作者：PlaySpan

根据研究表明，虚拟商品的收益每年以40%增幅快速发展着，并且2011年在美国的销售额已达到21亿美元（Inside Virtual Goods报告）而在2012更将攀升到24亿美元（Javelin Strategy & Research报告），而全球市场则将在这一时期实现70亿美元的收益（In-Stat在2010年预测的数据）。因此，所有虚拟商品和服务供应商（不论是游戏，智能手机应用，约会网站还是社交网站等）都在不断探索能够提高虚拟商品的转换率以及每用户平均收益的新方法。

US virtual goods revenues(from Javelin strategy & research)

根据VGMarket Database在2011年8月的调查，在线游戏市场中，31%的一般玩家正在使用现金购买虚拟商品。在这些玩家中，57%的玩家表示他们每个月至少一次使用现金购买虚拟商品，而72%的玩家更是表示在今后一年里他们愿意为虚拟商品投入更多金钱。

VG Market的研究结果与市场研究公司Frank N. Magid Associates最近的一份报告几乎一致，即2011年在美国共有四分之一介于13—54岁的用户购买了电子商品，而这一数字也表示，与2009年相比，其增幅达到了100%。

以前玩家是通过点击广告获得奖励，并利用这些奖励购买虚拟商品；但是现在，这些忠实用户开始使用现实世界的付费方式，如银行卡，信用卡以及预付卡等购买数字商品。并且需要注意的是，这种转变情况不只出现于游戏领域，其他各种类型的数字内容也出现了同种趋势。

所以，开发者该如何做才能提高转换率以及每用户平均收益？并且他们该如何判断自己的成绩是否优于竞争对手？

对于任何虚拟商品交易来说，开发者都需要明确的一个基本问题是：我应该如何积极地提高每日销售额和转换率？

如果你完全专注于于自己的核心业务，你便没有更多的时间或人力去解决全球性的复杂盈利和支付问题。如果你想赢得国际市场，就不应该被资源匮乏的问题所困。

创造并部署一个安全有效的盈利和支付解决方法是一个极大的挑战，它需要大多数内容开发者投入更多时间和精力。

本文将阐述一些主流在线虚拟商品供应商是如何提高付费转换率。

PlaySpan_Whitepaper(from gamasutra)

1.让用户能够在任何地方轻松消费

如今的在线用户总是熟知并信赖本土支付方式，所以你更应该想办法让他们能够在世界上任何地方使用自己所熟悉的本土化支付方式进行消费。

当你在向一个新的国家或市场扩展业务时应该着重考虑的一点是：如果你是以美元或其它非目标国家的货币为产品或服务定价，那么这种并不为人熟知的支付方式可能会大大降低当地用户对于产品的接受度。所以你应该为目标玩家提供本土货币选项。

大多数支付和盈利解决方法只为玩家提供少数的支付选择，从而限制了游戏的全球覆盖率并降低了付费转换率。使用散布于全球各地的结算服务也不是一种有效的方法，因为此时开发者还必须面对游戏本身的后勤以及文化差异等挑战。

对于开发者来说最有效的方法是与全球性支付服务供应商合作，本土化货币和付款方式，确保玩家能够以自己熟悉的方式并且在一种信赖的环境下进行消费，最终提高游戏用户付费转化率。

2.将免费玩家转变成付费用户

假设你已经创建了一款具有吸引力的应用或网站，并且也有效地执行了市场营销计划以吸引更多免费用户。而现在，你应该思考如何将这些免费用户转变成付费用户。

一个好方法便是提供具有吸引力的支付模式（游戏邦注：如订阅，付费继续游戏或同时结合这两种方式）并让玩家在一个容易理解，并且容易操作的微交易界面上使用虚拟货币进行消费。

让玩家轻松地访问付费内容或奖励活动能够降低游戏的准入门槛，并有效地将免费用户转变成游戏忠实的付费用户。同时你也应该创建一个稳定的循环收益流，让用户能够不断为自己的数字钱包充值，并更加热衷于访问游戏或应用。

而典型的混合付费模式让玩家能够根据时间与金钱而做出选择，让他们可以按“点播”方式购买，或者以订阅方式无限访问内容，甚至也可以同时结合这两种方法。

混合付费模式的最大优势便在于能够避开订阅模式所造成的人为收益上限，而最大程度地提高每用户平均收益。

3.无障碍、可信赖的支付选项

购买过程每多一个步骤以及点击，都会增加玩家的支付障碍。障碍越多就意味着付费转换率越低，开发者能够获得的收益也就越少。

通过支付网关收取费用也会影响开发者的微交易利润。

PlaySpan等服务提倡无障碍支付体验，即让用户始终依附于游戏或应用，而不是将其引向他们根本不熟悉的网站，从而不愿意返回游戏。这种做法有助于提高付费转换率并帮助开发者获得更大的利益。

