More than half of merchants now offer buy now, pay later at checkout and nearly seven in 10 (67%) expect an increase in online sales through the end of the year
According to Affirm’s latest Merchant Insights Report that surveyed small and medium-sized retailers, while more than half of merchants (57%) saw sales increase in the beginning of the summer compared to the same time last year, the majority (86%) noticed that consumers simultaneously became more conscious about their spending. What’s more, nearly seven in 10 (67%) anticipate an increase in online sales through the end of the year and more than a third (36%) even expect an increase in in-store sales. Alongside these sales increases, more than three quarters (76%) agree that the pandemic has made it more important for their business to sell both online and in-store.
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“We’re in the busiest time of year for retail, and there’s still a significant opportunity for merchants to adopt flexible payment options that drive real business growth.”
Despite small and medium-sized retailers displaying optimism for robust year end sales, more than half of merchants (52%) see attracting customers as a challenge coming out of the pandemic. And a recent survey of Affirm merchants cited limited marketing resources as the top challenge in the way of reaching their goals.
“Merchants are responding as consumers become more budget-conscious. 24% of merchants added a pay-over-time solution like Affirm during the pandemic, and now more than 50% offer buy now, pay later as an option at checkout,” said Silvija Martincevic, Chief Commercial Officer at Affirm. “We’re in the busiest time of year for retail, and there’s still a significant opportunity for merchants to adopt flexible payment options that drive real business growth.”
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Merchants across industries, from apparel to consumer electronics, expect the adoption of flexible payment options to be the top pandemic business trend to continue. Eighty-six percent of merchants agree that it’s essential to offer customers flexibility in how they shop post-pandemic, and over three-quarters (76%) of merchants agree that offering flexible payment options like Affirm is a valuable way to drive growth as well as reach new customers.
Additional key findings include:
- 81% of merchants are feeling optimistic about their business growth through the end of the year.
- Only 34% of merchants currently offer a BNPL solution and did so prior to the pandemic – and only 24% added this option during the pandemic.
- 82% of merchants see technology as an essential tool to grow their business.
Affirm is a revenue generator and marketing accelerator for more than 102,000 merchants like Walmart, Neiman Marcus, Target, Priceline, Vrbo, Ikon Pass, Theory, and Williams Sonoma.
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