Make no mistake, the Dutch are a force to be reckoned with.
From its golden age in the 17th century to more recent times, the Netherlands has been a key financial, trading, and cultural hub in Europe.
While it may be dwarfed — literally and figuratively — by other countries in Europe, the Netherlands stands out as a formidable and potentially lucrative market for many businesses. Check out these head-turning facts:
- The Netherlands ranked first in the world for English proficiency, according to a 2020 analysis of 2.2 million test results from 100 countries and regions.
- J.P. Morgan estimated that the e-commerce market in the Netherlands was worth about 25.4 billion euros ($28.41 billion) in 2019, making it the fifth most valuable one in Europe behind Spain, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom.
- An estimated 97 percent of all Dutch households had broadband internet access in 2018 — well above the 86 percent average for European households as a whole at that time.
- As of 2018, 90 percent of all Dutch citizens between 16 and 74 years old used the internet on a daily basis, compared to the 76 percent average for the European Union as a whole.
For some time, many businesses that have thrived in the Dutch market had to find a way to accept iDEAL, a widely used payment method supported by all major banks in the country.
Over the years, iDEAL has consistently popped up as one of Jotform’s most requested payment processor integrations. While only partnering banks and payment service providers can have a direct connection to iDEAL, you can still use two of Jotform’s payment processor integrations to accept iDEAL payments through your online forms.
If you use Jotform’s payment integrations with PayPal Commerce Platform (PayPal Business) or Mollie, customers in the Netherlands can choose iDEAL as their preferred payment method. Whenever anyone fills out your online order form, donation form, or payment form and uses iDEAL to make a payment, they will be redirected to their bank’s website to approve the charge.
Why iDEAL is ideal for attracting customers in the Netherlands
While many payment processors were created to spur innovation within the banking industry, iDEAL was actually developed in 2005 by a consortium of Dutch banks at a time when growing numbers of people were buying goods and services online.
For people who are accustomed to online banking, iDEAL is a familiar, secure, and seamless payment option that’s automatically offered as a service by more than a dozen banks in the Netherlands.
Since online banking customers from these financial institutions don’t need to register for iDEAL before using it, they can make payments for goods and services through their own bank without exchanging sensitive financial information with merchants or third-party processors.
Whenever anyone makes an online purchase, picks iDEAL as their payment method, and selects their bank, messages are instantly relayed behind the scenes between the merchant’s bank and the customer’s. Once this happens, the customer is redirected to their bank’s website, where they log into their online banking account and authorize the payment. After a customer approves the payment, the amount is instantly debited from their account and sent to the merchant’s bank.
This payment process is particularly advantageous for merchants, since payments cannot be reversed or canceled once a customer authorizes a specific charge through their bank. The arrangement guarantees that merchants are paid immediately and get real-time confirmations during the process.
Apart from offering merchants some peace of mind, accepting iDEAL as a payment option has become almost a necessity for any merchant with customers in the Netherlands. A 2020 market analysis by J.P. Morgan found that bank transfers facilitated by iDEAL accounted for 65 percent of all e-commerce transactions in 2019. In its forecast, J.P. Morgan noted that iDEAL’s dominance in the Netherlands is expected to grow over time and eventually take up 72 percent of the overall payments market by 2022.
But iDEAL’s reach isn’t limited to the banks used by Dutch customers.
Merchants that have online bank accounts at participating financial institutions and payment service providers with a presence in the Netherlands can offer iDEAL as a payment option to customers. Meanwhile, merchants outside the Netherlands can offer iDEAL as a payment option to Dutch customers through dozens of third-party payment processors, including Mollie and PayPal Business.
How to enable iDEAL as a payment option in Mollie
In Europe, where there’s no dearth of payment service providers, Mollie stands out by providing customers and merchants alike with a wide range of local payment options that aren’t always offered by competitors.
