For Zara Secret, it was clear: Klarna had to be on the checkout page for her event workshop "Science Secret". Now you can find out why she was right.

In the B2C sector, there are only a handful of payment service providers that cover pretty much the entire market. Klarna plays a prominent role among them. Zara Secret knows this too: it knows its customers and their needs, which is why the launch of "Science Secret" was out of the question without Klarna.

Zara Secret is a well-known influencer, cosmopolitan and entrepreneur with over 300 thousand followers on Instagram. She markets and sells her knowledge of lifestyle, psychology and management as an elopage flagship seller with great success.

Especially for the launch of her event workshop "Science Secret", we integrated Klarna as a new payment method for e-tickets and were thus able to successfully test the first Klarna case with her.

Successful test: Zara Secret and the secret of its success.

Anyone who knows Zara Secret knows that she did not grow up in a well-off family and had to work hard for her success. Today, she has several strong businesses and a considerable media reach. It has been a character journey full of challenges, but it has taught Zara that with determination and perseverance, anything is possible. Incidentally, her many actual journeys continue to inspire the businesswoman to excel to this day.

It is precisely this courage and willpower that she now wants to pass on - and empower other people to go their own way and realize their dreams. To this end, she is inviting 300 participants to her "Science Secret" event and workshop in Frankfurt am Main in June. In addition to talks and workshops, all guests will have the chance to gather inspiration for common goals and to network.

The coaching market is a private customer market.

It all started with Tony Robbins in the 1980s. But since 2020 at the latest, coaching, e-learning and seminars have been booming. Further training and personal development are no longer only sought in a corporate context, but are now a personal concern for many. Product prices can quickly reach the three- to four-digit range - there is hardly any upper limit.

In the B2B market, payment on account and by credit card are still preferred in online retail, sometimes also via direct debit. In the private customer sector, one payment service provider in particular has established itself with the growth of online retail: PayPal. 65% of Germans name PayPal and other digital wallets such as Apple Pay and Google Pay as their preferred payment method in online retail. PayPal stands for trust, acceptance and simplicity, but also for Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL).

However, another provider for private customers has established itself in recent years: Klarna. With 28 percent, it is currently the third most popular payment method. Klarna originally focused on the fashion industry and became well known through cooperations with H&M, for example. In the meantime, Klarna has become an indispensable online payment service provider.

These are the results of Zara Secret with Klarna in the checkout process.

The reseller Zara Secret was the first that Klarna wanted to test with us. Why? Because she knows her target group. And she was spot on with her assumption that Klarna would make a difference in the checkout. 

Within 24 hours, we were able to activate Klarna for them and set it up on their payment pages. In total, she focused on four payment methods, all of which are very popular in online retail:

• PayPal
• Apple Pay
• Credit card
• And of course Klarna

After just six hours, a relatively clear picture emerged: 45% of all orders were placed via Klarna. Her workshop was sold out overnight and the first Klarna test was a complete success. 

What was already foreseeable after six hours was also confirmed for the remaining purchases. Klarna was even able to beat the popular payment service provider PayPal with almost 45 percent. In addition to this clear victory for Klarna, another point also became apparent: 5 percent higher conversion, even with other payment methods.

Why exactly did Zara want Klarna in their checkout? According to Klarna, 60 percent of its customers are women. Klarna's financial products are used by all age groups, but for the younger generation in particular, Klarna is one of the first points of contact with financial products. Zara's customers are young, predominantly female and therefore fall exactly within Klarna's customer base.

That's why Klara is ideal for Zara Secret's business model.

Zara Secret qualified relatively quickly to use Klarna in the checkout. As a seller in the reseller model with a low chargeback rate , elopage was able to activate Klarna for her within 24 hours and set it up in the checkout. 

Another criterion for using Klarna is the provider's customer base. What many people do not know is that Klarna is purely a payment service provider for the private customer sector. Companies cannot create a buyer account with Klarna. This means that all purchases via Klarna are automatically private purchases and the invoices are also always addressed to private individuals. Zara Secret only sells the e-tickets for its seminar to private customers and therefore also fulfills this criterion.

The "Science Secret" event workshop is an e-ticket priced between 350 and 750 euros, depending on the category. Perfect, because Klarna only allows sales for up to 5,000 euros.
Zara's product is in the three-digit range, where customers are increasingly inclined to split the payment into installments or choose one of the buy-now-pay-later options.

The elopage data shows: For products costing 500 euros or more, 17 percent of our end consumers choose installment payment models; for products costing 1,000 euros or more, this figure rises to 24 percent. The higher the product price, the more likely customers are to prefer BNPL options.

How does the sales psychology behind Buy-Now-Pay-Later work?

