Consumer Financing – removing price as a barrier to sales

Consumer financing has been part of retail for a long time now and has moved to the point of sale thanks to new technology and changing consumer behavior. Online sales continue to trend upward as shoppers turn to e-commerce. Many consumers have begun purchasing items online that they would have typically purchased in person. According to a trends report by Attentive, this shift has led to a 27% increase in sales throughout the month of March and a 32% increase in sales throughout the month of April across some e-commerce industries. 

While there has been an increase in demand for industries that produce beauty products, home decor, furnishings, and electronics it isn’t the same across the board. Although consumers are venturing out and exploring new brands, the number of consumers browsing for items online isn’t matching conversion rates. Thoughts of hesitation and deeper consideration among consumers can lead to fewer products in carts and lost sales for retailers. Online shopping isn’t something brand new, people are quite used to it. In fact, consumers have been “omnichannel” for a while now. The trick is to get the consumer past the finish line, not only to make the sale, but to win that shopper’s loyalty, and maybe even get them to add a few more products into their shopping cart along the way. This is where ChargeAfter’s multi-lender platform can help.

ChargeAfter is personalizing the consumer financing experience while making it easier and quicker for shoppers to complete their purchase. ChargeAfter connect merchants and lenders to offer consumers personalized point of sale financing offers from multiple lenders at the checkout. The platform allows consumers across all credit ratings (prime, near-prime, and subprime) to instantly “apply and buy” and be approved for Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) financing at participating merchants. Previously it was too cumbersome for merchants to build and manage various lending partnerships with individual lenders, and with limited options, consumers all too often faced declines during their application process.

ChargeAfter enables merchants to approve up to 85% of consumers who apply for financing at checkout compared to the industry average which ranges between 30- 50%!

The functionality of the ChargeAfter multi-lender platform is simple. When the consumer is ready to checkout and selects “checkout financing” as their payment option, they fill out an easy four field application. The application is then put through ChargeAfter’s “waterfall”. First, the application is checked against prime lenders, if declined at this stage the application moves down to near-prime or “second look” lenders. If the applicant is still declined for financing, the application is checked against subprime or lease-to-own lenders for additional financing offers. Multiple lenders are checked in the ChargeAfter waterfall so various rates and terms are available to borrowers once approved.

Competition between retailers is high, at ChargeAfter our vision is to help every consumer, worldwide, gain access to financing options that best fit their needs and that are available to the consumer when and where they are ready to purchase, online, in-store or over the phone. Everyone benefits from ChargeAfter’s platform. Shoppers receive instant and personalized loans with 0% APR, merchants can increase sales by up to 30% while enjoying a simplified transaction process and lenders reach new consumers and reduce integration costs. 

As consumers continue to browse the web and explore new online stores, ChargeAfter’s multi-lender platform can help merchants gain the competitive edge they need to bring in more sales by offering choice and flexibility in payments.