需要到其它网站付费的设置会让用户在行动之前不得不再三考虑这么做的可行性。他们会疑惑为什么要这么做？这个网站是否可信？谁来担保它不是一个诈骗网站？

带着种种疑惑，用户可能会最终失去购买欲望，并且再也不会回到你的网站中。

为用户提供一个快速，安全，方便且无障碍的支付选项，需要减少支付过程中需要点击的内容，如此才能让用户长时间留在你的网站中，并更有可能购买你的虚拟商品。

4.将品牌扩展成一种无缝体验

你已经投入了很多时间，精力和资金建立起一个稳定的游戏品牌，为何不进一步扩展这一品牌，为玩家提供无缝游戏体验从而让他们更加信赖游戏？

关于游戏付费，很多在线项目都通过第三方技术强迫用户离开网站而到其它页面完成支付，但是这种做法不利于树立品牌。

比起将信用卡信息暴露给其它不甚熟悉的网站，用户更愿意在自己所熟知且信赖的供应商网站上进行在线支付。

通过为用户创造一个首尾相连的无缝体验，不仅能够加强用户对于游戏的忠诚度，而且也能够提高付费转换率以及每用户平均收益。

PlaySpan_system(from gamasutra)

5.简化的综合性全球报告

你需要获得关于收益，支付方式，交易，转换率，每用户平均收益，每次交易平均收益以及其它关于财务和付费的详细数据信息，以便完善你所提供的内容并进一步发展你的业务。

如果你使用的是世界各地的支付处理器，那就意味着你需要应对多种不同版本的报告，如果可能的话，你最好自己编译一个稳定可行的数据报告，并创造出更加有效的经营策略。

PlaySpan的统计报告支持开发者进入一个统一的报告门户就能同时掌握自己全球交易的所有相关数据。

通过轻松地追踪数据并查看清晰简明的报告，你能够有效地掌握自己的业务在不同时间段的发展状况，并且更深入地洞察用户和业务驱动力。

6.进一步了解用户

如果你已经创造了一份精确的报告，你便可以利用其中的分析数据进一步挖掘用户行为，从而不断优化他们的在线体验。

如果在线游戏，应用，社交网站以及网络服务开发者能够深刻理解用户的喜好，便能够更好完善用户体验而满足更多用户需求。

PlaySpan中用于追踪重要用户数据（包括应用的具体收益，国家，支付方法，商品，用户，交易，转换率以及结算等）的关键性能指标能够帮助你进一步强化并扩展关于用户习惯，兴趣和喜好的相关知识。

进一步加强网上商店与市场解决方案，优化用户界面，微交易方式和订阅选择，防治欺诈行为，妥善管理风险，并利用灵活的支付网关，便能够创造出一个重组且经过优化的虚拟商品支付系统，为开发者带来诸多益处。

合理借鉴上述中的各种方法，开发者便能够有效地强化用户的在线支付体验，树立起用户对游戏的信赖感，并提高付费转换率，最终为自己赢得更多收益。

（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，拒绝任何不保留版权的转载，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

Sponsored Feature: Six Best Practices for Retooling Your Virtual Goods Payment System to Increase Conversions

by PlaySpan

Background

According to published research, revenues from virtual goods are growing as much as 40 percent per year and U.S. sales could reach $2.1 billion in 2011 and $2.4 billion during 2012, with an even stronger global market (over $7 billion3), due to strong growth in Asia. Thus, every virtual goods and services provider — from games to smartphone apps, dating sites to social networks — should be scrambling for new ways to increase conversion rates and average revenue per user.

In the online gaming market, 31 percent of the general gamer population is now using real world money to purchase virtual content, according to a study by research firm VGMarket Database published in August 2011.Of those gamers who use real money, 57 percent told VGMarket that they purchase virtual items using real-world money at least once a month, and 72 percent plan to spend more in the coming year.

The VG Market study is consistent with a recent report from market research firm Frank N. Magid Associates which shows that one-in-four U.S. consumers age 13-54 purchased digital goods in 2011, which represents a 100 percent increase over 2009.

Previously, online purchases of digital goods by gamers in the U.S. were often paid for with credits earned from advertising offers, but now these enthusiastic consumers are migrating to real world payment for digital goods using debit, credit and prepaid cards. It’s important to note that these fundamental conversion tactics apply to all types of digital content, not just to games.

So, how do developers increase conversions and average revenue per user? And how do they know how their numbers stack up against their competition?

There’s also a fundamental question for every virtual goods business: What should I be doing proactively every day to increase my sales and conversions?

With your focus rightfully on your core business, there isn’t time or manpower to address the complexities of monetization and payment on a global scale. Lack of dedicated resources shouldn’t slow you down when there’s a world of business to be won.

Just as critical, developing and deploying a secure, effective and efficient monetization and payment solution is a significant challenge that would take an overwhelming amount of in-house time and effort, well beyond the means of most content developers.

This article describes several best practices for increasing conversions, compiled from the real-world experiences of some of the world’s leading purveyors of online virtual goods.

1. Make it Easy for Everyone, Everywhere

Online customers have come to know and trust their local payment methods, you should make it easy for them to pay, from anywhere in the world, with personalized, localized payment methods.

Here’s a critical point to consider as you expand your business into new countries and new markets: Pricing your products or services in dollars or another non-local currency and introducing new and unfamiliar payment options may slow customer acceptance of your offering. This means you should always make local currency an option.

