biometric authentication, and tokenization, PSPs can enhance user experience, reduce cart abandonment, and boost conversion rates, ultimately strengthening their value proposition in the competitive eCommerce landscape.
Comments