Payment fraud is the unauthorized use of payment methods or personal information to make illegitimate transactions, resulting in financial losses for merchants, consumers, or financial institutions.

Friendly fraud occurs when customers make legitimate purchases but later dispute the charges with their bank, claiming the transaction was unauthorized, often to avoid paying or return policies.

Two-factor authentication (2FA) is a security process that requires users to provide two different verification methods—typically something they know (password) and something they have (phone/token)—to access accounts.

BIN (Bank Identification Number) is the first 6-8 digits of a payment card number that identifies the issuing bank, card type, and geographic location for transaction routing and processing.

CVV (Card Verification Value) is a 3 or 4-digit security code printed on payment cards, used to verify that the person making an online or phone transaction physically possesses the card.

ACH (Automated Clearing House) is an electronic network that processes batches of credit and debit transactions in the US, enabling direct bank-to-bank transfers like direct deposits and bill payments.

Product bundling is a marketing strategy where multiple related products or services are packaged together and sold as a single unit, often at a discounted price compared to buying items separately.

Cross-selling is a sales technique where customers are offered complementary or related products alongside their main purchase to increase the overall transaction value and enhance their experience.

A downsell is a sales technique where customers who decline an initial offer are presented with a lower-priced alternative to still capture a sale and prevent complete loss.

An upsell is a sales technique where customers are encouraged to purchase a more expensive or premium version of a product they're already buying to increase average order value

Cart abandonment occurs when online shoppers add items to their shopping cart but leave the website without completing the purchase, typically due to unexpected costs, complex checkout, or payment issues.

Pay by link is a payment method where merchants send customers a secure URL via email, SMS, or messaging apps, allowing them to complete transactions without visiting a website or app.

3D Secure is an authentication protocol that adds an extra security layer to online card transactions by requiring cardholders to verify their identity through passwords, SMS codes, or biometrics.

SCA (Strong Customer Authentication) is a European regulatory requirement that mandates two-factor authentication for online payments, using two of three elements: knowledge, possession, or inherence.

Secure Remote Commerce (SRC) is a payment standard that enables consistent, secure checkout experiences across online and mobile platforms using tokenized payment credentials and biometric authentication.

Payment methods are the various ways customers can pay for goods and services, including credit cards, debit cards, digital wallets, bank transfers, cash, and alternative options like BNPL.

An interchange fee is a fee paid by the merchant's bank to the cardholder's bank for each card transaction, set by card networks to compensate issuers for processing and risk.

PAN (Primary Account Number) is the unique identifier on payment cards, typically 14-19 digits long, that identifies the card issuer and cardholder account for transaction processing.

The payment lifecycle is the complete journey of a transaction from initiation to settlement, including authorization, capture, processing, clearing, and final fund transfer between parties.

Payment authorization is the process where a payment processor verifies that a customer has sufficient funds or credit available and approves or declines a transaction in real-time.

A payment service provider (PSP) is a third-party company that enables businesses to accept electronic payments by connecting merchants to payment networks, banks, and card schemes through a single integration.

PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) is a set of security requirements designed to protect credit card data during processing, storage, and transmission by merchants and service providers.

A cross-border payment is an international money transfer where the sender and recipient are located in different countries, involving currency conversion and international banking networks.

A payment gateway is a secure technology that processes and authorizes online transactions by transmitting payment data between merchants, customers, and financial institutions.

BNPL (Buy Now, Pay Later) is a payment option that allows consumers to purchase items immediately and split the cost into smaller, often interest-free installments over time.

P2P payments (peer-to-peer) are direct electronic transfers between individuals using mobile apps or online platforms, bypassing traditional banking intermediaries for instant money transfers.

A digital wallet is a secure electronic application that stores payment methods, personal information, and credentials, allowing users to make contactless transactions online and in-store without physical cards.

Transaction routing intelligently directs payments through the optimal processor or gateway based on factors like success rates, costs, and compliance requirements to maximize approval rates and minimize fees.