Customers love Buy-Now-Pay-Later (BNPL), which is why 70 percent of all online stores offer this option. Behind this are well-documented psychological incentives to buy, which ensure that BNPL and therefore Klarna are so successful. What looks like simple kitchen psychology, Klarna proves with clear figures:

Up to 30 % more conversions through impulse purchases.

BNPL appeals to a human pleasure principle: Impulse purchases. And these can be realized immediately with Klarna. Even for products in the three- to four-digit range, these do not tear a big hole in the account. Customers now not only expect BNPL options in online retail, they take them for granted. A recognized brand like Klarna, which stands for acceptance and trust, provides security when shopping online and reduces concerns.

In the Zara Secret test: up to 25 % higher conversion at launch than with comparable e-tickets.

Up to 41% higher order values with Klarna.

Paying an invoice in 30 days or in installments shifts the perception of costs. As a result, purchases are perceived as less burdensome, increasing the incentive to buy. For higher-priced products in particular, customers benefit from the flexibility of splitting the price and paying later. The order can sometimes be slightly higher, as the amount does not have to be paid immediately.

In the Zara Secret test: 41% of VIP tickets sold with Klarna.

100% Klarna seller and buyer protection.

Security plays a major role when buying online. All too often you hear stories of fake stores and scams on the Internet. Just like PayPal, Klarna offers 100% seller and buyer protection, thus minimizing fear and risk. The Klarna logo already represents a kind of seal of trust and underlines the seriousness of a store. Simply having Klarna in the checkout is enough to increase conversions with other payment methods.

In the Zara Secret test: 5 % higher conversions with other payment methods for comparable e-tickets.

With Klarna, buying becomes a no-brainer.

Klarna is trusted by 150 million customers worldwide. With its own app, Klarna is the most widely used payment service provider for online shopping after PayPal, especially for purchases via smartphone. Purchasing via Klarna is almost second nature - no surprises in the checkout and an intuitive user interface make the purchase an absolute no-brainer.

In the Zara Secret test: 45% of all sales via Klarna.

The buy-now-pay-later trend: what risks do companies face?

For end consumers, the advantage of BNPL options is obvious: they receive the product immediately, but can flexibly postpone payment, even interest-free if they pay in three installments. For companies, however, this means a loss of liquidity. This has a negative impact on EBITDA and makes cash flow unstable.

• As flexible as installment payments are for customers, companies must comply with tax legislation and pay VAT in full with the first installment.
• From time to time, customers pay late or not at all, even though they have long since received the service.
• Of course, dunning procedures can be initiated, but they are costly and time-consuming.

Why are these risks eliminated with Klarna?

elopage also offers an integrated dunning process and debt collection, installment payment models or purchase on account. So why do you still need Klarna?

Checking the creditworthiness of customers

Klarna not only caps the seller's offers at 5,000 euros per product, but also checks the creditworthiness of the end consumer. Infinite shopping with later payment terms and thus customer debt is thus automatically prevented.

Own dunning system

If payment defaults do occur, Klarna takes care of the dunning process independently. Klarna bears the risk of non-payment itself. To protect itself here, Klarna checks both providers and customers to minimize the risk of misuse - on all sides.

Immediate liquidity

No more unstable cash flow: Klarna eliminates this risk because you are credited with your earnings immediately after a purchase. Klarna then takes care of further processing. Transaction fees are charged for this, but you don't have to wait long for payment terms or installment payments and always receive your earnings immediately.

Klarna in combination with other payment methods.

As you have seen, Zara Secret also offers other payment methods in addition to Klarna. Even though BNPL and Klarna are standard for many customers, there are also proven payment models that also fall under BNPL. Offering them as an alternative to Klarna helps you to provide 90% of all visitors with the right payment method.

Purchase on account

At 43 percent, purchase on account is still the second most popular payment method in online retail - and should therefore not be missing from any checkout page. Regardless of Klarna, you can sell on account via elopage and choose a flexible payment term.

Installment payment models

Installment payment models by direct debit or credit card are also popular payment methods that are also suitable for the B2B sector. You can decide for yourself how many installments the amount should be divided into. You may not receive the full amount directly, but you can at least collect the individual installments automatically.

Test period

Some products like to be tested before a binding purchase is made. You don't buy an expensive car without a test drive. Trial periods are an opportunity to build long-term and trusting customer relationships, especially with extensive online courses, webinar series or other long-term products. Depending on the payment method, the amount can also be automatically debited at the end of the trial period.

Security for all BNPL options

Whether with or without Klarna: the range of different payment plans and methods is often decisive. And even if there are payment defaults, elopage offers an automated dunning and debt collection system that allows you to recover up to 80 percent of your outstanding receivables without any manual effort.

Here's what's next for you.

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