Why less is more at checkout: Payments optimisation insights from TUI

We recently caught up with Charles Aji, Digital Product Owner for Payments at TUI, to talk about the evolving world of payment optimisation and what it really takes to deliver seamless checkout experiences in the travel industry.

As is clear from the interview, Charles is keen to remove friction at checkout. He is aware that customers spend a long time choosing the right holiday, and by the time they reach checkout (the final step in a fairly lengthy customer journey), they just want to pay. With so many payment options now available, it is tempting to offer all possible methods to ensure customers have their preference available. However, as Charles explains, there is a real danger of overcomplicating things.

“You see a new payment method you haven’t considered before, and that then leads to customers hanging, being timed out, or even losing that travel opportunity. So something that’s meant to create more opportunities for conversion actually leads to the opposite.”

Offering too many unfamiliar payment methods can overwhelm users, cause unnecessary delays, and ultimately lead to lost bookings. Instead, the team at TUI have found that “less is more” when it comes to payment choice.

Got 3 minutes? Listen to the interview below to learn the importance of aligning payment strategies with customer needs, and the considerations TUI makes when altering the payments journey for customers.

If you’d like to learn more about optimising payments and the checkout experience, join us at the FTT Fintech Festival (10th – 11th November) in London.