Payment methods play a big role in the overall experience of the customer, so it’s important to get them just right. This can also help both you and everyone who is visiting your website, in order to make things easier and faster! If you are new to the website building, business running game, there are a few things to consider before you jump into choosing a payment processor. This is all to ensure that your customers are satisfied, and your business saved from any sort of losses! So here are some ideas on how to choose the right payment procedure solution for your business!
Separating the components
First of all, you need to understand that multiple parties are involved in payment processing – starting from you, the seller and your chosen bank, the customer or someone who is making a purchase from your business and the chosen technology to do so. It’s more complicated than just setting up a website and letting people buy your products. It’s a web of data and transactions between the given elements. The payment processing element ties these elements together, so it should always be done swiftly! Having a good payment processor is only going to make things easier for you and your customers, so make sure to choose the right one for your website! If you don’t have a good payment processor, it’s like having a faulty brick in the wall – your whole payment structure can collapse at any moment, a processor would work as a glue that keeps everything together so you should treat it that way!
How do payment transactions work?
To get a better understanding of how this process works, you need to consider all the steps that the data goes through. First, the customer places an item in their cart, they pay for it by using a credit or debit card. After this, the encrypted data needs to be processed by the third party – while the connection is being made with the customer’s bank account, which can either allow or deny the purchase depending on if they have enough money on their account. The last step is transferring the money to your chosen bank account! So it’s safe to say that the process seems rather simple, it only takes a few clicks but it’s actually more complex when you actually break it down!
How to choose the right payment processor?
Now that you have a better understanding of how it all ties together, you’ll need to choose the right processor for your business. There are a lot of elements to consider – remember that this is pretty important in the long run so you want to choose the right one. As you can see from mypaymentsavvy.com there are lots of solutions out there, for every chosen payment method. The processor is there to verify the data from your customers, approve payment requests and transactions, basically being the bridge between you and your customers. Here are a few things you should pay attention to when choosing a payment processor for your website:
Time-saving
Billing and processing can take some time – but since we live in a fast-paced society, you don’t want to make your customers wait. People are in a hurry all the time, the last thing they want to deal with is delays in transactions, this can only paint them a picture that your website is faulty and unusable. So having a time-efficient and sharp payment processor is a must to ensure that your customers are happy! That’s the sole reason why people opt for buying and paying for things online, it can be done anywhere and whenever you want!
Transparency and honesty
This is pretty straightforward – you want your payment processor to be transparent and honest about their services. You’ll need to know about the fees, the capacity that the processor can work for, and basically everything that’s under the agreement between two parties. This is a big commitment and knowing what you’re getting yourself into is necessary in order to make the right decision. There shouldn’t be anything complicated about it – you should be able to understand how the chosen processor works and how it can enhance your business in the long run! Having a slow and faulty payment processor is never a good idea, regardless if you have a small business or a large corporation, you never want to let down your customers that way!
Practicality
Practicality is the base of everything – if you want to run a successful business, focusing on this can help you a lot. For instance, it’s shown that more and more people nowadays use mobile phones to Google things and buy them, so having a mobile-friendly website for starters is a must! Getting a payment processor that is applicable both for your desktop website and your mobile one is necessary if you want to boost your success. Customers won’t take the time to switch to a desktop in order to purchase something, they are more likely to find a mobile-friendly version instead. So that’s why your business should definitely follow what customers prefer and get accustomed to it!
Having multiple payment options
Not only is it more practical to have multiple payment options, but it’s also better to let your customers choose how they want to pay. Regardless of whether it’s through PayPal, their debit card, their credit card, or something completely different – having more options can only open more doors for your business! This kind of flexibility will draw in customers and make them support your business again, having multiple choices just shows that you’ve taught everyone! New ways of payments are constantly being invented – such as crypto transactions. But you should stick to familiar and vastly used methods first before anything else!
Depending on your industry
Not all businesses are the same, it all depends on the nature of the industry, the size of the business – it’s good to do some research on what kind of payment processor is best for what type of business. Regulatory requirements can influence whether or not a processor is applicable to your business, as well as the financial risks that go with it. For instance, if you own a firearm shop, or if you are a marijuana seller – this also depends on the state and the laws that go along with it. This obviously limits your choices, but it’s not impossible to find good ones either, all you have to do is research the appropriate one that will go along with your business!
