Cybersource Account Updater, now available in Asia Pacific, automatically updates card on file (COF) details to reduce declines owing to expired customer credentials—helping to keep subscription revenues flowing and customers satisfied.
Almost anything you can think of—from software and video streaming services to ride-hailing apps, insurance policies, and grocery deliveries—is available today on a subscription or recurring payment basis.
Subscription services let consumers and businesses shift their spending from one-off purchases to regular recurring payments. While the business benefits from consistent cashflow, customers have the convenience of storing their card details (personal account numbers, PANs) with the business once, and then enjoy the goods or services provided.
This card-on-file (COF) capability is also a key reason many shoppers set up accounts with online businesses. It takes friction out of the checkout process as customers don't have to enter their payment details each time they make a purchase.
But when those stored credentials have to be updated—typically when a payment card is replaced owing to expiry, loss, or theft—there can be a significant impact on the business and the customer experience.
Businesses can lose subscription revenue
Asking a customer to update an expired card to continue their subscription can lead to the customer canceling it. 29% of cardholders will use card replacement as an opportunity to cancel an unwanted service.1 Similarly, a customer who has to enter new card details at checkout may simply abandon the purchase instead.
Customers can miss out on service and lose trust
Having to manually update their credentials can cause disruption for customers and may negatively affect their feelings of trust and loyalty towards the business. Worse, they may not even be invited to update their credentials—their transaction may simply be declined owing to card expiry. And if a customer misses or ignores reminders to update their COF credentials, they could lose access to vital goods or services.
Cybersource Account Updater: the benefits of automated COF updates
Cybersource Account Updater prevents disruption before it happens by securely checking card validity and updating PAN details as needed. Now available in Asia Pacific, Account Updater:
Helps businesses maintain revenues, retain customers, and enhance loyalty by:
- Avoiding false declines
- Preventing subscriptions and other services based on recurring payments from lapsing
- Reducing the opportunity for customer-led subscription cancelation by removing the need to prompt for card updates
Acquirers can offer Cybersource Account Updater to:
- Attract and strengthen relationships with businesses who want to experience the benefits described above
- Secure revenue by avoiding declines for invalid cards
Customers who buy from businesses that use Account Updater benefit from:
- Uninterrupted subscription service
- A seamless payment experience with none of the hassle of manual card updates
How it works
One connection to Cybersource allows access to Account Updater for automatic checking and updating of credit card credentials (Visa and other selected card issuers). The same connection also enables integration with the Cybersource payment processing platform and value-added services such as tokenization.
When a business submits a payment, Cybersource Account Updater checks for the latest card details. If necessary, the card details are updated and then used to transact the payment request. Card updates will continue even if a business switches acquirer.
Learn more
Cybersource Account Updater helps businesses reduce the risk of service interruptions, maintain revenue flows, and provide a seamless subscription and payment service to their customers.
If you'd like to know more about this powerful service that's available now in Asia Pacific, contact us. Read more.
1 Global credential-on-file Pain Point Research conducted by Engine Group, Inc., June 2018