Spreedly: 2021 Was the Year of Possibility

The world of payments got more complex in 2021, but it also opened the door to new possibilities for businesses that embraced orchestrations strategies that helped them thrive under pressure, says Spreedly CEO Justin Benson. Read his thoughts in the PYMNTS eBook, “In a Word: 50 Thought Leaders Sum Up 2021.”

If the last year has taught us anything, it’s that we are all operating in an incredibly complex payment ecosystem, and there is an ever-present need to maximize payment flexibility in order to address this complexity. 

Everyone wants to grow their revenue, but driving ever faster growth requires constant business and technical innovation. Innovative companies constantly push the boundaries of their infrastructure to expand into new geographies, markets and business lines, or to respond to COVID-induced consumer buying behavior changes. Yet the demands they place on their business are often constrained by technical limitations — and this ever-increasing complexity.

As business needs change and complexity grows, payment strategies must adapt. Adding to this challenge is the simple fact that every payment strategy is unique. Having the flexibility to adapt payment processes to support the business’ needs — while avoiding infrastructure burdens, supporting growth and taking advantage of optimization — is the goal. 

This is the true promise of orchestrating payment services. Having a payments orchestration strategy is critical to managing and effecting change, quickly and securely.

Merchants and platforms need to adapt their payments strategy, quickly and without limits, to maximize every single transaction. Our customers understand that pairing the right payments strategy with the right mix of payment services will positively impact their bottom line through higher authorization rates, lower fraud and a better customer experience. They also know that the best time to get to market was yesterday — and the best way to grow is as fast as they can. 

Payment service providers need to adapt to the needs of their customers as well. Our partners understand that they need to land and retain a growing number of merchants and platforms that want a multi-provider approach. Offering that flexibility to prospects and customers has become a critical part of PSPs’ go-to-market strategies.

A combination of deep payment industry relationships, diverse integrations and a unique industry perspective is needed to shepherd in the next generation of payments. We know that a diversified, inclusive payment ecosystem helps businesses scale with confidence and speed. 

We believe that a payments platform that is open and flexible, and that allows organizations to optimize and accelerate their business, is no longer an option — it is the core of what drives the business. 

We also know that payments orchestration offers the much needed solution to turn possibilities into payments.