Most payment and monetization solutions offer only a few payment options, limiting global reach and reducing conversion rates. Using settlement providers scattered around the world is inefficient at best, and creates its own logistical and cultural challenges.

An invaluable best practice is to align yourself with a global payments strategic partner to localize currencies and payment methods and thereby increase your conversions by ensuring that customers are buying in a familiar, trusted environment.

2. Convert Free Users into Paying Customers

You’ve built a sticky Application or site and implemented a successful marketing plan to attract a multitude of free users. Now, how do you convert those free users into paying customers?

One of the best options is to offer compelling payment models (subscriptions, pay-to-play, or a hybrid of the two) and accept payment in virtual currencies with a transparent, easy-to-use interface for virtual goods microtransactions.

By making access to premium content and bonus activities easy and available, you may lower the barrier to entry and transform free users into loyal, paying customers. You also create a stable recurring revenue stream as users continue to refill their digital wallets and become more engaged with your games or Applications.

Hybrid payment models typically give customers choices in terms of time versus money, so they can get in on a game with à la carte purchases, buy a subscription for unlimited access, or some combination of the two.

A hybrid payment model’s most significant benefit is that the artificial revenue caps that come with subscriptions are removed and average revenue per user (ARPU) can increase, often significantly.

3. Deliver Frictionless, Trusted Payment Options

Every step they take and every click they have to make to complete the purchase process creates friction for your customers. More friction means fewer conversions and lower revenues.

Fees charged by payment gateways may also make microtransactions unprofitable.

PlaySpan pioneered the frictionless payment experience, keeping customers engaged in the game or app, rather than sending them off to another site from which they may never return. The result may be increased conversions and more revenue.

Jumping to another site for payment causes theuser to think twice before continuing. What just happened? Is this site trusted? How do I know it’s not a fraudulent site?

Just raising these questions creates an opportunity for the consumer to walk away from the purchase, possibly never returning to your site.

By offering customers a fast, safe, convenient and frictionless payment option requiring fewer clicks, you’ll keep them on your site longer, with a greater likelihood of making more purchases.

4. Extend Your Brand into a Seamless Experience

You’ve spent countless hours of effort and funds building a solid brand, so why not extend your brand to build trust by offering a seamless user experience?

When it comes time to get paid, some online businesses execute third-party technology that forces the user off-site to a payment page that doesn’t match their brand.

Your customers will be much more comfortable making an online payment if they know and trust the provider they are paying, rather than giving their credit card information to a new or unfamiliar source.

By creating a seamless, end-to-end brand experience for your customer, you can increase customer loyalty, conversion rates and average revenue per user.

PlaySpan’s payments and digital goods monetization platform includes the UltimatePay Lightbox, an innovative, seamless user interface that delivers a frictionless in-application payment flow, and empowers you to dynamically present users with rich, multifaceted options that drive monetization.

The platform also provides customizable templates that ensure your customer experiences only your brand on your site. Advice from PlaySpan usability experts will guide you through the development of an optimized online customer experience, based on more than twelve years of PlaySpan’s data-driven work in the field.

5. Simplify and Consolidate Global Reporting

You need detailed, accurate numbers on revenue, payment method, transactions, conversion rates, average spend per user, per transaction and other detailed financial and payment statistics so you can make the right decisions to improve your offerings and grow your business.

Using multiple payment processors around the world means you’ll be looking at multiple reports that make it difficult, if not impossible, to compile valid, actionable data reports and develop more effective business strategies.

PlaySpan’s statistical reports give you access to a single consolidated reporting portal with all of your global transactional data.

By tracking data in a meaningful way with minimal effort and reviewing clear and concise reports, it’s much easier for you to understand what’s happening in your business at all times, giving you deep, actionable insights into your customers and your business drivers.

6. Know Your Customers More Intimately

After you’re armed with accurate reporting, you can dig deeper into customer behaviors by leveraging robust analytics to optimize their online experiences.

Developers of online games, applications, social networks and Web services that intimately understand their customers’ preferences will do a better job of keeping those customers satisfied.

Your knowledge of your customer habits, interests and preferences will be deepened and amplified by PlaySpan’s key performance indicator dashboard that tracks critical customer data including detailed revenue by application, country, payment method and product, along with users, transactions, conversions and settlements.

PlaySpan’s customer support team, consisting of payment and monetization consultants, will work closely with you to help you understand the meaning behind the data, create a roadmap for optimizing your game or site, and implement the changes that drive increased conversions and average revenue per user.

Enhanced with the Industry leading optimized storefront and marketplace solutions, optimized user interfaces, micropayment wallet and subscription options, fraud prevention, risk management and the world’s most flexible payment gateway, a newly retooled and optimized virtual goods payment system may pay big dividends.

By leveraging some or all of the proven methods presented here, developers can enhance their users’ online payment experience, build trust, increase conversions and grow their revenues and profits.

PlaySpan will be happy to discuss our monetization capabilities that match your business needs. Contact us today.(source:GAMASUTRA)