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Insights and Expertise

Every redirect is

Payment friction comes in many forms
a revenue leak Moving customers from a text message to a portal is one

example of payment friction, but the problem can appear
almost anywhere between a customer's decision to buy or
pay and completion of the transaction.

Research into online shopping illustrates how many
seemingly small obstacles can interrupt that journey.
Baymard Institute's 2026 research found an average online
shopping-cart abandonment rate exceeding 70 percent.
Many shoppers leave because they are browsing or aren't
ready to buy, but others abandon purchases because of
problems encountered during checkout.

Among consumers who abandoned for reasons other than
simply browsing, 40 percent cited high additional costs
such as shipping, taxes or fees. Nineteen percent said they
didn't trust the site with their credit card information, 18
percent objected to being required to create an account and
By Shawn Curtis 17 percent encountered a checkout process they considered
too long or complicated. Another 17 percent cited website
Solutions by Text errors or crashes, while 9 percent said there weren't enough
payment methods.
ater is relentless. Give even the smallest leak
enough time, and it will grow from a drip to Those findings suggest payment friction isn't one problem
a flood. Payment leaks can work the same with one solution. It can involve the number of steps
W way: a little friction after a customer decides required, unexpected costs, technical failures, security
to pay may not look like much, but for anyone in the pay- concerns or simply the absence of a customer's preferred
ments ecosystem—billers, lenders and the providers who way to pay.
serve them—the thousands of reminders, redirects and
logins can add up to lost revenue. Choice matters, too. The Federal Reserve's 2026 Diary of
Consumer Payment Choice found that credit and debit cards
Research from Datos Insights shows that most bill-paying together accounted for about two-thirds of U.S. consumer
consumers with cell phones are interested in pay-in-text payments. But consumers continue to use a variety of
solutions—66 percent of all consumers surveyed said they methods. Cash remained the third-most-used payment
are somewhat likely to pay by text, and that jumped to 88 instrument, accounting for about one in seven payments.
percent for Gen Z and millennials (see tinyurl.com/yw6d2x-
vn). For payments providers and merchants, reducing friction
therefore doesn't necessarily mean steering everyone
But the standard customer experience is still from mes- toward the same channel or payment method. It can mean
sage to portal to login to "find your bill" to, if the customer examining where customers hesitate, abandon a transaction
is still engaged, completing the transaction. Each extra or need assistance and determining whether unnecessary
step in that journey is another opportunity for the trans- obstacles are getting in their way.
action to be abandoned. The issue extends well beyond bill
payment. That examination can begin with relatively basic questions.
How many screens or steps separate intent from payment?
Baymard Institute, which tracks online shopping behav- Must customers create an account or remember another
password? Are the total amount and any fees clear before
ior, puts the average shopping-cart abandonment rate at
more than 70 percent. Some of that abandonment is in- checkout? Can customers use payment methods they
already know and trust? What happens when a transaction
evitable because consumers are browsing or comparing
prices, but checkout friction also plays a role. fails?
The answers will vary by merchant, channel and customer
Baymard's 2026 research found that 17 percent of U.S. on- base. But whether the transaction begins in a text message,
line shoppers had abandoned an order because the check- an app, a website or somewhere else, the objective is similar:
out process was too long or complicated, while 18 percent make it easier for customers who have decided to pay to
had abandoned because they were required to create an finish what they started.
account.

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