Payment routing is the process of directing transactions through the most optimal payment processor or gateway based on factors like cost, speed, and risk to maximize approval rates and minimize processing delays.

Payment orchestration acts as a unified conductor for complex payment ecosystems, seamlessly managing multiple gateways, methods, and currencies while enhancing security and compliance across global transactions.

Re-engagement campaigns are targeted efforts to reconnect with inactive customers through personalized messaging. They aim to restore interest, prevent churn, and bring dormant subscribers back to active usage.

Smart retry uses intelligent algorithms to automatically reattempt failed payments at optimal times. Unlike basic retries, it considers decline reasons, customer patterns, and success data to maximize recovery chances.

Revenue backlog is contracted future revenue from existing customers that hasn't been recognized yet. It includes remaining value from multi-year contracts and prepaid subscriptions, helping predict future cash flow.

Payment reconciliation is the process of matching and verifying payment transactions across different systems to ensure accuracy. It helps businesses identify discrepancies, prevent errors, and maintain clean financial records

Account Updater automatically updates expired or changed card information to prevent payment failures. It keeps recurring payments flowing smoothly by syncing with card networks to get updated payment details.

Merchant Advice Code (MAC) provides specific guidance on how to handle declined transactions. These codes tell merchants whether to retry immediately, wait, or try a different approach to maximize payment success.

Card on File is the secure storage of customer payment information for future transactions. It enables faster checkouts and recurring billing without customers re-entering card details each time.

Renewal rate measures the percentage of customers who renew their contracts or subscriptions. It reflects customer loyalty and satisfaction. Simple example: 80 out of 100 customers renew = 80% renewal rate.

Revenue churn measures the percentage of recurring revenue lost from existing customers through cancellations and downgrades. Unlike customer churn, it focuses on dollar impact, making high-value customer losses more visible.

Net Dollar Retention (NDR) measures how much revenue you retain and grow from existing customers over time. Above 100% means you're growing revenue even with some churn. Top SaaS companies target 110%+ NDR.

Rebill success rate measures the percentage of successful automatic payment attempts for recurring subscriptions. A high rate means fewer payment failures and better revenue retention for subscription businesses.

A chargeback dispute happens when cardholders challenge transactions on their credit card statements to reverse charges. Usually triggered by undelivered products, services not as described, or fraud concerns.

Chargebacks let consumers dispute transactions and get refunds through their bank instead of the merchant. It's consumer protection for fraud or unsatisfactory purchases, but frequent chargebacks can seriously impact businesses.

Pre-dunning is the proactive approach of reminding customers about upcoming payments before they're overdue. It involves friendly notifications that help customers prepare and stay informed, preventing payment issues before they start.

Smart Dunning combines automation with data-driven insights to optimize payment collection. It uses intelligent algorithms to personalize communication timing and messaging based on customer behavior, improving recovery rates over traditional methods.

The dunning process is a systematic series of communications businesses use to collect outstanding debts. It involves staged reminders that vary in intensity based on how overdue the payment is and the customer relationship.

Dunning is the systematic process of communicating with customers about overdue payments. It involves staged reminders from gentle nudges to serious notices, helping businesses maintain cash flow while recovering unpaid accounts.

Payment method optimization refines checkout payment options to create seamless, user-friendly experiences. The goal: reduce cart abandonment and increase conversions by offering the right payment methods at the right time.

Expansion MRR tracks revenue growth from existing customers through upsells and upgrades. It shows how well you're growing accounts vs just acquiring new ones. Formula: New MRR from current customers minus churned MRR from current customers.

Involuntary churn occurs when customers are lost due to payment failures or technical issues, not by choice. Unlike voluntary churn, these customers want to stay but can't due to expired cards, failed transactions, or account problems. This creates unexpected revenue loss that businesses can prevent with proper payment recovery systems.

