A payment gateway is a type of software that links securely between an eCommerce site and a customer’s preferred method of payment. This can include a credit or debit card, a bank account, gift card, or any online wallets.
There are numerous advantages to integrating a payment gateway into your website. You don’t have to implement and run the software, the connections, the hardware, or the security. Your payment gateway as a comprehensive solution takes care of it all, giving you less hassle and more time. This important tool is crucial to run your e-Commerce venture securely and successfully.
As you can already guess, as a proliferation of payment gateways have filled the market in recent years, you will need to do your research to make sure you choose the right payment gateway for your particular business. Choosing the wrong payment gateway could have many negative repercussions that are simply not worth taking a risk on.
So before you dive in on your search, keep these considerations in mind to ensure you make a well-informed choice.
Factors To Consider When Choosing A Payment Gateway
- Ensure Your Customers Will Be Safe: This is without question a very important factor to consider when choosing your payment gateway. Customers will not take out their credit cards and purchase on your site if they do not feel that their information is safe.
Make sure that the payment gateway is certified for security standards such as PCI-DSS. The PCI Standard is required by all major credit card brands.
- Examine all fees and service agreement requirements: Prices for payment gateways will largely depend on the type of transactions that your business carries out, the markets served, the frequency of transactions, and business sales, just to name a few.
Take a look at their fee structure, their setup fees, their contracts, and any other transaction fees.
- A variety of features: The payment gateway should come equipped with a host of different features based on your business needs. If you wish to sell products around the world, make sure that the payment gateway offers a global solution where you are able to accept various credit cards, debit cards, and currencies.
Also, see if the gateway offers text/email reminders for customers, chargeback Management, and electronic invoicing.
- Straightforward integration: Payment gateways are not exactly simple to integrate without outside assistance. Luckily, the most popular payment gateways on the market do provide simple, easy-to-follow instructions on how to integrate. The key is that the integration will not tamper with the customer service “user experience”. The goal is to make it easy for your customers to make their payments on your website and select their preferred mode of payment.
- Customer support: If you are not a DIYer when it comes to figuring out problems and are not comfortable with filling out support tickets or sending emails to resolve your issue, then you must ensure that your provider offers live technical support. Check their availability. Are they only available during office hours or do they offer their assistance 24/7? Choose what is best for your needs.
Closing Thoughts
Choosing the best payment gateway is not that difficult if you are clear on what your particular business needs. Also keep in mind what is beneficial to you as the business owner. By choosing the right payment gateway, not only will you delight your customers with an excellent and easy shopping experience, your revenue has no choice but to grow.