Modern customers don’t just want speed at checkout. They expect choices, from digital wallets to credit cards, and they demand security at every step. For businesses, keeping up often means piling on tools and processes until the system becomes too complex to handle. That means higher fees, compliance risks, and lost revenue when payments fail.
It doesn’t have to be this complicated. By focusing on proven strategies, you can reduce friction, improve customer experience, and stay compliant without sacrificing performance. This guide will walk you through the best practices and data-backed tips to get there.
Complicated payment systems don’t just frustrate customers — they cost businesses real money. If the checkout feels slow or confusing, shoppers abandon their carts. If local payment methods aren’t supported, international buyers can’t complete a purchase. And the more complex the flow, the heavier the compliance burden becomes, particularly around PCI DSS. All of this adds up to lost revenue and rising expenses.
The market numbers tell the story. In 2023, payment orchestration platforms were valued at USD1.5 billion. By 2033, that figure is expected to surge past $11 billion as companies look for smarter ways to connect with multiple payment service providers (PSPs) and simplify their payment stacks. To keep pace, many leading merchants are already rethinking their approach — cutting out friction, lowering costs, and making it easier for customers everywhere to pay.
PCI DSS, or Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard, defines the security requirements for storing, transmitting, and processing cardholder data. Depending on transaction volume, businesses fall into different PCI levels, each with specific obligations. For larger enterprises, maintaining PCI DSS Level 1 can be resource-intensive, but it remains necessary to reduce risk exposure and maintain customer confidence.
Antom supports compliance with Level 1 certification and built-in tools that ease the process, allowing merchants to stay secure without adding unnecessary complexity.
Core safeguards like TLS/SSL encryption protect data in transit, while tokenisation replaces card details with unique tokens to cut fraud risk and improve authorisation rates — rising from 44% in 2023 to 47% in 2024. Multi-factor authentication (MFA) and 3D Secure 2 (3DS2/SCA) provide added protection, meeting regulatory requirements and strengthening customer trust.
Fraud can have both financial and reputational consequences. AI-powered analytics, velocity rules, and behavioural insights spot suspicious activity early which helps reduce chargebacks, dispute resolution fees, inventory loss, and operational overhead. With Antom Shield, merchants gain these capabilities plus automated decisioning and stronger payment security.
A streamlined checkout process is crucial for customer conversion. Offering guest checkout alongside saved profiles allows flexibility, while solutions such as EasySafePay enable one-click payments. Reducing unnecessary steps lowers abandonment and improves customer satisfaction.
With digital wallets accounting for 49% of global e-commerce transactions in 2023 and projected to rise to 54% by 2026, mobile-ready solutions are no longer optional. Support for Apple Pay, Google Pay, Alipay, and similar wallets is essential. A responsive checkout interface ensures customers on mobile and in-app platforms enjoy the same fast, secure process.
Low-latency architecture and efficient APIs are key for high-volume businesses. Customers expect instant confirmation, and downtime can have immediate revenue consequences. Real-time confirmation systems and reliable uptime provide the confidence customers need to complete transactions without hesitation.
Customers increasingly expect to use their preferred payment methods. Supporting cards, bank transfers, BNPL, and digital wallets through a single integration reduces complexity while covering global markets. Antom, for example, supports over 300 payment methods across regions, enabling multiple payment types through one connection.
Presenting prices in local currency reduces friction and improves conversion. Dynamic currency conversion (DCC) and local settlement options also help businesses reduce cross-border fees and provide a smoother customer experience. This is particularly important in Europe, where over 60% of online transactions rely on digital payments.
Different businesses require different gateway configurations, from hosted checkout to self-hosted or API-only models. Offering this flexibility allows merchants to balance control with ease of integration.
Dashboards that provide a unified view of authorisation rates, failure rates, chargebacks, and decline reasons give businesses actionable visibility. Consolidated reporting across transaction types, including subscription, checkout, and in-store, reduces operational overhead while supporting financial planning.
Smart routing capabilities automatically retry failed transactions or redirect them through alternative acquiring paths, improving success rates. Geographic redundancy adds resilience, ensuring that website payment processing remains stable even during outages.
Transparent fee structures are essential for CFOs focused on controlling costs. Local acquiring strategies can reduce cross-border fees by more than 50% while avoiding FX markups. Real-time monitoring of processing costs helps finance teams identify savings opportunities.
False declines remain a major source of lost revenue. Antom’s Revenue Booster solution uses Auto Retry and Pay Evaluation to recover failed transactions. This helps increase successful transactions with minimal customer disruption, directly improving revenue.
Real-time order confirmations, receipts, and clear payment status messages provide reassurance that the transaction has been successful. These communications also reduce the number of customer support enquiries, saving businesses time and cost. Offering tokenised one-click payments and recurring billing options makes it easier for customers to return and purchase again, while reducing friction for subscription renewals.
Flexible subscription management, including the ability to pause, modify, or cancel plans, puts customers in control and strengthens trust. Trial periods and promotional offers, such as discounted first months or bundled services, further encourage new customers to commit while supporting long-term retention.
Finally, localisation of post-purchase communication — such as receipts in local language and settlement in local currency — reinforces trust and customer satisfaction. When customers feel their preferences are respected even after checkout, it creates a lasting impression that supports repeat transactions.
Simplifying payment processing requires the right partner. Antom is trusted by global businesses for its PCI DSS Level 1 certified infrastructure, fraud prevention tools, and broad coverage of localised payment options. With one integration and one dashboard, Antom provides access to hundreds of online payment solutions that support revenue growth and customer confidence.
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