Headless CRM separates customer data management from the user interface, allowing businesses to use any frontend while keeping powerful backend customer management. This flexible approach lets companies create custom experiences without being limited by traditional CRM interfaces.

A Payment Orchestration Layer is a central hub that combines different payment methods, fraud protection, and compliance systems into one simple interface. It helps businesses manage complex payments more easily instead of handling each payment type separately

A commerce engine is the core system that powers online stores, handling product listings, payments, inventory, and customer data. It connects all the pieces needed for online selling to work together smoothly and create better shopping experiences.

A monolithic commerce platform is one big software solution that handles all parts of online selling - inventory, payments, customers - in a single system. Everything is built together, making it simpler to use but less flexible than modular approaches.

Composable commerce lets businesses build custom online stores by picking and choosing the best tools for payments, inventory, and customer experience. This flexible approach helps companies create unique shopping experiences and quickly adapt to changes.

Headless commerce separates frontend customer experience from backend operations, allowing businesses to use any frontend technology while leveraging powerful backend systems. This architecture provides flexibility to create unique, tailored online experiences without platform constraints.

An automation workflow is a series of automated processes that streamline business operations using technology to complete tasks without human intervention. It creates cohesive systems where various tools work together efficiently for maximum productivity

Webhook integrations enable real-time communication between software applications by sending instant data when specific events occur. Instead of constantly checking for updates, apps receive automatic alerts for events like new signups or transactions.

API integration connects different software applications to enable seamless communication and data exchange. It creates interconnected systems that work together efficiently, like payment gateways communicating with e-commerce platforms automatically

Business Intelligence (BI) uses technologies and strategies to collect, analyze, and present business data for informed decision-making. It transforms raw data into meaningful insights through collection, analysis, and visual dashboards.

Current ratio measures a company's ability to cover short-term debts with short-term assets. Calculated as Current Assets ÷ Current Liabilities, it reveals liquidity position and operational efficiency. Essential for assessing financial stability.

Email deliverability is the ability of emails to reach recipients' inboxes instead of spam folders. It's crucial for email marketing success, directly impacting engagement rates, conversions, and business results. Poor deliverability wastes marketing efforts.

Deferred revenue (unearned revenue) is payment received for goods/services not yet delivered. Under accrual accounting, it's recognized as income only when earned, not when cash is received.

Multi-channel dunning uses email, SMS, phone calls, and direct mail to collect overdue payments strategically. This approach tailors communication to customer preferences, improving debt recovery while maintaining respectful, varied contact methods for better results

Pay As You Go (PAYG) is a flexible pricing model that charges customers only for actual usage of a service or product, rather than fixed fees. Perfect for businesses wanting usage-based billing that scales with customer consumption.

Subscription boxes are curated product packages delivered regularly (usually monthly) to subscribers. They offer convenience and discovery for consumers while helping businesses build loyal customer bases across diverse categories like beauty, food, and lifestyle.

Subscription management is the process of overseeing recurring billing, renewals, cancellations, and customer data for subscription-based businesses. It's the backbone that ensures seamless service delivery and payment collection for companies relying on recurring revenue models.

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) = total marketing & sales spend ÷ new customers acquired. It's your cost per new customer. Example: $10K spent ÷ 100 new customers = $100 CAC. This metric is crucial for evaluating marketing efficiency and overall business profitability.

Customer Lifetime Value (CLV): The total revenue a customer generates throughout their relationship with your business. Calculate it to optimize acquisition costs, retention strategies, and predict future revenue streams. Smart companies focus on maximizing CLV, not just individual transactions.

Customer churn is when customers stop using your product or service. It signals dissatisfaction or better alternatives—and directly affects your revenue and growth. Know it, track it, fix it.

Maintaining clean, accurate & current data through error detection, deduplication & standardization. Like a healthy diet for databases—directly impacts business intelligence, decision-making & customer satisfaction.