How a Payment Gateway Can Help Your Business

Before we can see how a payment gateway will help your business, let’s first understand what it is. A payment gateway is a secure service provided by merchant service providers to merchants so that they can accept credit card payments online.

Payment gateway software integrates with the checkout option on your website and runs 24/7/365 so you can sell day and night, and customers can shop whenever it suits them. Once the software is integrated, you don’t have any further involvement until you are notified that an order has been placed and paid for online.

Just as with face-to-face payments, credit card transactions are immediately approved or declined, and you will receive reports updating you on the online transaction activity on your site.

What are the obvious benefits?

Having a business payment gateway comes with benefits that can include:

• Saving time for your business because customers can shop online without assistance
• Cost savings because you don’t have to spend time assisting customers
• Improved customer service because customers can shop online when it suits them
• Improved security because payment gateway software complies with strict security standards
• Improved brand confidence because your business is proactive
• Increased sales and profit

You need not worry that the existing security of your site will be compromised; all merchant service providers have to comply with the strict regulations of the financial services board as well as industry-specific regulations. So the security of your website and your customers’ secure credit card information is protected at all times.

There are hidden benefits as well:

You can use your business payment gateway in conjunction with a virtual terminal to process card payments manually. This allows you to accept card payments for telephone, email and even walk-in orders. You simply log in, enter your customer’s card details and get instant authorization.

And there are some other benefits too:

• Reports on transactions, chargebacks, and fees give you greater control
• Invoicing options are available to merchants
• Integration with existing accounting software
• Fraud detection means that suspicious activity may be immediately detected
• Automatic collection of recurring payments like subscriptions or memberships
• Improved marketing opportunities like offering great specials for a limited time: online payment means customers login as soon as they see the special offer

Keeping pace with what your customers expect is vital if you want your business to succeed. A payment gateway does exactly that. Convenient, secure online shopping is what people want and what will give your business the edge over your competitors. No matter what type of business you have or how small it is, understanding and meeting consumer expectations is key.

For more information about how a payment gateway will help your business, or to sign up for a merchant account, please call (888) 924-2743 or go to Charge.com.