More specifically, online merchants in Europe that accept payments in euros can allow customers in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom to select regional payment methods, such as iDEAL (the Netherlands), Przelewy24 (Poland), Giropay (Germany), and Belfius Bank (Belgium).
Offering a number of regional payment options enables merchants to reach a broad range of customers and provide familiar payment options during the checkout process.
Although accommodating all of these payment options in a single place is likely a very technical and difficult process, Mollie’s simple yet functional interface focuses on providing a seamless checkout experience for customers in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, regardless of how they want to pay.
If your company is based in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom, you can use Jotform’s integration with Mollie to collect donations from customers — as well as accept payments for products, subscriptions, or services.
Once you create a customizable order form, donation form, or payment form, search for Jotform’s Mollie integration under the Payments tab in the Form Elements menu.
Click on the Payment Settings wizard in the payment field to set up the Mollie integration.
Set the currency to euros — displayed in the settings as European Union Currency — and click on the Connect button to connect your Mollie account with the online form you’ve created.
Authenticate the integration with your online form by logging into your Mollie account through the popup window that appears on your screen.
After linking your Mollie account to the integration, use the Payment Settings menu to provide all of the details needed to collect donations or sell products, services, or subscriptions through your online form.
If customers select iDEAL as a payment method during the checkout process, they will be asked to select their bank on a new web page, log into their online banking account, and authorize the purchase. (An example of what this process will look like can be seen in the test transaction below.)
How to enable iDEAL as a payment option in PayPal Business
As one of the oldest and most recognizable digital wallets out there, PayPal has long been a favorite way for online merchants to collect payments from customers. It’s also a familiar way for online shoppers to pay for goods and/or services.
But merchants often face a significant hurdle when they want to expand their reach and attract prospective customers in other parts of the world.
While it’s common for payment service providers to accept a wide range of currencies, not all support an equal number of digital wallets and regional payment methods, such as iDEAL and Bancontact (in Belgium), which are becoming increasingly popular among online shoppers, especially those in Europe.
PayPal Commerce Platform is an attractive option for merchants that want to tap into new markets, accept payments in a variety of currencies, and offer customers more flexible ways to pay.
Rather than listing all of the different payment methods that are accepted by PayPal during the checkout process, customers will only see options that are supported in their country. For example, a customer in the Netherlands would only see iDEAL and Sofort as payment options, while a customer in Germany would see Bancontact and Sofort.
Since customers see only the payment options that they can use, it’s easier for them to buy products, goods, and services from your online store.
Jotform’s integration with PayPal Commerce Platform can help you create a seamless checkout experience for customers who want to purchase products and services through any one of your online payment forms or order forms.
PayPal Commerce Platform, shown as PayPal Business in Jotform’s payment processor integrations, is available only for online merchants that have a PayPal Business account.
After you’ve created a customizable, professional-looking, and embeddable online form, locate the PayPal Business integration under the Payments tabs in the Form Elements menu.
Click on the Payment Settings wizard in the payment field to set up the PayPal Business integration.
Set the currency to euros — displayed as European Union Currency — and click on the Connect button to link your PayPal account and online form.
Authenticate the integration with your online form by using the popup window on your screen to log into your PayPal account.
Once you’ve authenticated the integration and linked it to Jotform, use the Payment Settings menu to provide all the details needed to sell products, services, or subscriptions through your online form.
Conclusion
With a robust economy, as well as high rates of internet use and English proficiency, the Netherlands is a seemingly perfect market for any growing business that’s looking for new customers.
Accepting iDEAL as a payment method — and finding the right payment service provider to do it — will ultimately help you get your foot in the door and make some meaningful headway.
Jotform’s integrations with Mollie and PayPal Commerce Platform (PayPal Business) will enable you to accept iDEAL as a payment method through any one of your customizable and eye-catching online payment forms, order forms, or donation forms.
If you haven’t done so already, give Jotform’s integrations with Mollie and PayPal Commerce Platform a try today. See how we can help you grow your business and enter a promising market.
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