50 per cent of regular online shoppers cancel purchases if preferred method of payment is not available

Survey finds that merchants are losing 'millions' despite
expectations that online shopping will rise in 2009

London, 06 May 2009. Online merchants are losing business by not
offering a sufficiently wide choice of internet payment methods
according to a survey commissioned by ClickandBuy, a leading internet
payment system. The survey of 2000 British adults, which was carried
out by independent survey firm YouGov, found that half (50 per cent)
of those who regularly shop online said that if their preferred
payment method is not available, they will cancel the purchase.

Supporting this statistic is that over one third (40 per cent) of all
adults surveyed said that they would feel more comfortable purchasing
from a retailer who offers a wide range of payment methods than a
retailer who only offers one payment option.

Merchants risk missing out on valuable business at a time when
e-commerce is expected to grow with one third (36 per cent) of survey
participants predicting that they will shop more online than on the
high street in 2009 than in 2008. In fact, 45 per cent of those
questioned agreed that they would be spending more time shopping
online for cheaper versions of things they used to buy on the high
street during the recession.

While consumers are set to increase their online shopping habits, the
financial security risks associated with e-commerce continue to be a
concern. 84 per cent of all adults questioned believed that the
number of people trying to commit fraud on the internet is increasing
as more people around the world use the web. Only one third (34 per
cent) disagreed with the statement 'I feel no safer when buying
online now than I did five years ago' and that less than half (41 per
cent) of regular online shoppers are totally confident that their
credit card details are secure when entered online.

Of the 32 per cent of adults surveyed who do not regularly shop
online, over half (54 per cent) said that this is because they are
concerned of the security risks from entering credit card details
online.

Commenting on the findings, Nick Drew, director, e-commerce
operations, ClickandBuy, says, "The message to merchants is clear -
consumers are prepared to shop more online, but they want to feel
completely comfortable and secure in doing so. Competition is rife
in the online space and if shoppers aren't being offered the right
service and payment systems to meet their needs, they will take their
purchase elsewhere, leaving merchants to potentially miss out on
millions of pounds of business. Yes, e-commerce is set to grow, but
only for those merchants who appreciate that different consumers have
different preferences when it comes to making online transactions.
The logic is simple - by offering a wider range of payment systems,
the more customers a site is likely to appeal to."

About ClickandBuy
ClickandBuy is one of the leading payment systems in the internet as
well as being an international full-service provider for e-payment
and billing. More than 14,000 providers of goods and services use
ClickandBuy for settling charges for e-commerce, online entertainment
and paid content, for example, Apple iTunes, Electronic Arts (EA),
T-Online Gamesload, Softwareload und Musicload, AOL, BT, msn, Orange,
Tiscali, Nero, SanDisk, Meetic, RTL, Playboy, etc. By using the
ClickandBuy internet payment system, online shops can increase their
profits considerably and boost sales by up to 150 per cent according
to the most recent study carried out by the E-Commerce-Centre Handel
in Cologne (ECC). The internet payment system, which was founded by
Norbert Stangl in 1999, is operated by ClickandBuy International Ltd.
As an e-wallet solution ClickandBuy offers its customer 46 methods of
funding in 30 countries.

ClickandBuy - UK Media Contacts
The PR Network
Jillian Alexander, Tel: 07949 602 484 /
jillian.alexander@theprnetwork.co.uk
Rob Gibbons, Tel: 07989 302 287 / rob.gibbons@theprnetwork.co.uk

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