You’ve chosen a provider. Now, it’s time to get your website ready.
This article provides the tools you need to hit the ground running with your retail finance programme.
1. Add a finance page
First up is the finance page. You’ll want to fill this with information about how to apply for finance, the length and terms of your retail finance products, representative examples, and cancellation and returns information. Think of it as a North Star for your customers.
Now, you don’t have to have a finance page. You can include the information in dropdown boxes throughout your website. But it’s good practice to put all the most essential information in one place, making it easy to find through both your website taxonomy and from search engines. Also, the more information you provide, the more your customers will understand and trust your product.
For an example of best practice, let’s take a look at BOXT:
BOXT’s finance page is clear and easy to find
Finding BOXT’s finance page is easy. Customers can click the ‘Advice and FAQs’ tab at the top of the site to find a big box titled ‘0% finance. Everything you need to know.’ The finance page also features at the bottom of every webpage underneath the FAQs and Contact Us section. The information is exactly where you’d expect to find it – next to the FAQs and educational content.
Their URL is also intuitive and to the point, which makes it easy to find via online search. Try it yourself by Googling ‘BOXT finance.’
As for the page itself, it wastes no time in explaining the purpose of their finance offering. It also explains who the service provider and lender is. This is not essential, but it does add extra clarity to the process.
BOXT then goes on to explain how to apply for finance using engaging iconography. This section is short and to the point, which highlights the simplicity to customers.
A widget calculator makes for personalised representative examples
The next feature is the calculator widget, an essential part of any finance offering. The calculator allows customers to input the amount they want to borrow as well as the term length to work out what they can afford. Customers can toggle between different deposits to get a representative example of their finance plan before making a decision.
There is also a section on cancellations and returns. Seeking a refund can be complicated when retail finance is involved. Third-parties disrupt the normal merchant-customer relationship, which becomes a merchant-lender-customer relationship. So, it is important to include information about how this process works, both to allay the fears of new customers and to support existing customers.
See: Divido’s ultimate guide to understanding refunds
As we move further down the page, BOXT provides information about their platform provider Divido. This is simply to add context, and is not an essential part of the process, but can help to strengthen the merchant’s relationship with their customers.
FAQs answer your customer’s burning questions before they’ve had a chance to ask them
Finally, we have the finance FAQ section. This provides answers to any additional questions customers may have. The topics covered give extra confidence to customers, which could help to support BOXT’s sales.
2. Signposting finance: think about your customer journey
Next, you need to think about promoting finance. You’ll want to let your customers know about your finance options as early in the journey as possible.
For online stores, this may mean putting a message on your homepage. By promoting early, you will be telling passers-by and existing customers they have more purchasing power if they shop with you. In fact, promoting finance at the start of your customer journey can boost conversions by 2–3x when compared with a single promotion at checkout.
The reason as to why is fairly intuitive: Most customers go shopping with a budget in mind. Checkout finance helps their budget stretch further.
Consider a shopper with £800 to spend on an armchair. With checkout finance, their £800 payment today could be reduced to £200 if they pay a 25% deposit. Now they have £600 to play with. They add a foot stall for £500 to their basket, and a coffee table worth £200 to match. Your customer now pays £375 today – still significantly under budget – but spends £1,500 in total. Your £800 purchase has nearly doubled, all because of checkout finance.
Similarly, some of your items might be just out of financial reach. Retail finance reduces the upfront cost, making your products more accessible. Window shoppers turn into active customers after seeing your finance promotion on your homepage or storefront makes the purchase decision easier.
In other words, the benefits of retail finance – higher sales, boosts in conversions, access to a new pool of consumers – are unlocked by your marketing efforts.
Promotions don’t have to be big bold stickers (though these do the trick) – you just need to let your customers know your finance programme exists for their purchasing power to increase.
Once you’ve covered the start of the journey, think about the next relevant touchpoint.
Product pages are a great place to advertise your finance offering. You can advertise the benefits next to the ‘add to basket’ button and even provide an FAQ section underneath.
Add a representative example at the bare minimum, so your customer knows exactly how much they’d pay today, and how long it will take them to repay the loan. Better still, you could add a calculator that they can play around with.
Then, think about the checkout. This is the most crucial part of your customer’s journey. It’s also the last opportunity you have to promote finance.
Your customers should be aware that they can spread the cost of their purchase by now, but it’s still worth assuming they aren’t. Provide all the relevant information, as we’ve discussed above.
Finally, you might also want to add a banner or sticker at the top of your page stating “0% finance available” to maximise your conversions.
3. Credit broking small print (applicable to regulated merchants only)
Finally, think about the information you need on every page of your website.
If you’re acting as a credit broker and are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, you’ll need to add small print to the bottom of each page explaining your role within the finance process, as BOXT has done here. If you’re not acting as a credit broker, you won’t need to do this. Divido can help you to determine whether this will be the case.
Include information about your finance programme at the bottom of each page.
The bottom line
Preparing your website is an essential step in launching retail finance. Do it right, and you’ll see an uptick in conversions, basket sizes and conversions.
Think about your customer’s journey. A finance page is useful, but you must also signpost your offering at every relevant touchpoint if you want your customers to know it exists. Start at the beginning – the homepage – and work your way through to the checkout. You could even add a banner at the top of each page to really hammer the message home.
Become an expert in checkout finance
Our latest research uncovers the shopping habits of 4,000 consumers across Europe’s biggest markets. Learn how shoppers in France, Spain, Italy and Germany use checkout finance, where they spend their money, and how likely they are to use it again.
