Customer whims and demands, shifts in the economy, consumer buying habits, and technological advancements lead to changes in the payment industry. From expected growth in cross-border shopping to advancements in artificial intelligence, 2019 proves no different for high risk businesses.
1. Merchants Will Need to Improve Fraud Management Strategies
Merchants will need to continue to find a balance between providing a good user experience and preventing fraud. In 2019, merchants will need to remain vigilant in not allowing their fraud rules to ruin the chance to meet customers’ expectations. For example, a common red flag for fraud is an online purchase that is made with a billing address that differs from its shipping address. In this case, merchants often stop the order, look into it, and sometimes contact the credit card company to the purchase from occurring. If it was not actually a fraudulent purchase, this ruins the customer experience. Merchants should use machine learning and other state-of-the art fraud solutions that explore many risk factors that do not hinder the customer experience.
2. Cross-Border Shopping Will Soar
With projections that more than 200 million people in China will do cross-bordering shopping by 2020, this will be the time for small businesses to open themselves up to a much larger customer base. If you do not already position your business to allow buyers from all over to use their local preferred payment options, then you may be setting up your enterprise for failure.
3. Blockchain-Optimized Dating Platforms will Thrive
Expect more porn sites and online dating apps to protect their identities by accepting cryptocurrency payments. Adult entertainment merchants often run into problems due to poor messaging behavior and fake accounts. To combat this, blockchain-optimized dating platforms will be used and gain in popularity. With these platforms, first payments are made with prepaid card functions through e-wallets before messages can be sent to approve interactions.
4. The Gambling Industry Gets a Makeover
People have gotten diligent at flagging lotteries, penny, auctions, and other online casinos. However, newer, more subtle types of gambling may be tougher to spot. For instance, some sites have offering visitors’ chances to win high-end prizes, like cars, luxury vacations, and electronics. This type of site may not be as obvious, but it is still gambling, therefore, must be monitored to ensure they all rules and regulations are followed.
5. As Mobile Payments Continue to Grow, Customer Will Expect More
As merchants integrate mobile applications and services into their business, mobile payments will continue to increase. As they evolve, customers will expect better user experiences. To keep their competitive edges, merchants must continue to improve.
6. Artificial Intelligence Use for Better Fraud Detection Will Grow
The use of artificial intelligence will continue to grow rapidly in 2019. Expect more use to improve fraud detection strategies.
7. Nutraceutical Companies May Experience Greater Oversight
In December, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced the formations of a new oversight group to better monitor the dietary supplement industry. While this move could boost safety for customers, it could also lead to increased scrutiny of nutraceutical company merchant accounts and their payment processors.
8. Dropshipping and its Results, More Chargebacks, Rise
Dropshipping is a newer type of product order fulfillment method that does not require the seller to maintain inventory. The seller instead sends the order to a third-party that ships the product to the customer. Unfortunately, not following the typical distribution channels can lead to more fraud and chargebacks. The sellers never physically have any of the products, and cannot control the actions of the third-party once the orders are received. Customers may not receive the specific items ordered then ask for a refund or initiate a chargeback. Also, dropshipping sites can be fronts for the sale of illegal products.
In Conclusion
Pay attention and look out for these high risk industry trends for 2019. Merchants that stay ahead of the curve will be the ones most likely to succeed.
If you are interested in high risk payment processing and other solutions, contact CPS. We specialize in working with high risk merchants in many different industries. Apply online today.