Creating unified, frictionless customer journeys: insights from Adyen at Manhattan Exchange

Earlier in the year, Barcelona became the hub for retail and supply chain innovation during Manhattan Associates' annual event, Exchange 2024, hosting industry leaders and innovators who gathered to discuss the future of retail and supply chain distribution.

A key part of the supply chain commerce transformation is the partnership between Adyen, a global financial technology platform solving payment complexity and providing solutions to adapt to modern customer experiences.

The shared session shed light on how integrating payments creates unified and frictionless customer journeys, and how the partnership is empowering businesses to continue to deliver seamless, omnichannel experiences against a backdrop of exacting customer expectations

Integrating Payments for Seamless Customer Experiences

In today’s retail landscape, where customers expect a consistent experience across multiple touchpoints and platforms, the integration of payment solutions plays a pivotal role. According to the Adyen Retail Report 2024, businesses that adopted unified commerce recorded a 10% higher revenue growth in 2023 compared to the annual average.

This demonstrates the direct impact of integrating payments and creating a cohesive system that enhances the overall shopping experience, something that Manhattan’s own Unified Commerce Benchmark reports also emphasise.

Cheliyan Pancras, Director, Commercial Partnerships at Adyen, emphasised that, “Adyen’s mission is to provide businesses with the tools they need to bridge online, in-store, and mobile payments seamlessly. By doing so, both Adyen and Manhattan aim to streamline the entire customer journey, ensuring that every interaction, both at the back-end and front-end, regardless of channel, is frictionless and efficient.”

David Fontaine, Senior Sales Director at Manhattan, further elaborated on how Manhattan’s Order Management System (OMS) and Point of Sale (POS) solutions are at the forefront of this transformation. “Together, these solutions enable retailers to manage their inventory, fulfil orders, and process payments in a way that is both scalable and flexible, catering to the ever-changing needs of modern consumers. The OMS and POS systems seamlessly integrate with Adyen’s payment platform, creating a unified system that not only simplifies the checkout process but also enhances the overall customer experience too.”

Personalisation: The Key to Future Retail Success

Personalisation is increasingly becoming a decisive factor in consumer behaviour: according to Adyen data, 40% of businesses reported a better understanding of customer behaviour when they embraced unified commerce, which also allowed them to target and market more effectively.

Today’s consumers demand more than just transactions; they seek tailored experiences that align with their preferences and habits.

With Adyen’s payment solutions, businesses gain valuable insights into customer behaviour, enabling them to create personalised offerings that foster loyalty. And, when these insights are combined with Manhattan’s OMS and PoS capabilities, retailers can tailor their services to meet customer needs at every stage of the journey, from personalised promotions to unified loyalty programs that operate across channels and platforms.

Shaping the Future of Retail

As the retail sector becomes increasingly complex, the need for efficient, integrated solutions is evident. The growing partnership between Adyen and Manhattan (underlined by Adyen’s ‘Technology Partner of the Year’ award at Exchange) marks a significant step forward for retailers seeking to elevate omnichannel customer experience.

By merging payment technology with comprehensive retail management and supply chain systems, Adyen and Manhattan are equipping businesses with the tools needed to excel in the dynamic retail environment, ensuring they can meet consumer demands and foster the customer loyalty necessary for long-term success.