Remember the additional fees
All parties involved need to take some sort of fee, every transaction will be fined so you need to consider that aspect as well. Every time someone makes a transaction, money is bound to be lost on all ends, in order to make a profit, but also to satisfy your customers you need to find a fine line between this and make the costs as low as you possibly can. See how much your issuing bank is costing – this includes almost all cards such as Visa, MasterCard, and similar. But also if you and your customers are using PayPal to pay and receive, this payment service provider is also taking a percentage when going through a transaction. So having a pricing plan in advance is the best thing you can do. Keep in mind that there are also some hidden fees that are not openly disclosed, it’s up to you to double-check them and make sure that everything is priced accordingly and that the processor isn’t taking too big of a cut.
Best payment structures
Also, you should consider the best payment structures when choosing a payment processor. Many elements can contribute to this, depending on the market, the nature of the business, sales, and so on and so forth. For instance, having a flat rate that’s always the same – regardless if it’s an in-person purchase or an online one. This is a predictable and easily comprehensible tactic you can follow. On the other hand, an interchange fee plus a percentage might cost less, but it’s not as straightforward as a fixed fee. And these transactional fees can vary from one transaction to another – it all depends on what you are comfortable with, At least know that you have various options to choose from! If you are unsure of what to do in this scenario, try finding a financial advisor or someone with a bit of expertise that can transform your financial structure and put your business on the right track!
See what competitors are using
If you still have no clue on what kind of payment processing solution to consider, take a look at your competitors and what they are using. If there is a particularly successful business that’s similar to yours, try to find out how they work, what kind of payment structures they have, and hove – this data can be used to your advantage at the end of the day. First-time business owners should always seek guidance and inspiration from businesses that made it – the same can be applied for things such as finding a payment processor that works well. The data should always be encrypted, both ways, since sensitive information is involved – the responsibility falls on the processor to ensure the safety of that information, seeking a processor that has high-security standards and focuses on safe transactions is a must!
Have a secure website
Choosing a good payment processor and having a secure website go hand in hand. The last thing you want to experience is data losses, money and identity thefts, and other cyber attacks. Protecting yourself and your customers from fraud should be your number one priority – businesses can die down due to their brand image crumbling, no one wants to be known as the company that scammed their customers. A good payment processor will also deny any suspicious activity and risky transactions, so you’ll secure your business a bit more this way.
Customer support
Customer support is always needed, especially when dealing with money. You never know what kind of malfunction can happen on both ends, so having customer support that is always quick to help is a must. Customers want to feel safe and secure when going to your website and paying for their goods, And even if something were to happen, being able to call and complain about it is much needed.
Is it possible to change it?
Even though it’s best to find a suitable payment processor right away, sometimes that’s not the case. It’s good to know what you can change later on if you are unsatisfied with the service – some providers have a no-contract policy and you can cancel the service anytime without paying a large cancellation fee, whilst on the other hand, you might have to be under a strict contract. It all depends on one service provider to another, that’s why you should look at their cancellation policy before jumping into it! If possible, try to compare the processors you are interested in and see which one has the better features and policies, that way you can choose the best one for you!
Additional things to consider
It takes a lot to create a well-functioning business – especially an online one which involves so many other elements. From the design and layout of the website to the processing of the goods and placing them in the inventory, choosing a good processor that goes with your vision is a must. Doing a lot of research in order to find one might take a while – but it’s definitely worth it! It’s all in the details, so you should keep everything in mind when searching for the perfect payment processor for you. Why make things harder, when you can make things so much easier, right?
At the end of the day, the most important thing you should do is find a reputable solution that will enhance your business and satisfy your customers. So many things can go wrong when it comes to finances and data transactions, that’s why it’s so important to choose the right one for you. Instead of choosing just any processor that you come across, actually take the time to break it apart, look at the features, the costs, and all the agreements that should be disclosed between you and the service provider. It seems like a redundant thing, but every penny counts, and satisfying the customers is also on the line!
