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MOTO still matters and frictionless payments matter even more

People in the payments industry like talking about ‘the next big thing.’ However, with debit cards remaining the most popular payment method with half of all payments in the UK being made using debit cards. Rob Crutchington from Encoded shares his top tips for a first-class payment experience, whatever the payment method or sales channel.

A few years ago, half the number of card transactions were estimated to be done by Mail Order Telephone Order (MOTO) despite fears around the greater fraud risks of not having the card holder present. Interestingly, during the same period, UK Finance discovered that MOTO fraud against retailers totalled £63.7 million, a 28% decrease compared with pre-pandemic levels in 2019.

Since then, there continues to be many reasons why businesses still need or choose to rely on MOTO transactions as an important part of their payment ecosystem; whether it is to cater for a specific demographic, to collect an immediate payment whilst an agent is engaged with the customer, or to provide a fall-back option. And as consumers rely increasingly on the Internet and cards to go shopping, pay their bills, and manage accounts, telephone card processing is here to stay. Latest figures from the British Retail Consortium reveal that cards remained overwhelmingly the preferred method of payment for consumers in 2022 accounting for around 85% of retail spending while UK Finance predicts debit card payments will soar to over 27 billion in the next decade.

With these statistics in mind, don’t let your MOTO channel become a second thought. Follow this three-step methodology to guarantee a secure, frictionless payment experience for everyone:

1. Blend eCom and MOTO offerings

Modern gateways, like Encoded, can now offer eCom levels of security, within your MOTO processing environment. Next-generation 3DS offers two-factor authentication in the form of 3RI (Requestor Initiated) transactions. This gives Merchants the choice of offering eCom and MOTO channels to their customers regardless of how they interact with the cardholder. Offering alternative payment methods (APMs) like Google or Apple Pay and Open Banking, think about deploying modern Payment Gateway Services and the latest Payment Orchestration solutions to improve security and customer experience. Thinking ‘digital first’ within a traditional MOTO setting can drastically reduce the security risk of MOTO payments while cutting costs from payment authorisation and transaction routing.

2. Fraud prevention is definitely better than cure

Many merchants often feel the need to decline MOTO transactions – and they risk losing business and customers along the way – simply because telephone card payments are generally considered to pose a bigger security threat. Thanks to advancements in technology, merchants can reduce fraud and increase the number of successful MOTO transactions in one go. For example, modern Agent Assisted Payment solutions with an added Fraud Prevention Platform allow contact centres to process card payments quickly and cost-effectively without being exposed to sensitive card data. So, instead of notifying the customer that their transaction has been declined, a disappointing end to an unhelpful interaction, the agent can advise them that an additional level of validation is required to boost customer confidence and loyalty.

3. Maintain PCI DSS compliance at all times

Technology is useless without good foundations and a watertight compliance management framework is critical to success. Remember, there is no such thing as a compliant software solution and the best way to stay compliant and minimise future costs as the PCI DSS standard remains is to take good advice. Invest in training and education on the PCI DSS standard in order to have the talent in house or work with payment organisations that are themselves Level 1 PCI DSS compliant. Encoded is a Level 1 PCI DSS accredited supplier – which means that merchants and their customers can rely on our expertise to deliver a secure and first-class payment experience every time.

To find out how Encoded can simplify today’s complex payment challenges and improve the customer experience, take a look at our payment products including Payment Gateway Services and Payment Orchestration.

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