Businessmodel of Braintree

Customer Segments

Braintree has a segmented market business model, with customer segments that have slightly different needs. It serves organizations that fall into the following five groups:

• Direct – Sell products/services directly to consumers or collect donations (e.g., foundations)
• Subscription-Based – Deliver products/services and bill customers frequently without interruption
• Marketplace – Hosts merchants and their products in a marketplace and splits payments with them
• Shopping Cart or Service Provider – Provides carts and other tools for Braintree merchants
• Contextual Commerce – Consumer platform that engages in on-the-spot commerce or vendor who wants more visibility in sales of products/services Braintree’s customers range from startups to leading online retailers. Its service is limited to those in the following countries/regions: U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Malaysia.

Value Proposition

Braintree offers four primary value propositions: accessibility, customization, risk reduction, and pricing.

The company creates accessibility by offering a wide variety of payment methods. Vendors can use it to accept most debit and credit cards, including Visa, American Express, MasterCard, Discover, Diner’s Club, and JCB. They can also accept payments through Android Pay, Apple Pay, Bitcoin, PayPal, and Venmo. Vendors can accept pay in more than 130 currencies, gaining more accessibility.

The company’s solution enables customized integration. Its basic feature, Drop-In UI Integration, offers a ready-made payment UI. The Custom UI Integration feature allows users to personalize their checkout flow through use of Braintree’s APIs.

The company reduces risk by offering advanced fraud protection. It uses the following fraud tools:

Address Verification System (AVS) – Confirms that address details match what bank has on file

Card Verification Value (CVV) – Ensures the verification number associated with Visa, Amex, Discover, and Mastercard cards is always validated

Risk Threshold – Identifies fraudulent parties based on speed of transactions in a given timeframe

The company offers attractive and transparent pricing. Merchants are not charged a fee for their first $50,000 in card processing volume (applies to any digital wallet/card transactions not occurring through Coinbase or PayPal). Following this, most transactions accrue a fee of 2.9% + $0.30. Beyond this charge, there are no monthly or minimum fees, or hidden costs for recurring billing.

Channels

Braintree’s main channel is its direct sales force, which acquires customers through phone and e-mail contact. The company also acquires customers and promotes its offering through its website.

Customer Relationships

Braintree’s customer relationship is primarily of a self-service nature. Customers utilize the service through the main platform while having limited interaction with employees. The company’s website offers a number of self-help resources, including articles, developer documentation (including client and server software development kits), and answers to frequently asked questions. That said, there is also a personal assistance element in the form of phone, e-mail, and live chat support.

Key Activities

Braintree’s business model entails maintaining and updating its platform for its merchant customers.

Key Partners

Braintree partners with third parties by integrating its offering into their solutions. The following partners’ products come equipped with its technology as well as a dedicated team for account management and support: 3dcart, Bigcommerce, Woo Commerce, and Yodle.

Key Resources

Braintree’s main resource is its proprietary software platform. It also depends on human resources in the form of its engineering staff for operating the platform, its sales staff for acquiring customers, and its customer service staff for providing support. Lastly, as a startup it has relied heavily on funding from investors, raising $69 million from five companies as of September 2012.

Cost Structure

Braintree has a cost-driven structure, aiming to minimize expenses through significant automation and low-price value propositions. Its biggest cost driver is likely transaction expenses, a fixed cost. Other major drivers are in the areas of customer support/operations and sales/marketing, also fixed costs.

Revenue Streams

Braintree has one revenue stream, transaction fees. They are as follows:

• A basic transaction fee of 2.9% +$0.30 (applies after customers pass $50,000 in volume)
• A fee of 1% for transactions presented outside of customer‘s home currency
• A flat $15 applied for chargebacks